Dan,

Now that is a pretty big assumption, given that more than 90% of the United
States is not federal land. Most states define minimum levels for hiring
archaeologists and many local agencies set standards as well. Out here in
California, consultants hire freshmen and sophmores in college to conduct archaeology
field monitoring, work as field technicians, supervise pit crews and field
survey, analyze artifacts and even write portions of reports. People with degrees
of any level find work and most can advance through the ranks, even if they
lack a M.A. or Ph.D. And, I might add, federal employees are placed in high level
resource management positions with B.A. degrees or even in fields totally
un-related (one guy I knew measured primate hair for his M.A. thesis and only had
one archaeology theory class). Many agencies accept just about any Ph.D.,
even a guy who specialized in Tibetan cultural anthropology. As well, there are
plenty of practitioners with M.A. or Ph.D. level coursework who did not get the
degrees and can do fine work. On the other hand, I have read absolute trash
written by Ph.D. archaeologists simply because they are too jaded or no longer
care about what they do anymore. Or worse, a Ph.D. who will sell
archaeological sites cheaply. Sure, the Secretary of the Interior sets standards for
practitioners with M.A., but almost all federal agency personnel offices will tell
you that other factors can substitute. Most agencies in California require the
practitioner to be a RPA and then feel they can always file a grievance with
RPA if violations occurr. But man, out here in the Far Southwest, there is a
lot of territory not regulated by federal agencies where an archaeologist can
call home.

Ron May
Legacy 106, Inc.