The paleoanthropology concentration offers broad training that combines archaeology and biological anthropology, two traditional subfields of anthropology important in understanding the biocultural factors that have been critical in human evolution. The concentration combines course work in both biological and archaeological anthropology, complementing the specialized training that students from either subfield receive in their own specialization.

Paleoanthropology courses emphasize integration of biological and cultural factors in the evolution of hominid species up to and including modern humans. They encompass primate and human evolutionary anatomy, technology and subsistence in Paleolithic archaeology, and modern human hunter-gatherers.