Theology and Religion
Durham University
UCAS Code: V614 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Durham University
UCAS Code: V614 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
To include a social science or humanities subject. Specific subjects excluded for entry: General Studies and Critical Thinking.
Access to HE Diploma
We require 60 credits with a minimum of 45 credits at level 3 (or equivalent). Applicants may be required to meet additional subject-specific requirements for particular courses at Durham. Please contact departments for further information.
Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal
To include a social science or humanities subject.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
To include 665 in higher level subjects.
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
To include a social science or humanities subject.
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma
To include A level in a social science or humanities subject.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
To include A level in a social science or humanities subject.
Scottish Advanced Higher
To include a social science or humanities subject.
Scottish Higher
Departments will normally make offers based on Advanced Highers. In the absence of 3 Advanced Highers, where these are not offered by the applicant’s school, offers comprising of Advanced Highers and Highers or a number of Highers may be made on a case by case basis.
At Durham we welcome applications from students of outstanding achievement and potential from all educational backgrounds. We will consider applicants studying T level qualifications for entry to many of our courses. Where a course requires subject specific knowledge and this is not covered within the T level being studied, you may need to supplement your T level studies with a suitable qualification to meet this requirement, for example at A level. Where this is needed this will be clearly stated in our entry requirements.
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
What do people believe about the world and their place in it? How do those beliefs shape society and culture? Can those beliefs be critically examined, scrutinised and tested?
BA Theology and Religion will teach you how to use the tools of philosophy, social science, history, literature and language to understand human beliefs and world views, past and present. We do this both from within, seeking to test our own beliefs, and from without, as critical observers. We have a historic strength in the study of Christian thought, history, theology, practice and texts, while offering strong provision in politics, ethics, non-Christian faith traditions, humanism and atheism.
In addition to academic learning, we have an extensive series of research-related activities which you are warmly encouraged to attend. These include several research seminars and public lectures from high-profile guest speakers and visiting scholars; the University also frequently hosts eminent and well-known visiting speakers. You also have the choice of applying to add a placement year or a year abroad to your degree, increasing the course from three years to four.
In the first year, modules are intended to provide the foundational understanding and skills necessary for work in theology and the study of religion.
In the second year, there is a much greater choice of modules to allow you to pursue your own interests within theology and religion by building on the understanding and abilities you have begun to develop in the first year.
The third year includes a dissertation that allows a deep, independently driven, exploration of a topic of your choice.
Modules
Year 1
Core modules:
Worldview, Faith and Identity outlines established approaches to the study of religion. The module introduces ideas of identity, faith and worldview as foundations for religious thought and practice.
Introduction to the History of Christianity provides an introduction to the history of Christianity and to its relationships with its social and cultural contexts including the representation of different periods, different regions, different social groups such as historically marginalised groups, and different methodologies.
Introduction to Christian Theology (philosophical studies) will equip you with a grasp of the history of Christian theology and provide a comprehensive map of the major figures, ideas and debates which function as a minimal context for intelligent work in Christian theology. The module will introduce the method of thinking theologically, by habituating you in the thoughts of leading theologians.
Introduction to Bible: Texts, History, Culture (scriptural studies) introduces important passages and themes in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and New Testament, and explains some of the ways in which biblical scholars approach texts.
In recent years, optional modules have included:
New Testament Greek
God and Evil
God and the Good: Philosophy of Religion and Ethics
Islam Observed: Ethnographic Accounts of Muslim Practice.
Year 2
In recent years, optional modules have included:
Literature and Theology of the Old Testament
New Testament Theology
Decolonising the Bible
Death, Ritual and Belief
Creation and New Creation: Imaging God
Atheism, Belief and the Edge of Reason
Topics in Christian Ethics
Christ and the Human Mystery: Imaging God
Sacred India: Land, Politics and Identity
Jewish Religion in Antiquity: Belief Systems, Ethics, Political Conflicts
Theology and Comedy
Religion in Contemporary Britain
Year 3 (Year 4 if undertaking a placement year or year abroad)
Core module:
In your final year, you will submit a dissertation on a related topic of your choice, approved by an academic advisor. The dissertation allows you to explore in depth a topic of special interest to you.
In recent years, optional modules have included:
Aramaic
Advanced Greek Texts
Issues in Old Testament Studies
The New Testament and Christian Ethics
Religion and Film
Emotion and Identity in Religion
Christian Fundamentalism and the Modern World.
Assessment methods
Modules are assessed by essays and end-of-year examinations, some by a combination of the two. Forty per cent of your degree will be assessed by coursework.
Our curriculum places a strong emphasis on self-directed learning and you will be provided with reading lists, handouts, suggestions for preparation and other online materials to guide you in your independent research.
In your final year, you will submit a dissertation, which allows you to explore in depth a topic of your choice.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
Extra funding
We're committed to supporting the best students irrespective of financial circumstances. https://www.durham.ac.uk/study/scholarships/
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
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Theology and religious studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Theology and religious studies
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Theology can actually be a very vocational subject —by far the most common move for theology graduates is to go into the clergy and at the moment we have a serious shortage of people willing to go into what is one of the oldest graduate careers. If you want to study theology but don't want to follow a religious career, then there are plenty of options available. 2015 graduates went into all sorts of jobs requiring a degree, from education and community work, to marketing, HR and financial analysis. Postgraduate study is also popular — a lot of theology graduates train as teachers, or go into Masters or even doctoral study - where philosophy and law are very popular postgraduate subjects of study.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Theology and religious studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£22k
£31k
£38k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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