As a highschool student I'm quite concerned for my future and was hoping to get into archaeology. Would you recommend it as a profession or is it something you regret?(if u are an archaeologist)
Oh boy thatās a hard question, but Iāll do my best.Ā
First, as a disclaimer: Iām not currently working as an archaeologist. Post-grad degree, my need for a steady income and health benefits is currently outweighing my want to get an archaeology job. Ā
Second, itās something you really have to want. Iām sure most archaeologists would agree. Archaeology isnāt one of those careers that you go into thinkingĀ āwell, itās not my favorite, but itāll do.ā Tbh it can suck sometimes. Youāre never gonna get rich, youāll probably have to work in shitty, hot, boring, wet, potentially explosive conditions before you get to do anything cool. Youāre not going to be finding elaborate golden artifacts every other day and making history changing discoveries. Unless you go into something really specialized, youāre probably going to mostly be on your hands and knees, in a pit digging for long periods of time and, if youāre lucky, spend some time in a lab processing your finds (many of which will be rocks)
Now, this isnāt meant to discourage you. Personally, I love it. I like the outdoors, I like the physicality of it all (though, therein lies my current issue, but thatās a story for a different day). I love the potential to learn new things that could change details of history while you watch (not big changes, mind you, but things likeĀ āoh this wasnāt just a shitty little village, it was a hub of administrationā). I love even finding weird looking historical shit and going ā¦..um what the hell? and then through some research (and wild guessing) figuring out exactly what it was used for. I love the research and the camaraderie of the people IāveĀ worked with (cuz hey, archaeologists areĀ weird to outsiders but if youāre one of us, weāre pretty fucking cool).
In conclusion, I donāt regret going into archaeology (other than when I look at my student loan statements cuz yikes). I donāt know if Iād ever be able to find another course of study that satisfies all my niche interests and is in an environment I enjoy (miss me with that 9-5 office job honey).Ā
So itās really up to you. If it sounds like something youād enjoy, give it a go! Especially since youāre only in high school you have TONS of time to try things out. If you think archaeology sounds interesting but you donāt want to lock into it yet, see if theres an open short course or a field school near you. Do some research and figure out what areas you might want to study and figure out where/when/how much itāll cost to find a professor who focuses on that too.Ā
In general, just explore everything you can. Even if you really like archaeology, maybe spend some time in chemistry or anatomy classes which will help you specialize down the road. Take some history classes from a wide range of times and places. Just explore a bit and try to stress too abstractly about The Future. Everything you do is going to change it and thereās 1,000,000 ways to get to your end goals.Ā
Hope that helps a bit























