Field Schools

Forensic Anthropology Field School (ANT 4523/ANG 5821L, Forensic Field Recovery)

Students work on excavation of a skeletal cast as part of the forensic field school — Students engage in a field exercise for a forensic field recovery. Please note the skeletal remains depicted in this photo are plastic models

The Forensic Anthropology Field School will be held on the UWF Pensacola campus. The major goal of the 5-week field school is to train students in standard forensic methods for the discovery, documentation, and recovery of human skeletal remains. Students will learn to apply basic methods of archaeological mapping and excavation to simulated forensic scenes involving both surface-scattered and buried skeletal remains. They will also learn to distinguish human from non-human remains and gain experience with explicitly forensic procedures of evidence recovery, such as evidence documentation and collection, site security, and the use of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for different simulated scenarios.

Dates: 18 May-26 June 2026

Schedule: M-F 8-4 pm

Application Deadline: 3 April 2026 (online); You will be told how to register for the specific section when summer registration opens.

Non-UWF Students: You will have to apply as a non-degree-seeking student before you will be able to register.

Credit: The course is offered for 3 credit hours. Tuition follows the rates summarized on the UWF tuition page.

Accommodations: Living arrangements will be the responsibility of the student. If you are not local to the Pensacola area (or require on-campus housing for any other reason), on-campus housing can be arranged once acceptance into the course is confirmed. For a general idea of costs, see information from UWF Housing and Residence Life.

Food: Students will provide their own water, lunches, and snacks during the course.

Transportation: All activities will occur on the UWF campus. Transportation to and from the on-campus sites will be the responsibility of the student.

Additional Costs and Other Information: Students will be required to purchase a dig kit (trowel, brushes, tapes, etc.); we will provide a list of items to purchase (estimated cost = $50). There are no prerequisites for the Forensic Anthropology Field School. Experience in forensic anthropology, biological anthropology, human osteology, bioarchaeology, and/or archaeological methods and principles preferred but not essential.

For further information about the Forensic Anthropology Field School, contact Dr. Samantha McCrane smccrane@uwf.edu

Apply for Forensic Field School

Terrestrial, Maritime, and Combined Field Schools 2026 (ANT 4824, ANT4835, ANG 6824)

A scuba diver conducts an archaeological excavation on a sandy seabed. The diver is positioned within a square PVC survey grid marked with black and white stripes, using a suction hose near a red plastic milk crate used for collecting artifacts. — Students engage in archaeological field work

Terrestrial Archaeological Field School

This year the University of West Florida terrestrial archaeological field school will spend six weeks conducting excavations at the mid-18^th-century Apalachee mission village of San Joseph de Escambe, situated in Molino, Florida, just over 20 miles north of Pensacola along the Escambia River. Previous excavations at the site between 2009 and 2015, and more recently in 2025, revealed evidence for Spanish and Apalachee structures including a fortified stockade and a possible round house, and an artifact assemblage blending indigenous and Euro-American material culture within the borderlands between colonial New Spain’s Gulf coast presidio at Pensacola and its French- and British-allied Native neighbors to the west and north. This summer’s work will continue to explore the mission site, as well as overlying traces of an adjacent Reconstruction-era steam-powered sawmill just below the bluff. For more information, see the web page for the mission: https://pages.uwf.edu/jworth/jw_missionescambe.html

Maritime & Combined Field Schools

Activities will include geophysical survey using magnetometer, side-scan sonar, and subbottom profiler; excavation at the Rosario shipwreck, a Spanish vessel which sank in 1705; hull recording; investigations of targets associated with the Luna 1559 expedition; and underwater photography/photogrammetry. Site assessments on known historic wrecks located in the area will also be undertaken. Fieldwork will be supplemented by lectures and discussions on themes ranging from the colonization of northwest Florida, maritime landscapes, and economic maritime connections in the Gulf region. When not diving, students will perform topside duties such as dive tending and support, artifact recording, and database entry. Students will also be called on to participate in the conservation and laboratory analysis of recovered material. Excavation activities will include the establishment of site control grids, setting up excavation units, basic excavation techniques using an induction dredge, use of hand tools, screening techniques, and field documentation.

Dates: 18 May-26 June 2026

Apply for Maritime & Terrestrial Field School

Previous Field Schools