Religious Studies

Religious studies is the scholarly examination of religion as a human phenomenon, asking what religious beliefs, practices, and communities are, how they arose and developed, how they interact with politics, ethics, culture, and social life, and what philosophical questions they raise about the nature of reality, meaning, and human flourishing. It is a discipline that requires both breadth, engaging with the major world religions and many smaller traditions, and depth, examining particular texts, rituals, communities, and ideas with genuine rigour and attention.

At the University of Edinburgh, this four-year full-time programme includes a year abroad, giving you the opportunity to study religious traditions and the academic study of religion in another country and cultural context. Edinburgh has a distinguished tradition in theology and religious studies that draws on its historic connections to the Reformed tradition of Scottish Presbyterianism as well as to broader international scholarship in comparative religion, Islamic studies, Hindu studies, and the sociology and anthropology of religion. You will develop skills in the analysis of religious texts, historical and comparative method, philosophical argument, and the sociological and anthropological study of religious communities and practices.

A typical entry tariff of 184 points reflects the competitive and intellectually demanding nature of the programme.

Graduates of religious studies programmes work in education, journalism, broadcasting, interfaith dialogue, the voluntary sector, international development, public policy, and the civil service. The ability to understand and communicate across cultural and religious difference is increasingly valued in a diverse and interconnected world. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in religious studies, theology, Islamic studies, philosophy of religion, or a related field, and the analytical and interpretive skills the degree develops provide an excellent foundation for research at the highest level.