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My Interest In Medical Anthropology

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Within the field of anthropology, one of my interests is in medical anthropology/public health. My main interest within medical anthropology is understanding health disparities. Medical anthropology allows me to take a holistic approach, something that I believe public health lacks, to analyze why certain populations have limited access to health care, nutrition, clean water, proper housing, education, etc. Additionally, it allows me to use a critical lens to examine power structures that affect health care access.
In addition to medical anthropology, I am also interested in educational anthropology. Unlike medical anthropology, I am not as familiar with educational anthropology. I did not come to the realization that it was a subfield until after I had Google searched anthropology and education. The first result was the Anthropology & Education Quarterly. It was not until then that I was aware of …show more content…

Similar to how primary and secondary schools “other” marginalized students, I believe higher education does as well. I want to focus on higher education not only because it is more accessible, but because I know that the struggles for some in grade school do not simply go away; rather, they become multidimensional. For my project, I would like to focus specifically on the experiences of students of color and how they feel “othered” in higher education.
I think what is unique about students of color in higher education is how often they are perceived to have “made it.” Certainty, people of color have fought hard for the right to make it to this point and walking across a stage with a diploma is, without a doubt, an accomplishment. However, it still does not mean they have to be content with the barriers they must face to make it to that point when not everyone faces those same

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Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States founded primarily for the education of African Americans. Prior to the mid-1960s, HBCUs were virtually the only institutions open to African Americans due to the vast majority of predominantly white institutions prohibiting qualified African Americans from acceptance during the time of segregation. As such, they are institutional products of an era of discrimination and socially constructed racism against African Americans (Joseph, 2013). Successfully, millions of students have been educated in spite of limited resources, public contempt, accreditation violations, and legislative issues. The purpose of this research paper is to discuss

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They claim, “...students of color are showing that they feel disconnected from their respective schools, that implicit yet institutionalized racism creates emotional distance between them and their white peers and faculty. Being a black student on a predominantly white campus certainly, doesn’t guarantee that the student will develop mental-health issues. However, various studies suggest that perceived or actual discrimination can make it hard for students of color to engage with their campus in the way that their white peers do.” This explains how students sometimes feel like they don’t get enough support from their universities and this is dangerous because it can lead that student to drop out of school.

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There are many differences between HBCU’s and PWI’s. “An Historically Black Institution were founded by people who believed African Americans and white students have an equal right to be educated” (Prager 1). Today these institutions function to preserve the history of African American culture, while providing students a safe and comfortable platform for educational enrichment (Roebuck 1). Predominately white institutions serve to educate all students, but since the majority of the population is white, the concerns of the majority students will be made a priority (Roebuck 2). Both types of institutions have a multitude of differences including funding, learning style, and school environment.

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I don 't believe any student should feel like they are not welcome and discriminated against at any college or university because they are paying their way for an education just like the rest of the student’s of different cultures. According to Hackman and Johnson (2013), “A crisis is any major unpredictable

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courses in college that have opened up my mind to the issue. The more information I learn about this issue, the more surprised I am that our society still exhibits bias, because as much as the United States preaches about equality, it appears as if society has segregation in minor ways. Although the debate between whether there are biased questions on the SATs or not seems to favor that there aren’t by popular opinions, there is still biased behavior occurring in school systems that prevent certain groups of students from getting the proper resources needed. Because I would like to work in an low-income area, which most likely would contain minorities, as a teacher I would make the effort to help those students get the sufficient help needed. This motivates me to become a part of the education field, because caring teachers are much needed in area like this.

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I have chosen public health as my major because it is a dynamic field. I have a passion for making a difference in people’s lives and helping others achieve their goals. It is with great passion that I am dedicated and willing to contribute my service or skills to help someone in need. My philosophy of health education is very simple, to prevent, improve and educate the lives of individuals, families, communities, populations, and societies. Besides, there is no safer way to touch people’s lives than through public health.

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