While an undergraduate degree in Anthropology is not required, a background in Anthropology is preferred. Deficiencies can be made up in consultation with a graduate advisor upon entrance to the program.

All required application materials, including a letter of intent, academic transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and a research paper representative of the applicant's work (along with TOEFL scores for international students), should be submitted through the UNLV Graduate College online portal.

International students are required by the Graduate College to complete the TOEFL with a score of 550 or better on the written version or 213 or better on the computer version, or show comparable evidence of competence in English.