Does the "bones" job exist, that is being a forensic anthropologist?

Question

i want to know if the forensic anthropology career exists or is it just something made up for a television show, also is the career just like the television show and also if it does exist how much does it pay?

Answer 1

Absolutely yes, it exists as a career. Two different kinds of career, actually.

Though it has been popularized as a crime-solving technique, most forensic anthropology is pursued by physical anthropologists (people who study human evolution) and archaeologists who are interested in learning about the causes of bodily trauma and death. It grows out of a branch of biology and zoology, taphonomy, which is the study of the ways in which animals die and what happens to dead bodies. This is, of course, very useful information to people who work mostly with dead animals and fossils!

But there are real-life "Bones" kind of forensic anthropologists, too. I know several graduate students who study forensic anthropology - one specializes in burn victims, which is really cool. While people who study forensic anthropology are becoming more and more associated with law enforcement, there are only a few forensic anthropologists working in the US who are accreditated to provide expert testimony. (I don't remember how many, but it's less than 10).

Answer 2

Sorry but this is an unrealistic aim. Firstly there are no Forensic Anthropologists in Australia. The closest are Anthropologists who study Aboriginal remains and are university professors. To get into this field you need to study for a PhD and to do that you need to find a supervisor to take you on who is able to supervise your project. Bones is only one part of what you have to do - pottery, soil dating etc are the main parts of your skill set. To get to a professor level will take until your mid-40s. Then, if you are lucky, you may be asked for a consultation 1-4 times in your career to look at "fresher" bones. For the most part the general coroner is able to deal with all cases without a FA brought in. Then there is the Forensic Pathologist - we call that a Coroner. You have to get a medical degree, inter, postgrad years and then be accepted as a registrar. There are less than 10 coroners in NSW which gives you an idea of how hard it is to get into the profession. Again you will be in your 40s to complete this. To get both qualifications - starting at 19 - you will be over 60 before you start your first day at work - UNREALISTIC The TV shows Bones is not a reflection of the job market - just like CSI is not how a lab works. All these shows have done is increase the number of people who have skewed impressions of what the jobs are like. There are no course in unis because it is not a realistic job. You do not create a course for a profession that takes only 1 applicant every 5 years (who most likely will come from interstate or overseas). Stop looking to the media for an interest. Look within yourself. .

Answer 3

Forensics is a branch of Physical Anthropology. The television makes out like they are a medical examiner but this is not the case.

Answer 4

I believe that it's up to the government how much you get paid.
The interactions in the television show are exaggerated. Especially between Booth and Brennan. (FBI guys and you) You don't have your own squint club unless you are very famous. You might have a person studying under you like Zach though. Even then they would probably just ask you a bunch of stuff and not really interact as much with the remains.

Answer 5

The FBI and other large law enforcement agencies may have a few people like that on staff, but by and large it does not exist as a full-time career. Most cases are not that complicated, so crime lab scientists can do most of the work needed. In hard (and, usually, high-profile) cases, there are always university professors to consult with...

There are a few people who make a living as forensic artists and forensic sculptors (i.e., reconstructing faces based on skulls), but most of their work is not in law enforcement, it's in museums, where they help to visualize exhibits.

Museums, by the way, is where the profession began; the earliest work in this area I am aware of was done in 1937 by Russian archaeologist and anthropologist Mikhail Gerasimov, who later reconstructed faces of Tamerlane (1941) and Ivan the Terrible (1953) based on their skeletal remains. In 1961, he worked on identifying the skull of German poet Friedrich Schiller, who died of tuberculosis and was buried in a mass grave.

Answer 6

it does exist. I am just not sure how much it pays. I just know it's a lot. Try calling a major university and checking if they have someone on staff to help you decide if that is a potential job choice for you.

Answer 7

Yes, the position does exist..

Answer 8

yes. Average starting salary: $25,000
Average salary after 5 years: $36,000
Average salary after 10 to 15 years: $60,000

Answer 9

Yes, it is a true profession. I have no idea how much money they make, but they're doctors/scientists so it should be quite a bit.

Answer 10

there are actually many different kinds of job opportunities in this field.
Here is a link with a great article:

http://www.anthro.umt.edu/studguid/forensic.htm