Program Highlighted | Anthropology
Intorduction by | Professor Susan Pfeiffer
Interview with | Lorenzo Marcolongo
Date | June 2001

Interview | Lorenzo Marcolongo

Lorenzo is an Innis College fourth year Anthropology student.

Innis: Would you introduce yourself?
Lorenzo: I am Lorenzo Marcolongo. I am in my final year at U of T and I am specializing in Social Cultural Anthropology.

Innis: What attracted you to study Anthropology?
Lorenzo: I think it started by looking through the National Geographic magazine as a young kid. I remember being in high school and knowing that's something I wanted to go into. I remember taking an anthropology class here at U of T and I thought that was something I wanted to specialize in.

Innis: Given that there are so many programs offered by the Faculty of Arts and Science, how did you decide to pursue this program? What role did advice/influence from peers, mentors, relatives, and others play in your decision?
Lorenzo: I don't know. I think just the household I grew up in was very international. My friends in high school, none of them went into anthropology, they all went into science and engineering so it didn't come from them. I think it came mostly from myself. I have a deep interest in cultures and international affairs.

Innis: How would you rate the facilities and opportunities offered by this program in the University of Toronto?
Lorenzo: I would do it again. It can be a big place here at U of T but you can make it smaller by applying for courses like research projects such as 299Y that I have done, or seminar courses, or 499Y courses (independent research). Talk to other people who have had different professors and see what the class sizes and their teaching styles were like. By the time I was in my third and fourth year I knew a lot of people in my classes. You can lose yourself, but you can also make it smaller for yourself.

Innis: How would you rate the Research Opportunity Program (ANT299Y) and would you recommend it to someone in the program?
Lorenzo: I would recommend it. I had the opportunity to work one-on-one with a professor. It was probably the hardest course I have taken but it was satisfying too. It depends, I have heard bad stories about working with professors. But I knew my professor, I'd had him before and I approached him and he liked me. He was great. If you want to go on to be a graduate student, it's good to know a professor one-on-one, because he/she could really give you a good recommendation.

Innis: You previously mentioned 499Y courses. Have you done ANT499Y?
Lorenzo: I have never done a 499Y course. I am doing something similar to 499Y. I am doing a research project. 499Y works the same way 299Y works, but you actual speak with a professor and give the thesis you want to work on and the professor says yes or no.

Innis: What aspect(s) of this program do you find fascinating or inspiring - curriculum, professors, practical experience, field courses, etc.?
Lorenzo: The problem with U of T is that it's a very theory-based school, so there are not a lot of field courses or practical experience opportunities. What I am doing right now, the research project, is giving me practical experience but it's only one course taken out of twenty. What I have learned from these courses is how to think.

Innis: What are some of the courses you are taking this year?
Lorenzo: This year, because it's my final year and I have already taken most of the anthropology courses I wanted. I am taking a French and an Italian course, an Aboriginal Studies course and two Anthropology courses.

Innis: Of all the courses you are taking this year, which one do you enjoy the most, and why?
Lorenzo: I would say it is the aboriginal course. Of the two anthropology courses I would say the research project. My research project's thesis is looking at how homeless people look at their urban landscape. Right now I am in the process of interviewing a lot of people. This is a course where you have to work by yourself and be self-motivated.

Innis: Are there things that you might have done differently while completing this program?
Lorenzo: No. Course-wise I would have taken the same thing. The only thing I wish was different for me is having a core group of friends in my program who could hang out together and discuss issues. I find that U of T is very conservative in that way. You'll meet people in your classes and you know them in class but after class you don't see them. I wish I had a core group of friends who could say "Hey read my answer. What do you think of this?" or "What do you think of that book?" and talk anthropology. I knew a few people in anthropology but we never discussed anything.

Innis: Would you have chosen another area to complement this one?
Lorenzo: Maybe I would have done International Development. No, I think you learn the same thing in anthropology as you would learn in international development. A lot of my learning comes from outside anthropology (e.g. the 299Y course I did). The professor I worked with was a political economist and an anthropologist. He gave me books to read on economics, so that's how I've learned economics; it was unrelated. You also need to learn a lot of history, so it forces you to learn.

Innis: What are some things that you wish you had known before?
Lorenzo: I feel that I am a somewhat weak writer. People say I'm not, but I do feel I am and I wish I had a stronger sense of the English language, which I think is developed in high school.

Innis: What suggestions do you have on how this program might be improved for other students?
Lorenzo: I really like my program and I picked courses and professors that had small classes and they tended to be more theory-based than field-based. Professors are very approachable. So, I would say don't worry about your marks, because at the end, in order to go to graduate school, it is who you know professor-wise that is important. So I think if you've done the 299Y and 499Y courses and you have a B+ average let's say, you will get to graduate school. The professors talk to other professors at different universities and say "I've got this kid, you know…" and that's how it works.

Innis: What is one piece of advice that you would give to someone who is interested in pursuing this program?
Lorenzo: Don't think about what people say. People always ask me, "So what are you going to do with your degree?" That is such a superficial question. I think just pursue and enjoy what you are doing and if you aren't passionate about it just don't do it. Don't worry about your marks, it's all on a bell curve and it doesn't show how much you know.

Innis: As a student in this field, I am sure you have researched the job market. What kinds of employment opportunities are there?
Lorenzo: I think there are a lot, there is more than what people make it out to be. I think that there are a lot of companies that want consultants, and as an anthropologist that is very good. There is the international field for working abroad with non-governmental organizations, the United Nations, etc.

Innis: What types of jobs are you interested in obtaining in the future?
Lorenzo: For now, I want to do international work. But in the long run I'm going back to school, I want to be a medical anthropologist.

Innis: What steps are you taking to assist you in achieving these goals?
Lorenzo: I'm just trying to find some jobs in the international field.

Innis: During the summers you have adventurous experiences as an intern. Would you like to share that with us?
Lorenzo: I was working as a canoe guide in northern Manitoba when I was nineteen and I did that for three years. I took out young kids for ten days at a time out in the woods. You fly in by bush planes and you don't see people for ten days. After that, I applied for a job in the States through a Student Conservation Association. I led four boys and four girls between the ages of sixteen and eighteen outdoors and built trails with them. That's what I enjoy. I think that's what saves me during the year. I like relaxing in the backcountry. For those jobs you need to have the right background; you need to know how to canoe, to camp, etc. I was lucky because as a kid I did all that stuff.

Innis: On behalf of Innis College I would like to thank you for coming out and giving us your time.
Lorenzo: You're welcome

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