How To Do Archaeology

Endorsed by the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists and based on the Archaeology Skills Passport, this course is tailored to teach you the end-to-end process of actually doing archaeology. How do you get started? What happens on site? What do you need to do after the trenches are closed and you’re done in the pub? We’ll explain:

• What happens before excavation
  • how to locate and identify archaeological sites
  • the different stages of an archaeological project
  • what happens in pre-excavation planning and research
  • what should be included in an archaeological Project Design

• What happens during excavation
  • how to set up a trench
  • which tools to use, and what techniques are best practice
  • how to identify and recording what you find
  • how to recover artefacts and take environmental samples

• What happens after the digging is finished
  • analysis of the data and archaeological materials
  • interpretation of the site
  • making the archaeological record accessible
  • what to do with an archaeological archive

This six-part course begins as soon as you become a Subscriber – that’s when you can login and start your first chapter.

After that, you can progress at your own pace. You can do your chapters in bite-sized chunks, or in one whopper weekend sitting – whichever you prefer! At the end of each one, you’ll be able to prove your newfound knowledge in a quick quiz.

To help you along the way, we’ve also set up a DigVentures Archaeology Study Group for everyone on the course – it’s where you can say hello to your fellow classmates, discuss what you’re learning together, share your ideas and even call on the DigVentures team for help. It’s entirely optional, but we recommend joining  – it will help you get the most out of the course!

This course is endorsed by the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists

The course is endorsed by the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists, but does not award university credits.

All DV training programmes are built upon the framework of National Occupational Standards (NOS) developed by the Chartered Institute of Archaeologists.

The NOS for archaeological practice defines the range of skills that archaeologists may need to perfect in order to do their job, and provide the perfect framework for training programmes by breaking down a complicated job into a collection of individual skills and tasks. This is very effective for both professional and avocational archaeologists, as it provides a clear roadmap for skills development.

To help that skills development, you can find the individual NOS standards which this course supports in the next FAQ tab. If you would like to record your own skills development, we recommend you use the Archaeology Skills Passport. This has been developed in line with NOS, and provides a simple record book of your learning achievements.

The learning outcomes from this course are defined using National Occupational Standards (NOS). This course supports the Knowledge Requirements for particular units within the NOS for Archaeological Practice. These are:

• AB1 Propose and plan a research project

• AC1 Research and analyse information to achieve objectives

• AC5 Contribute to intrusive investigations

Yes – you’ll be able to download a certificate when you complete the course and feedback survey.

In the last section of the course you will be asked to complete our feedback survey. Feedback will help us to further refine and tailor the course based on which bits you loved, and which bits we need to work on.

To get your certificate just complete course, do the feedback the survey, and then your certificate will be ready to download. Congratulations!