“The Participation Trophy Of Archaeology”
That’s how one commentator on Facebook put it.
If you don’t know what I’m talking about, it’s that the Register of Professional Archaeologists (RPA) will now offer an official designation to those archaeologists “who have not, or not yet, received a master’s degree.”
If you have made the wonderful life choice to never attend graduate school (no one gets out of grad school in any field without a drinking problem, I’m convinced), then you can now pay dues to get an abecedarian designation from the RPA. No, you don’t get to put RPA (“registered professional archaeologist”) after your name in your emails. But you can put RA (“registered archaeologist”) there for the low, low price of whatever it is they announce it at in 2020.
So… I’m just gonna lay my cards on the table here.
People have accused me of being anti-education because of some of my comments in previous articles. Nothing could be further from the truth.
I have a graduate degree in archaeology. I feel it was both a fulfilling experience and a sound investment of my time and money. I would advise any practicing field archaeologist in the US or…
