Archeologist Job Description
Archeologist Job Profile and Description
Archaeologists recover, examine and analyze material evidence such as tools, pottery, art works, structural ruins, and other surviving remains of past human settlements to discern and paint a total or partial picture of historic roots and cultures of earlier civilizations. With technological advances in detecting underground formations without digging, archaeologists can better target excavation sites than they previously could.
Archeologist Duties and Responsibilities
- Identify, assess, and initiate the preservation of archaeological and historical sites on private and public land to ensure that any land development complies with legislative mandates on site preservation.
- Serve as administrator, assistant or consultant to museums in handling museum artifact collection to educate the public through interactive programs and presentations.
- Publish and present reports on new archeological finds with exhaustive investigative work consisting of artifact analyses, dating, laboratory and forensic tests, to mention some.
- Conduct comparative studies between findings of different archeologist on the same archeological find or between findings from various archeological excavations to discern any trend or pattern of human development.
- Develop and test theories regarding the origin and development of recent cultural and historic finds.
Archeologist Skills and Specifications
- Must have the unique analytical and deductive reasoning abilities
- Must have excellent organizational skills for sorting through archeological finds
- Must have strong affinity with investigative journalism
- Must have excellent verbal and written communication skills
Archeologist Education and Qualifications
- A master’s degree in Archeology or the Social Sciences is basic for a position in research or the academe.
- A PhD in the same field is necessary for a teaching profession.
- 6-9 years of experience in the research or teaching faculty is an advantage.
Archeologist Salary
The median annual salary for anthropologists and archaeologists was at $54,000 in 2008. The middle 50% earned between $39,200 and $70,980 with the bottom 10% getting about $32,200 and the top 10% getting around $89,500.