Field Schools

Want to get in the dirt and try your hand at archaeology? Field schools are an excellent way to experience archaeology in action and find out if it's the career path for you! Most field schools take place in the summer and are administered by universities as part of a degree requirement; students from other schools can often participate for credit hours. Many field schools also offer opportunities for the non-student public to participate. Below is a list of field schools taking place in North Carolina. Please contact the university for information about volunteering, visiting or joining a field school.

If your field school is not listed and takes place in North Carolina, let us know! Email archaeology@ncdcr.gov with the date, location, contact, and website and we'll add it.

Many universities in North Carolina also conduct international field projects. Please visit individual university pages to learn more.

2023 North Carolina Field Schools

Local Siouan Project Field School

Research Laboratories of Archaeology at UNC-Chapel Hill
May 17 - June 22, 2023
Application Deadline: March 10, 2023

This summer’s field school will continue to assess areas along New Hope Creek in Duke Forest that have significant potential to contain important late pre-colonial and colonial American Indian settlements. Historical evidence and local tradition suggest the presence of one or more villages occupied into the early eighteen century.

Contact: Dr. Heather Lapham or Dr. Mary Beth Fitts

Berry Site Field School At Fort San Juan

Warren Wilson College
June 5 - June 30, 2023
Application Deadline: May 5, 2023

This is your opportunity to explore archaeology in a new way. You will learn how to identify stone tools, pottery, and historic artifacts, among other artifacts. Your participation in the field school will help researchers discover new evidence of the interactions between 16th-century Native Americans and Spanish invaders in western North Carolina. No previous archaeological experience is necessary.

Contact: Dr. David Moore

Summer 2023 Archaeological Field School - Pinson Mounds, TN

Appalachian State University
June 5 - June 30, 2023
Application Deadline: contact for deadline

Pinson is one of the largest Middle Woodland period (A.D. 1-500) ceremonial centers in North America. The site contains 15 Native American mounds and covers more than 1,200 acres. Pinson was a major ceremonial center that brought people together from vast distances to participate in mound building and related ceremonies.

Students will learn how to conduct archaeological research, including excavation, artifact and feature collection, documentation, and mapping. There will also be opportunities for students to assist in geophysical survey, an important skill set for aspiring archaeologists.

Contact: Dr. Seth Grooms

2023 ECU Archaeological Field School

East Carolina University
Contact Department of Anthropology for details

2023 UNCW Archaeological Field School

UNC-Wilmington
Contact Dr. Eleanor Reber for details

2023 UNCC Field Project in Archaeology

UNC-Charlotte
Contact Department of Anthropology for details

2023 WCU Archaeological Field School

Western Carolina University
Contact Department of Anthropology for details