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Overview

Religion continues to shape our world and our understanding of the world. Deepening our knowledge of religious beliefs and practices is essential to tackling some of the greatest ethical and political challenges that we face. On this course you will explore how religious traditions facilitate, disrupt, or otherwise influence political and social life. You will learn about the relevance of theology, sacred scripture, religious ritual, and faith-based organisations to contemporary issues such as climate change, terrorism, global development, gender, sexuality and race discrimination, migration and diaspora.

You will also critically interrogate the concept of ‘religion’ in the context of different theories of politics, policy and social change, engaging with hotly debated and contested topics such secularisation, religious identity and representation, religion and the public sphere. You will have the option of choosing a specialised pathway in one of three areas – theology, development, or gender.

Our Religion course draws on academic expertise from across the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science, including theological, philosophical, sociological and anthropological approaches to the topic. Our academic staff approach religion from a variety of angles, but they share a commitment to studying and teaching religion critically and emphatically as a relevant factor in understanding our contemporary world. We have active links with charitable, activist, community and faith organisations in the city.

This course can be used for preparing for further research or to develop within any sector where religion or theology is relevant (for example the voluntary, advocacy, NGO, or policy sectors), or simply to further your interest in this fascinating area.

You can study full-time or part-time, and we also offer postgraduate certificate (PGCert) and postgraduate diploma (PGDip) versions of the course.

Learning and teaching

We use a variety of different teaching methods such as lectures, seminars, tutorials, work-based learning, fieldwork and workshops. Independent study is also vital to this course, allowing you to develop your skills and prepare for taught sessions and assessments.

On this course you’ll be taught by our expert academics, from lecturers through to professors. You may also be taught by industry professionals with years of experience, as well as trained postgraduate researchers, connecting you to some of the brightest minds on campus.

Assessment

Assessment methods emphasise not just knowledge, but essential skills development too. You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including exams, group projects, written assignments and essays, in-course assessment, group and individual presentations and reports.

Career opportunities

This course will equip you with a range of in-depth subject knowledge, but it will allow you to develop high-level skills in research, analysis, interpretation and communication.

All of these qualities are valuable to a range of employers across sectors and industries, and we’re proud of our record in preparing postgraduates for their careers after graduation. They’ve gone into roles such as teaching, consultancy, business management, administration, accountancy, law, journalism and the civil service among others.