Sociology/Theology & Religious Studies

Sociology and theology and religious studies form a particularly rewarding combination, because they approach the most fundamental questions about human community from complementary directions. Sociology asks how societies are structured, how they change, and how forces such as class, race, gender, religion and globalisation shape the distribution of power and opportunity. Theology and religious studies examines the beliefs, texts, rituals and institutions of religious traditions with scholarly rigour, treating them not as private matters but as forces with profound social, political and historical consequences.

Together they give you unusually rich tools for understanding how religion functions in social life, and how social forces shape religious belief and practice.

At Glasgow this four-year full-time programme includes a year abroad, allowing you to pursue your studies in a different cultural and academic environment. You will engage with sociological theory, research methods and the empirical study of social phenomena alongside the academic study of world religions, biblical scholarship, theology, ethics and the philosophy of religion. Glasgow's theology and religious studies department situates its subject in relation to politics, history, literature, philosophy, art and culture, as the current description notes, and the sociology component develops your ability to analyse institutions and social structures with precision.

The combination trains you to read both social data and religious texts critically and to hold together quantitative and qualitative ways of knowing.

Graduates work in interfaith organisations, education, social research, journalism, community development, the civil service, the charitable sector, policy analysis and broadcasting. The combination of sociological and theological literacy is particularly valuable in contexts where questions of culture, identity and belief intersect with social policy, which is increasingly common in contemporary public life. Postgraduate study in sociology, religious studies, theology, social policy or related disciplines is a natural continuation, and the year abroad provides both an intellectual and personal development advantage.