Master's Programme in Environmental Archaeology

About this programme

Specialize in Environmental Archaeology and learn to gather information to interpret ancient landscapes and environments through inventory, mapping and sampling. By mixing theory with practical exercises in the field and laboratory, you prepare for a career in a number of different disciplines and you can work both locally and globally with important societal issues such as sustainability, climate change and cultural environment work. This programme is offered every other year and that the next occasion will be in the autumn of 2027. Teaching builds on real problems and gives you a toolbox of methods for excavation, analysis, interpretation and presentation of archaeological data. At Umeå University you have access to a high-quality environmental archaeology laboratory throughout your education. During the degree programme you will build upon your existing knowledge of archaeology, Quaternary science, physical geography or related subjects. You will develop skills in methods for analysing environmental evidence in the form of plant and insect remains. You will also learn to read traces left in soils and sediments by studying their physical and chemical properties. Environmental archaeology is about understanding how people have impacted on, and interacted with, environments. By studying organic and chemical remains or artefacts using methods from the natural sciences you can build a picture of the role humans have played in different ecosystems. Within the field we study long time perspectives, from the end of the Ice Age until historical times, and include farming as