Actually, I’m officially majoring in anthropology at the moment, but if I switch to Social Sciences contract (which I plan to), it lets me take from anthropology (which is where the scant archaeology courses are) and history.
I’ve actually been debating what major will best serve to send me out to get a job or go to grad school, and that’s what I’ve landed on most recently. Does it seem like a long shot? If there were an archaeology or museum studies program, that’s probably where I would go, but unfortunately there’s not.
I’d actually love to add a language component to the mix. I’ve always wanted to be able to speak competently in another language. Going for a year would probably be good for that, but at this point it kind of seems like it will probably be only a semester if/when I go.
I just remembered another option. With your interests, you might consider volunteer archeology. This is an option in a number of places, such as this one in France apare-gec.org
I considered restoration/conservation of paintings for a bit, and it looked like the background desired was heavy in art history and, unfortunately, chemistry. Why don’t you look into a couple of the conservation programs (there aren’t many-- I think the college art association school guide lists them) and see what they’re looking for?
Or see if there’s a pre-conservation program abroad. . .
Since you’re interested in that…an archaeology student friend of mine spent a semester studying in Greece. I don’t believe her program was quite along the lines of your particular interests, but that could be one place to look for something a bit more exotic. She had originally been trying for a place in India as well but couldn’t get it sorted out in time…I imagine that would’ve been fascinating too.
I spent last fall studying in Northern Ireland. I’ve had to delay my graduation – it was the fall of my senior year – due to scheduling issues with my minor, but it was the best thing I’ve ever done. And if I could’ve managed it, I would’ve stayed an entire year. Just to reinforce what everyone else has already said.
Frankly, I say boo to studying in an English-speaking country. If you really want to learn something about yourself and the world, you need to have a full immersion experience in another culture. (Let’s face it, England, Ireland, Australia, Canada, America…we’re all basically the same culture.) Before I went to study in Spain, I objectively understood different cultures, but I had NO IDEA how much one’s culture and language completely shapes one’s view of reality. It really was the most important thing I ever learned.
My husband and I both studied abroad in Japan as undergraduates (separately-- we didn’t meet each other until a few years after graduation). It was a fantastic experience for me, and I know my husband feels the same way.
The program I did was a semester-long introduction to Japanese language/culture/history, and didn’t require any knowledge of the Japanese language before I went. It was fantastic and very enlightening (although the culture shock was formidable, I credit that experience with my adjusting so easily to living in Thailand now). That particular program was purely elective credit for me, though-- I had the time in my schedule to do it, but not everyone does.
My husband, on the other hand, basically took an extra year of college (between junior and senior years) and spent it at a Japanese university. As with my situation, the credits didn’t count towards his degree (he’s an engineer), but he also considered the experience (and the expense) incredibly worthwhile.
My program was a reciprocal exchange between my school and a Japanese university, so I was with a bunch of people with a similar background; my husband’s program was purely through the Japanese university (Nagoya Gakuin, if you’re interested) so he was with a bunch of other foreign students from all over. Whereever you want to go, any competent study abroad office will be able to provide you with information on both sorts of programs, and help you lay out what you need to do to get there.