Psychology and Religion
Entry requirements
A level
Accepted in place of A levels with the following grade equivalencies: D2 = A*; D3 = A; M2 = B. Combinations of A levels and Principle subjects are accepted.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
6,6,5 in Higher Level subjects
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
BTEC Diploma: DD, plus a B at A-level BTEC Subsidiary Diploma: D, plus AB at A-level
Accepted in place of a non-required A level with the equivalent grade.
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
This innovative programme focuses on the role of religion and belief in society and on our everyday experiences. An understanding of both psychology and religion is essential in today’s world.
Psychology and Religion helps us understand:
- Our relationships with others
- Our personal experiences
- The world around us and how society works
- Important social issues and world events
You will learn how we interpret information from the media and those around us. You will find out why we react the way we do in certain situations, as individuals and as a society, and how religion shapes the choices we make. You will cover questions such as:
- What factors affect our willingness to help other people?
- How does religion relate to our health/well-being?
- How does religion affect our view of the world around us?
This programme is the only one like it in the world. It’s unique as it will gives you a solid understanding of both Psychology and Religion as well as focusing on the intersection between both disciplines.
BA Psychology and Religion will give you the skills employers in a wide range of industries are looking for. You will learn to question the world around you and gain a wide range of skills including formulating strong arguments, problem solving and the ability to think differently. You will become a global graduate with an awareness of global, local and cross-cultural issues.
It will set you up for a wide range of careers where understanding people is key including areas such as Marketing, Policy, Law and Order, Social Care and Politics. If you choose to follow a career in Psychology, this course will give you the solid foundations you need to go on to further study to become a qualified Psychologist.
**Why study this course?**
**One of a kind** – Our BA Psychology and Religion programme is unlike any other course, giving you the chance to Psychology and Religion as well as the unique cross section between disciplines.
**Taught by experts** – You will be taught by specialists in both Psychology and Religion – two areas that in combination can be applied to address significant societal challenges that we face today. Our academics regularly work with policy-makers and advise governments and public bodies on engagement with faith communities.
**Flexible module choice** – Tailor your degree to your interests by choosing from wide range of optional modules from both Psychology and Theology and Religion. You will complement these modules by exploring the connection between each discipline through unique core modules.
**Interesting and diverse career paths** – This degree offers an excellent preparation for any kind of career that requires understanding how people think and interact with others around them.
**Culturally diverse city** – All faiths are well-represented in Birmingham, with more than 650 churches, mosques, synagogues and temples across the city. Birmingham is home to one of the UK’s largest Muslim, Sikh and Buddhist communities, the second largest Hindu community and the seventh largest Jewish community. The Department also works closely with the city’s faith leaders and communities.
This course is not accredited by the British Psychology Society. However, upon graduation, students wishing to pursue a career in Psychology can study a postgraduate conversion degree. The BA Psychology and Religion course provides an excellent grounding for further study.
**Top 10 for undergraduate Theology and Religious Studies in the Guardian League Table 2023**
**Top 150 for Psychology in the QS World University Rankings 2022**
**Top 10 for Theology in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023**
Modules
First-year modules cover a broad base of the subject and are designed to introduce you to ways of studying at university. By the final year the modules you take will become more specialised and reflect the research expertise of the academic staff. More detailed module information can be found on the ‘Course detail’ tab on the University of Birmingham’s coursefinder web pages.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
University of Birmingham
Department of Theology and Religion
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below 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
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)
Psychology (non-specific)
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.
Psychology (non-specific)
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
20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.
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.
£20k
£26k
£31k
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.
Psychology (non-specific)
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£20k
£23k
£29k
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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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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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:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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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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