The doctoral program in the Department of Religious Studies trains participants to become advanced practitioners of the study of religion as researchers, scholars, teachers, and facilitators of informed public discourse. Some graduates become professors at colleges or universities while others bring a nuanced, critical understanding of religion and its influences to such careers as health care, law, diplomacy, ministry, social advocacy, journalism, counseling, and informatics.
PhD students train to analyze the ways in which diverse religious traditions originate, develop, and interact over time, and learn to identify and use multiple methods for the study of religion, including historical, philosophical, ethical, literary, linguistic, psychological, ethnographic, and digital approaches. Students typically draw on the expertise of several different members of the religious studies faculty and also are encouraged to work with faculty members in other UI departments who specialize in their areas of interest. Many PhD students work, for example, with scholars in the departments of Anthropology; Asian and Slavic Languages; Classics; Communication Studies; English; Gender, Women's, and Sexuality Studies; and History.
The program offers a collegial intellectual community, including a departmental colloquium series, a collaborative reading group in critical theory, and an ethos of mutual support among graduate students.
Graduate study in the Department of Religious Studies is highly flexible and personalized, and is shaped to individual students’ interests concordant with existing faculty expertise.
Areas of Current Faculty Expertise
Religions of Southwest Asia, North Africa, and the Mediterranean
Religion, law, and politics in the Islamic world; the history of interpretation of the texts and traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; Greco-Roman and Egyptian religion and culture; digital humanities.
Religions of East Asia
Religious traditions of China and the political, social, and economic factors that have shaped them; modern religion and culture in Korea, most notably Christianity; religion and gender in transnational perspective; religion and empire.
Religions of the United States and the Atlantic World
History and ethnography of religion in the United States; African American religious traditions (Christianity, Islam, and African diaspora religions); West African religions; religion, media, and the negotiation of technological change; Latina/o/x Christianity.
Religion, Ethics, and Society
Religion and morality; religion, emotion, and affect; human rights; religion's relationship to gender, race, and ethnicity; ethics of medicine and biotechnology; religion and health.
Themes
Graduate study also is developed by theme. Popular themes include religions’ relationships to public life, gender, race, media, technology, and human health and well-being.
Learning Outcomes
- Teaching success: students gain expertise in how to teach religious studies in a liberal arts setting, and if they serve as teaching assistants (TAs) during their graduate program, they show effectiveness in reaching a diverse audience of students.
- Critical knowledge of the field: students become familiar with foundational texts in their field, as well as influential scholarship that critically engages these texts and seeks to move the field in new directions; students identify ways in which they can contribute to the corpus of texts that compose their field.
- Academic skills: students develop skills to read carefully and think critically, and they write in clear and compelling ways about topics related to the study of religion; students have hands-on opportunities to develop key skills in public engagement.
- Religion and social equity: students gain a critical understanding of the historical entanglement of global religions with racism and misogyny; they can articulate religions’ relationships to unjust power structures, as well as religions’ contributions to greater social justice.
- Professional engagement: students demonstrate successful participation in the life of the department, their subfield, and the broader field of religious studies; they communicate about their learning with students from other fields.
For more detailed information on graduate programs in religious studies, contact the Department of Religious Studies or visit Graduate Program on the department's website.
The doctoral program in the Department of Religious Studies requires a minimum of 72 s.h. of graduate credit. A maximum of 24 s.h. of relevant graduate work may be transferred from another accredited graduate school or professional program, as approved by the director of graduate studies. A maximum of 12 s.h. of thesis writing credit may count toward the 72 s.h. requirement. Students must maintain a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.40.
All PhD students are required to demonstrate competency in English and at least one other language that is relevant to their advanced research; more specific language requirements are set in consultation with an advisory committee.
Students are supervised initially by a three-person committee consisting of an advisor and two additional faculty members; often these members serve also on the student's five-person comprehensive exam and dissertation committees.
All PhD students must complete the following eight courses.
Course List
| Course # |
Title |
Hours |
| RELS:5100 | Teaching and Public Engagement | 1 |
| RELS:5200 | Asian Religions in the Modern World for Graduate Students | 3 |
| RELS:5300 | Genealogies of Religion | 3 |
| RELS:5400 | The Politics of Everyday Life | 3 |
| GRAD:6217 | Seminar in College Teaching | 3 |
| 9 |
| Total Hours | 22 |
Students select remaining coursework depending on their interests and in consultation with their advisory committee. PhD students must submit and have their departmental program of study approved in the fourth semester of their study to be permitted to proceed in the PhD program. Those who are approved are expected to write and orally defend comprehensive exams (by the eighth semester), a dissertation prospectus (by the ninth semester), and a doctoral dissertation (by the twelfth semester).
