Archaeology is a career for those who have an acute interest and training
in culture and history. It is preferable for candidates to have a background
of ancient history and culture. The basic eligibility criteria for Bachelor
course in History/ Archaeology (i.e B.A level) of three-year duration, is
10+2 or equivalent. After graduation one can opt for a Post graduate Diploma
or Degree course in Archaeology.
Graduates in History in any stream with an aggregate of 55% marks can apply
for Diploma, Postgraduate Diploma or Post graduation (MA/ M.Sc.) in different
fields of Archaeology. Duration of these courses may vary from 1 year to 2
years. Admission to the two year Post Graduate Diploma course at the Institute
of Archaeology, the academic wing of the Archeological Survey of India in
New Delhi, is on the basis of a written exam and an interview.
At a higher level, those interested in conducting research on the various
branches of Archaeology can do Ph. D. But before applying for research fellowship,
they must have completed their post graduation.
Personal skills : The essential attributes needed
for an Archaeologist is a perceptive and probing mind, keen observation, analytical
and logical thinking. They must also possess creativity, accuracy and should
be able to recognize and appreciate arts. They should be adaptable to physical
stress and strain since they may have to work outdoors sometimes in uncomfortable
conditions. Besides dedication, a lot of patience is required since researches
in this field can take years on one project. In order to conduct archaeological
research, archaeologists need to be conversant with the Geo-physical conditions.
Course Areas : Numismatics, epigraphy, archives and museology
are the important branches of Archaeology. Applied Sciences, Theory and Methods
in Archaeology, Protohistory, Art, Museology, Chemical Preservation, Antiquarian
Laws etc. are some of the subjects covered in Archaeology. The course also
consists of a detailed study of illustrated manuscripts, fossils, inscriptions
and coins. Archaeology has a large number of sub- disciplines and specialisations.
Historical Archaeology, Ethno archaeology, Experimental archaeology , Archaeometry,
Computational Archaeology, Isotope analysis, Geoarchaeology, Bioarchaeology
are some of the specialisations. After doing the basics of the Archaeological
course, one can specialize in any of these fields.
In order to become an Archaeologist, the aspirant need to spend several years
training, taking tests and examinations, writing term papers and thesis and
doing continuous research. Apart from these, there will be field work where
one should observe the excavation of sites, analyzing the relics and monuments,
intern with a senior Archaeologist, learn new techniques of excavation and
practice using GPS tools and digging and also drawing and photography.
