Dig the Neolithic: Archaeology Field School (2012)
Location: Ness of Brodgar, Orkney Islands, Scotland
Professor: Scott Pike, Associate Professor of Environmental and Earth Science
Credit: Earns 1.0 cr. of ARCH 355, Archaeology Field School or for students who have already taken ARCH 355, 1.0 cr. of ARCH 498, Advanced Archaeology Field School (pending course approvals).
Tentative Dates: July 22 - August 18, 2012 (with arrival on July 21st)
Application Deadline: March 1st, 2012
Application: Click here for the application. If you are a non-WU student applying, please skip the transcript request form and have your home university (AND any other universities you've attended) send an official transcript to: International Education, Willamette University, 900 State Street, Salem, OR 97301. Off campus applicants should also use this address for mailing the application to WU for evaluation and consideration. The transcripts must arrive by the application deadline for full consideration.
Costs: Estimated at $4,200 for WU students ($4,400 for non-WU students) based on 12 people. The program cost includes WU tuition, lodging, local transportation and ferry fees, travel insurance, museum fees and field trips. The program cost DOES NOT include meals so that students can economize as they choose with a suggested budget of $650 for food. Transportation to and from the island is NOT included (est. $1,800).
Scholarships: Willamette University students who are interested in participating in the field school are encouraged to apply to the Center for Ancient Studies and Archaeology Student Field School Grants that provide funding ($3,000) toward the cost of the program and travel to and from the site.
Information Session: TBA
The Willamette University Archaeology Field School offers students the exciting opportunity to experience The Heart of neolithic Orkney (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) first hand. Students from WU will work with the Orkney Research Centre for Archaeology as it unearths a "Neolithic cathedral" on the Ness of Brodgar. This excavation is redefining the understanding of the Neolithic World and was listed by the Archaeological Institute of America as one of the tope 15 "most significant discoveries of 2009."
More program information can be found at http://www.willamette.edu/centers/casa/archaeology_field_school/. This page also links to details about Ness of Brodgar and an article that appeared in the April 2010 edition of Current Archaeology. The site was also featured in National Geographic News in late January 2012, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/120127-stonehenge-ness-brodgar-scotland-science/?source=hp_dl2_news_stonehenge20120130.
For more information, contact Scott Pike (spike@willamette.edu) or oieadvising@willamette.edu.