Students working toward a PhD may receive an MA upon completing at least 30 s.h. of coursework and passing their comprehensive examination.
It is the expectation that PhD students complete their studies in six years; five for those who are accepted into the program with an MA and transfer credit.
For more detailed information on graduate programs in religious studies, contact the Department of Religious Studies or visit Graduate Program on the department's website.
Applicants must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate College; see the Manual of Rules and Regulations on the Graduate College website.
Application materials must include an application form; a transcript of all undergraduate and graduate work (one copy must be sent to the university's Office of Admissions, and a second copy must be sent to the Department of Religious Studies); an application or waiver of consideration form for graduate assistantships; three confidential letters of recommendation; and a writing sample that demonstrates the applicant's ability to engage in critical analysis. Applicants also must submit a statement of purpose that explains their objectives for graduate study and states which area of graduate study in religion best suits their objectives. Students may indicate one of the department’s traditional areas of concentration or an area that is defined more by theme.
Students are advised to view the Department of Religious Studies website, most notably the faculty pages, to ascertain whether their area of interest is well-supported by faculty expertise. Moreover, students are encouraged to contact relevant faculty members prior to applying for graduate study in order to explore areas of mutual interest. It is helpful to include information about such contacts in their statement of purpose. The strongest applications show how students would benefit from working with multiple members of the faculty. For details, see Graduate Admission, Financial Aid, and Additional Funding on the department's website.
All application materials must be received by Jan. 15 to receive full consideration for fall admission.
All PhD students in religious studies receive funding for at least four years. The department offers financial support for graduate students primarily in the form of teaching assistantships.
Every few years the department awards the Gilmore Scholarship for doctoral students who study the intersection of religion, the visual arts, and humanistic values.
The department also has a number of annual scholarships that it awards to graduate students for excellence in teaching and scholarship. In addition, PhD students can apply for funds from the department for research and conference travel expenses.
The department also assists PhD students in applying for funding that provides them time off from teaching to focus on exams and dissertation writing.
Graduate students in religious studies acquire a wide range of competencies that are useful for almost any career they pursue. Students gain research skills; they master the craft of writing; they learn to plan, manage, and complete large projects; they gain teaching skills that are useful both inside and outside the academy; they learn to argue persuasively; they gain the ability to communicate with others about controversial issues; they learn how to understand and mediate differences in religious perspectives and values; they acquire rare language skills; and they gain expertise in the use of digital technologies for research and teaching.
Students who earn a PhD in religious studies often go on to become scholars and teachers in university or college settings. Other degree recipients have become professional ethicists, leaders of nongovernmental organizations, school or church administrators, nonacademic educators, digital media specialists, and government employees in the area of international affairs.
Sample Plan of Study
Sample plans represent one way to complete a program of study. Actual course selection and sequence will vary and should be discussed with an academic advisor. For additional sample plans, see MyUI.
Religious Studies, PhD
Plan of Study Grid (Manual)
| Academic Career |
|---|
| Any Semester |
|---|
| a, b |
|
| c |
|
| | Hours | 0 |
| First Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| RELS:5400 |
The Politics of Everyday Life |
3 |
| d |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 9 |
| Spring |
|---|
| RELS:5200 |
Asian Religions in the Modern World for Graduate Students |
3 |
| GRAD:6217 |
Seminar in College Teaching |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 9 |
| Second Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| RELS:5300 |
Genealogies of Religion |
3 |
| d |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 9 |
| Spring |
|---|
| f |
|
| RELS:5100 |
Teaching and Public Engagement |
1 |
| e |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 10 |
| Third Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| d |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 6 |
| Spring |
|---|
| e |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 6 |
| Fourth Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| e |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 6 |
| Spring |
|---|
| g |
|
| e |
3 |
| e |
3 |
| | Hours | 6 |
| Fifth Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| h |
|
| RELS:7950 |
Thesis i |
3 |
| | Hours | 3 |
| Spring |
|---|
| RELS:7950 |
Thesis i |
3 |
| | Hours | 3 |
| Sixth Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| RELS:7950 |
Thesis i |
3 |
| | Hours | 3 |
| Spring |
|---|
| RELS:7950 |
Thesis i |
2 |
| j |
|
| | Hours | 2 |
| | Total Hours | 72 |
