Religious Studies

Overview

Key research areas

Are you interested in the vibrant world of religions? Do you want to study how sacred texts such as the Bible or the Quran have been formed and interpreted throughout the ages? 

Do you want to understand why religious images, buildings, clothes, and everyday practices often provoke fierce debates or even violent conflicts? Do you want to be able to contribute to analyses of the interplay between religion and politics in the context of globalization and migration?

The Religious Studies  programme at Utrecht University  combines an advanced grounding in the central themes and theories of the study of religion, with ample opportunity for specialisation. You can choose and develop your specific expertise in relation to one of the key research areas of our institute such as:

• Religious texts and interpretative practices: This research area focuses on the study of religious traditions from the perspective of sacred texts: their interpretation and the religious rituals and practices associated with them, and discussions on the authority of religious texts. 
• Materiality and physicality of lived religion: This area focuses on the study of the use of the body and the senses in religious practices, such as praying, dancing, fighting, and fasting, and the function of objects within the context of religion, such as images, buildings, food, clothing, money, movies, and digital media.  
• Religious diversity in contexts of globalization and migration: This research area focuses on the role of religion in public controversies and political developments concerning, for instance, gender equality, sociocultural transformation, political and religious fundamentalism, and conflict resolution.

Career Prospects

After completion of the programme, you are fully prepared to compete successfully for PhD positions in Religious Studies, Islamic Studies, or cognate disciplines (such as Anthropology). Your training also equips you to pursue non-academic career paths requiring advanced research skills. 

The multidisciplinary and transnational approach of this Research Master’s programme is especially beneficial here. 

The skills and expertise you will acquire in this programme are in demand with a wide range of organisations within and outside of Europe, such as NGOs dealing with religious and cultural diversity or cultural heritage, media and publishing houses, museums, and so forth. In combination with a didactic qualification, you will also be qualified for positions in the educational sector.

Accreditation

Accredited by the NVAO - Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders.