JOB REPORT / 19-3091 · 30 TASKS

Anthropologists and Archeologists.

Can AI do the work of Anthropologists and Archeologists?

Mostly it works alongside you. Here is what shifts, task by task.

YOUR EXPERIENCE MATTERS

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How many tasks do you use AI to assist with at work?

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The parts of your job AI can already do most of:

Consult site reports, existing artifacts, and topographic maps…
Compare findings from one site with archeological data from…
Write grant proposals to obtain funding for research

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A guided certificate program in AI-assisted Anthropologists and Archeologists work. It covers the 27 AI-affected parts of your job and ends in a capstone a person reviews.

WHAT WE LOOKED AT

Your job, task by task.

27 of 30 tasks reviewed

This job has 30 core tasks. We went through 27 of them, one at a time.

Task by task, from the work Anthropologists and Archeologists actually do. How we describe AI use in each task is our own read of it, not a measurement of whether AI can replace the job.

TASK 01
Consult site reports, existing artifacts, and topographic maps to identify archeological sites.
AI DOES
Scans site reports, cross-references artifact databases, and highlights map features that match known site patterns
YOU DO
Apply field knowledge and professional judgment to interpret ambiguous evidence and confirm site identifications
TASK 02
Compare findings from one site with archeological data from other sites to find similarities or differences.
AI DOES
Searches archaeological databases, pulls relevant site data, and drafts comparison summaries
YOU DO
Decide which patterns matter and what they reveal about past human behavior
TASK 03
Write grant proposals to obtain funding for research.
AI DOES
Drafts proposal sections, suggests budget language, and checks formatting requirements
YOU DO
Bring your unique research vision and build the relationships funders trust
TASK 04
Identify culturally specific beliefs and practices affecting health status and access to services for distinct populations and communities, in collaboration with medical and public health officials.
AI DOES
Searches literature, summarizes known cultural health patterns, and drafts background reports on specific communities
YOU DO
Build trust with communities, observe practices firsthand, and translate nuanced cultural meaning into actionable health guidance
TASK 05
Enhance the cultural sensitivity of elementary and secondary curricula and classroom interactions in collaboration with educators and teachers.
AI DOES
Drafts culturally inclusive lesson plan ideas, suggests diverse perspectives, and checks text for common cultural blind spots
YOU DO
Bring deep community relationships and cultural expertise to guide teachers through nuanced, context-specific conversations
TASK 06
Train others in the application of ethnographic research methods to solve problems in organizational effectiveness, communications, technology development, policy making, and program planning.
AI DOES
Drafts training materials, explains ethnographic concepts, generates case studies, and organizes curriculum
YOU DO
Read the room, adjust teaching on the fly, and model fieldwork judgment through lived experience
TASK 07
Assess archeological sites for resource management, development, or conservation purposes and recommend methods for site protection.
AI DOES
Analyzes site maps, searches land-use rules, and drafts protection recommendations
YOU DO
Walk the site, read the physical evidence, and make final judgment calls on what to protect
TASK 08
Collaborate with economic development planners to decide on the implementation of proposed development policies, plans, and programs based on culturally institutionalized barriers and facilitating circumstances.
AI DOES
Summarizes research on cultural barriers, drafts policy briefs, and flags relevant case studies from similar communities
YOU DO
Build trust with communities and make judgment calls about cultural context that no dataset fully captures
TASK 09SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Create data records for use in describing and analyzing social patterns and processes, using photography, videography, and audio recordings.
AI DOES
Transcribes audio, tags photos, and sorts recordings
YOU DO
Choose what patterns actually reveal truth
About this analysis
64% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 10
Advise government agencies, private organizations, and communities regarding proposed programs, plans, and policies and their potential impacts on cultural institutions, organizations, and communities.
AI DOES
Summarizes relevant regulations, past case studies, and cultural impact research to support briefings
YOU DO
Build trust with communities and apply lived fieldwork experience to make nuanced cultural judgments
TASK 11
Teach or mentor undergraduate and graduate students in anthropology or archeology.
AI DOES
Drafts lesson plans, explains concepts, answers common student questions, and gives writing feedback
YOU DO
Build trust with students, read the room, and guide personal and intellectual growth
TASK 12
Conduct participatory action research in communities and organizations to assess how work is done and to design work systems, technologies, and environments.
AI DOES
Summarizes research literature, analyzes survey and interview data, and drafts reports or design recommendations
YOU DO
Build community trust, observe real behavior in context, and co-create solutions with the people involved
TASK 13
Research, survey, or assess sites of past societies and cultures in search of answers to specific research questions.
AI DOES
Analyzes satellite imagery, searches past research, and helps map site data
YOU DO
Walk the land, handle artifacts, and judge what matters in the field
TASK 14
Develop intervention procedures, using techniques such as individual and focus group interviews, consultations, and participant observation of social interaction.
AI DOES
Drafts interview question sets, summarizes focus group notes, and suggests frameworks from research literature
YOU DO
Show up in person, earn community trust, and read subtle human behavior that no screen can capture
TASK 15SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Record the exact locations and conditions of artifacts uncovered in diggings or surveys, using drawings and photographs as necessary.
AI DOES
Creates detailed maps and catalogs artifact positions
YOU DO
Judge what details matter most
About this analysis
56% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 16
Gather and analyze artifacts and skeletal remains to increase knowledge of ancient cultures.
AI DOES
Identifies artifact types, spots patterns in data, and helps interpret cultural meaning from digitized records
YOU DO
Go to the site, handle the physical remains, and apply trained expert judgment to what you find
TASK 17
Apply traditional ecological knowledge and assessments of culturally distinctive land and resource management institutions to assist in the resolution of conflicts over habitat protection and resource enhancement.
AI DOES
Summarizes existing literature on traditional ecological knowledge, helps draft reports, and maps resource management patterns from data
YOU DO
Build community trust, interpret cultural context, and lead real negotiations between groups with competing interests
TASK 18
Participate in forensic activities, such as tooth and bone structure identification, in conjunction with police departments and pathologists.
AI DOES
Analyzes images of bones and teeth against reference databases to suggest matches or age/sex estimates
YOU DO
Handle physical specimens, apply expert judgment in ambiguous cases, and testify credibly in court
TASK 19SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Describe artifacts' physical properties or attributes, such as the materials from which artifacts are made and their size, shape, function, and decoration.
AI DOES
Scans and catalogs basic measurements and materials
YOU DO
Interpret cultural meaning and historical context
About this analysis
39% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 20SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Organize public exhibits and displays to promote public awareness of diverse and distinctive cultural traditions.
AI DOES
Generates exhibit layouts and promotional content ideas
YOU DO
Choose what stories truly matter
About this analysis
37% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 21SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Develop and test theories concerning the origin and development of past cultures.
AI DOES
Analyzes patterns in archaeological data and artifacts
YOU DO
Form meaningful theories about human behavior
About this analysis
34% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 22SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Study objects and structures recovered by excavation to identify, date, and authenticate them and to interpret their significance.
AI DOES
Scans images and suggests dates, materials, and origins
YOU DO
Judge context and cultural meaning
About this analysis
34% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 23SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Write about and present research findings for a variety of specialized and general audiences.
AI DOES
Drafts sections and adapts content for different audiences
YOU DO
Shape the story and deliver with impact
About this analysis
30% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 24SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Study archival collections of primary historical sources to help explain the origins and development of cultural patterns.
AI DOES
Scans documents and finds patterns across archives
YOU DO
Interpret what the patterns actually mean
About this analysis
29% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 25SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Plan and direct research to characterize and compare the economic, demographic, health care, social, political, linguistic, and religious institutions of distinct cultural groups, communities, and organizations.
AI DOES
Gathers data and identifies patterns across cultural dimensions
YOU DO
Design the study and interpret what matters
About this analysis
23% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 26SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Formulate general rules that describe and predict the development and behavior of cultures and social institutions.
AI DOES
Analyzes patterns across vast cultural datasets
YOU DO
Decide which patterns actually explain behavior
About this analysis
7% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium
TASK 27SOURCE-BACKED TASK
Collect information and make judgments through observation, interviews, and review of documents.
AI DOES
Organizes notes and highlights key patterns
YOU DO
Read between the lines and judge credibility
About this analysis
0% · Methodology: exposure-v1 · Analysis date: unavailable · Confidence: medium

START LEARNING AI

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Use your judgment.

There are 27 short lessons for this job, about 15 minutes each. Each one starts from a task above and teaches the part that stays with you.

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AT A GLANCE

Occupation: Anthropologists and Archeologists
SOC code: 19-3091
Tasks reviewed: 27 of 30

How we assess

PAY & OUTLOOK

Compare pay by state

Median pay (national): $70,770 · BLS OEWS 2025
Median pay (Colorado): $68,620 · BLS OEWS 2025
Employed (national): 8,990
Employed in Colorado: 250
Job outlook: +3.7% by 2034 · ~800 openings/yr

Wages from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. National figures cover the United States. Job outlook is national.

How does this fit your work?

Earn a certificate in your job

Your job, task by task.

Consult site reports, existing artifacts, and topographic maps to identify archeological sites.

Compare findings from one site with archeological data from other sites to find similarities or differences.

Write grant proposals to obtain funding for research.

Identify culturally specific beliefs and practices affecting health status and access to services for distinct populations and communities, in collaboration with medical and public health officials.

Enhance the cultural sensitivity of elementary and secondary curricula and classroom interactions in collaboration with educators and teachers.

Train others in the application of ethnographic research methods to solve problems in organizational effectiveness, communications, technology development, policy making, and program planning.

Assess archeological sites for resource management, development, or conservation purposes and recommend methods for site protection.

Collaborate with economic development planners to decide on the implementation of proposed development policies, plans, and programs based on culturally institutionalized barriers and facilitating circumstances.

Create data records for use in describing and analyzing social patterns and processes, using photography, videography, and audio recordings.

Advise government agencies, private organizations, and communities regarding proposed programs, plans, and policies and their potential impacts on cultural institutions, organizations, and communities.

Teach or mentor undergraduate and graduate students in anthropology or archeology.

Conduct participatory action research in communities and organizations to assess how work is done and to design work systems, technologies, and environments.

Research, survey, or assess sites of past societies and cultures in search of answers to specific research questions.

Develop intervention procedures, using techniques such as individual and focus group interviews, consultations, and participant observation of social interaction.

Record the exact locations and conditions of artifacts uncovered in diggings or surveys, using drawings and photographs as necessary.

Gather and analyze artifacts and skeletal remains to increase knowledge of ancient cultures.

Apply traditional ecological knowledge and assessments of culturally distinctive land and resource management institutions to assist in the resolution of conflicts over habitat protection and resource enhancement.

Participate in forensic activities, such as tooth and bone structure identification, in conjunction with police departments and pathologists.

Describe artifacts' physical properties or attributes, such as the materials from which artifacts are made and their size, shape, function, and decoration.

Organize public exhibits and displays to promote public awareness of diverse and distinctive cultural traditions.

Develop and test theories concerning the origin and development of past cultures.

Study objects and structures recovered by excavation to identify, date, and authenticate them and to interpret their significance.

Write about and present research findings for a variety of specialized and general audiences.

Study archival collections of primary historical sources to help explain the origins and development of cultural patterns.

Plan and direct research to characterize and compare the economic, demographic, health care, social, political, linguistic, and religious institutions of distinct cultural groups, communities, and organizations.

Formulate general rules that describe and predict the development and behavior of cultures and social institutions.

Collect information and make judgments through observation, interviews, and review of documents.

Practice AI.Use your judgment.

Practice AI.
Use your judgment.