Theology

By Tim Walker

Published: 15 August 2004

What do you come out with? BA, BA in Bibilical Studies, Religious Studies, Divinity or Theology. MA in Scotland.

Why do it? Because you're ready to ask the big questions: Who Am I? Why am I here? And what does it all mean, exactly? Because you're interested by religions in general or Christianity in particular, and by the relationship between faith and society.

What's it about? Most university theology departments now offer either theology (which is strictly concerned with Christianity) or religious studies (which encompasses all world religions), or a combination of the two. The Religious Studies department at Lancaster places emphasis on the study of religion in the modern world, reacting to current affairs and encouraging students to engage in fieldwork and not simply textual study. The department has experts in all the major world traditions, and in new and alternative forms of spirituality. Lancaster will also be offering a new BA course for 2004, in Ethics, Philosophy and Religion. Sheffield's BA in Biblical Studies focuses specifically on the bible in the modern world. Manchester's department of Religions and Theology has a core course in Biblical Studies too, and counts the subject amongst its research strengths. Cardiff has BAs in Religious and Theological Studies or Theology and prides itself on its research into Muslim communities in the West. The department is home to the Muslims in Britain Research Network.

How long is a degree? Three years in England, four in Scotland

What are the students like? At Lancaster, 60 per cent of the students on the course are female and there is a broad range of diversity reflected in the student make up. Around 150 students take up the course in their first year. At Edinburgh and elsewhere, there are a small number of mature students on Theology courses who are studying to become ministers.

How is it packaged? Most courses begin with compulsory core topics in first year, with more and more choice as the course progresses, allowing students to specialise in their preferred subject area, and generally culminating in a final long dissertation. Lancaster undergraduates are assessed 60 per cent on the basis of exams and an optional dissertation, and 40 per cent on coursework. At Nottingham there is a 50/50 split between exams and coursework for the first two years; the dissertation can count for up to 25 per cent of the final year.

How cool is it? Religious Studies is hot right now, with religion persistently making news since 9/11. Theologians also have plenty to say about today's big ethical debates - cloning, GM crops and sexuality.

What A Levels do you need? No specific ones. A Religious Studies GCSE or A-Level couldn't hurt.

What grades? ABC at Durham, BBB at Bristol, BBC at Cardiff or Lancaster, BCC at Sheffield or Manchester.

Will you be interviewed? You will be interviewed at Lancaster and sometimes Cardiff but not at Sheffield or Nottingham.

Will it keep you off the dole? There are theology-specific opportunities in teaching and the church, but theology graduates find themselves in any number of careers, from management to the media.

What do students say? Gideon Reeves, 24, graduate, Edinburgh University. "I had an amazing time. I focussed mainly on Christianity, but I also explored how Christianity relates to other world religions. My dissertation was about the relationship between Christianity and Science, particularly in light of the arguments that have resurfaced with the study of DNA and genetics. I tried to take an inclusive approach to the views of Christianity and those of ?neo-Darwinists' like Richard Dawkins."

Where's best for teaching? Lancaster, Manchester and Sheffield are the top scorers, with Anglia, Bath Spa, King Alfred's Wincester, Liverpool Hope, Oxford Brookes, Chichester, Birmingham, Cambridge, Durham, Exeter, Gloucestershire, Hull, Leeds, Nottingham and Oxford all rated as excellent.

Where's best for research? Oxford, Manchester, Nottingham and Cardiff scored 5*; Birmingham, Cambridge, Bristol, Durham, Exeter, King's College London, Lancaster, SOAS, Newcastle, Sheffield, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Lampeter, St Andrews and Stirling scored 5.

Where's the cutting edge? Lancaster researches how the world's religions have transformed in modern times and the rise of alternative spiritualities. Sheffield's biblical studies program offers the chance for students to explore the bible from an intellectual, cultural and historical context, and is the only specialist course of its kind in the UK. King's College looks at the social sciences - sociology, psychology and anthropology - and religion, systematic theology, biblical studies and the philosophy of religion. Sheffield has five research centres specialising in: the Bible and Theology; the Hebrew Language; Early Christianity in the Greco-Roman World; Cultural, Literary and Biblical Studies; and the study of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Bath Spa University College is strong in paganism, New Age, Buddhism, Hinduism, gender and African religions.

Who are the stars? Paul Heelas and Robert Segal at Lancaster, for their research into alternative spiritualities and myth & ritual respectively; Hugh McLeod at Birmingham, for his work on the social history of religion in the West; Stewart Brown at Edinburgh, an ecclesiastical historian; David Clines at Sheffield, a biblical studies expert; and John Milbank at Nottingham, who teaches political theology.

Added value: In their second year summer vacation at Lancaster students travel to study Hinduism at Dharmaram College in Bangalore in southern India. All students at Bath must spend a week staying with a religious community, for example, a convent or a Hare Krishna community and there also visits to religious venues. Most universities offer Religious Studies or Theology with another subject of the student's choice, from Accountancy (at Aberdeen) to Social Anthropology (Manchester, St Andrews).