Archaeological Fieldwork Opportunities
While IPCAA students are not required
to gain fieldwork
experience in order to earn their degree, in practice
almost all students spend time in the field. The nature
of this experience varies considerably, however, depending
on the student and her/his specific interests. ‘Fieldwork’
in this context also covers a wide range of methodologies
and techniques, including excavation, regional survey,
artifact analysis, and the restudy of material from
previous projects. IPCAA encourages students to acquire
a balanced view of what fieldwork entails, and to undertake
projects appropriate to their research concerns. Some
financial support for fieldwork expenses (especially
travel) are available from both IPCAA and the Rackham
School of Graduate Studies.
Many IPCAA students become engaged, and gain valuable
experience, with archaeological fieldwork sponsored
directly by the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology, which
has a long and storied history of activity in many parts
of the Mediterranean. Presently active field projects
involving IPCAA students include large-scale excavation
and remote sensing of Hellenistic and Roman levels at
a tell site, Tell Kedesh, in the northern Galilee, Israel
(under the direction of Professor Sharon Herbert), and
exploration and excavation of the Middle Kingdom cemetery
at Abydos in Egypt (under the direction of Professor
Janet Richards).
IPCAA students also frequently join archaeological
projects sponsored by other (non-University of Michigan)
universities, museums or related organizations. Often
this allows individuals more effectively to explore
geographical areas of particular interest to their research,
to learn particular analytic techniques, or to meet
and work with relevant scholars from other institutions
and, indeed, other countries. Students have worked on
such projects in, for example, Armenia, Croatia, Cyprus,
Greece, Italy, and Russia. IPCAA and other U-M faculty
can be of assistance in locating these opportunities.
 Yet
another way in which IPCAA students gain field experience
is through time spent at overseas institutions, such
as the American School of Classical Studies at Athens
(ASCSA) or the American Academy in Rome (AAR). A fieldwork
component normally forms part of their year (or summer)
programs for graduate students — for example,
the ASCSA’s training session at Corinth, Greece.
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