Graduate Studies
Admission to the graduate program in Biological Anthropology and Anatomy is not contingent on any particular course of study at the undergraduate level. The goal of the graduate program is to provide students with a broad-based background in organismal biology with which to study the behavior, ecology, and evolution of primates. The three general areas of specialization in the department are: (1) behavior, ecology, and genetics; (2) paleontology, systematics, and evolution; and (3) functional, comparative, and developmental morphology. Students are encouraged to define a course of study that crosses these boundaries and that extends beyond the strict limits of primatology. Research opportunities include behavioral research at the Duke Lemur Center; ecological and behavioral fieldwork in Africa, South America, Asia, and Madagascar; paleontological fieldwork in Africa, South America, North America, and Madagascar; and laboratories in experimental functional morphology and comparative embryology. Courses of study are tailored to meet individual needs, but all students will be expected to take gross human anatomy, a course in statistics and experimental design, and at least one course in each of the subfields of the department.