Expert: John J. Shea - 8/18/2011

Question
Hi Mr. Shea I have a couple questions for you. I have almost always wanted to be a archaeologist, help in restoration,or something in that area. The only problem is that I do not know what classes to take. We have a few classes that would be some what close to the path I want to be on. (e.g world history, earth science, and others)But there are others I am not sure about like Mythology, World culture and religion, language and journalism. I really want to know if these would give me a edge of if I should take them? I would also like to know if it would be more beneficial if after collage I was to sign up with a private collector or a museum?  
Thank you for you time and help,
M C Richardt

Answer
Dear MC
In high school it is way too early to specialize.  Take a wide range of classes, but be sure you take, and do well in biology, chemistry, physics, also math.
The world history, earth science, world cultures, etc. are good background for archaeology, but you will take more in-depth courses in these subjects in college.
The main thing I would advise you to do is to seek out experiences in archaeology.  Look online for "field schools" -teaching excavations, intern or volunteer work in museums or nature parks.  A lot of people have romantic ideas about what archaeology involves, and the field can be a lot of fun, but at your age it is important to find out if it is really what you want to do.  On my first dig in Egypt (when I was a college freshman) there were a lot of older students and even grad students digging for the first time.  Many of them simply hated it.  It was hot.  It was dirty. The food was different.  They didn't like Egypt (!!!??? -one of the most hospitable countries on Earth).  If I were them, I would have wanted to find this out earlier on in the course of my education.
Get used to working comfortably outside if you want to be an archaeologist.  Indoors museum work is far more competitive at the professional level, but if that appeals to you, start by asking about volunteer/intern work at museums, art galleries, antiques stores.  If there is a state or national historical site near you, ask if there are any opportunities for work (paid or unpaid) involving historical sites or archaeology.
When you look at colleges, look to see if they have a department of anthropology within which there are active archaeologists.  There are a few schools in the US with departments of archaeology (BU, UCLA, and others), but most archaeologists are in anthropology departments.
Good luck, study hard, and have fun.  If you're an archaeologist and not having fun, something is wrong.
Cheers,
John Shea