This degree will equip you with the skills to understand religion and its power to shape the human condition This degree is designed to develop an understanding of the centrality of religion to the functioning of societies past, present and future. You will engage with the comparative study of religion, especially with the significance of myth-, ritual- and meaning-making. This is complemented by more specialised modules that explore religious practice in relation to either particular religions (such as Islam, Judaism and Christianity), particular regions (such as Asia, Africa, and Europe), or particular transnational media (the internet, film and literature). You will engage with the role of religion in a wide range of contexts: including politics, literature, bioethics, and war. Students on this degree will benefit from the considerable strength that the Department has in the comparative study of religion, the social sciences and the study of religious texts/artefacts.
Graduates of the degree will be highly employable in a range of professions including the civil service, education, research and social work.
The degree enables you to understand better the world we live in, and to explore the forces that shape your own attitudes, hopes and fears. In turn, it will empower you to go out into the world to make a difference for the good.
**Year 1**
Lays the foundations that are needed for higher study, providing core understandings and skills for the exploration of religion and culture.
Two compulsory religious practice modules are taken in the first year, as follows: Islam Observed / Christianity in Context / at least two compulsory theory modules: Worldview, Faith and Identity AND God and the Good: Philosophy of Religion and Ethics AND/OR God and Evil / and one or two modules from a large list of electives offered by the Department of Theology and Religion and from the departments of Anthropology and Sociology. Examples of modules available in recent years include: People and Cultures / Societies in Transition / Conceptualising Society / Biblical Hebrew / New Testament Greek / Introduction to Christian Theology / Reading Biblical Texts. One of these optional modules may be taken in your second year.
**Year 2**
The second year builds upon the first allowing for deeper study of key themes, traditions and practices. Candidates have to choose at least three modules from a list of electives that may include, for example: Death, Ritual and Belief / Religion in Contemporary Britain / Atheism, Belief, and the Edge of Reason / Faith, Identity and Power in Latin America / Sacred India: Land, Politics and Identity / Topics in Christian Ethics / Myth and Meaning: The Structural Analysis of Mythology / Research Project and Colloquium in Theology and Religion / Science and Theology: Exploring the Interface / God and the Universe of Faiths.
They may choose to draw up to three modules from a further list of electives.
**Year 3**
In your final year, you will submit a double dissertation which allows you to explore in depth a topic of your choice which is of special interest to you. In the third year you will also take optional modules, selecting from a list of modules offered by the Department of Theology and Religion and from other departments. Examples of recent modules include: Anthropology of Religious Controversy / Religion and Film / Religious Diversity in African Context / Emotion and Identity in Religion / The Postmodern God
**Study Abroad**
Students admitted to the BA (Hons) Religion, Society and Culture are able to apply to transfer to the BA (Hons) Religion, Society and Culture (with Year Abroad) course.
Durham University has over 240 student exchange agreements across the world as part of our International Exchange programmes. Students apply for this opportunity during their first two years and (if successful) spend a year, between their second and third years at Durham in one of our overseas partner institutions.
Course Details - Modules
Year 1
Lays the foundations that are needed for higher study, providing core understandings and skills for the exploration of religion and culture.
Two compulsory religious practice modules are taken in the first year, as follows:
Islam Observed
Christianity in Context
at least two compulsory theory modules:
Worldview, Faith and Identity
AND
God and the Good: Philosophy of Religion and Ethics AND/OR
God and Evil
and one or two modules from a large list of electives offered by the Department of Theology and Religion and from the departments of Anthropology and Sociology. Examples of modules available in recent years include:
People and Cultures
Societies in Transition
Conceptualising Society
Biblical Hebrew
New Testament Greek
Introduction to Christian Theology
Reading Biblical Texts.
One of these optional modules may be taken in your second year.
Year 2
The second year builds upon the first allowing for deeper study of key themes, traditions and practices.
Candidates have to choose at least three modules from a list of electives that may include, for example:
Death, Ritual and Belief
Religion in Contemporary Britain
Atheism, Belief, and the Edge of Reason
Faith, Identity and Power in Latin America
Sacred India: Land, Politics and Identity
Topics in Christian Ethics
Myth and Meaning: The Structural Analysis of Mythology
Research Project and Colloquium in Theology and Religion
Science and Theology: Exploring the Interface
God and the Universe of Faiths
Landscapes of Worship in Contemporary South Asian Religions.
They may choose to draw up to three modules from a further list of electives, examples of which might include:
Cultures and Classifications
Philosophy and the Christian Tradition 100–1300
Self, Identity and Society
The Making of Modern Christianity: Medieval and Reformation.
Year 3
In your final year, you will submit a double dissertation which allows you to explore in depth a topic of your choice which is of special interest to you. In the third year you will also take optional modules, selecting from a list of modules offered by the Department of Theology and Religion and from other departments. Examples of recent modules include:
Anthropology of Religious Controversy
Religion and Film
Religious Diversity in African Context
Emotion and Identity in Religion
The Postmodern God
Christian Tradition and the Practice of Politics
Faith and the Experience of War in the Christian World
Religions in Sub-Saharan Africa
Religion, Media and Popular Culture.
Please note that the list of optional modules available in any year will vary depending on available teaching staff. The lists above provide an example of the type of modules which may be offered.
Course Details – Assessment Method
Assessment Methods are not listed for this Course.
Course Details – Professional Bodies
Professional Bodies are not listed for this Course.
How to Apply
26 January This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application Codes
Course code:
V617
Institution code:
D86
Campus Name:
St Mary's College
Campus code:
Points of Entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
Year 1
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry (Year 2 and Beyond)
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry are not listed for this Course.
International applicants
Standard Qualification Requirements
Specific subjects excluded for entry:
General Studies and Critical Thinking.
Information:
Applicants taking Science A-levels that include a practical component will be required to take and pass this as a condition of entry. This refers only to English A Levels.
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.
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.
General information on subjects/grades required for entry:
Seventeen points (6, 6, 5) from Higher Level subjects required.
Our contextual offer A level ABC or BBB (or equivalent) if you choose it as your firm choice. To find out if you’re eligible, please visit: www.dur.ac.uk/study/ug/apply/contextualoffers/.
Please click the following link to find out more about qualification requirements for this course
https://www.dur.ac.uk/study/ug/apply/entry/
Minimum Qualification Requirements
Minimum Further Information are not listed for this Course.
English language requirements
Test
Grade
AdditionalDetails
Durham University welcomes applications from all students irrespective of background. We encourage the recruitment of academically well-qualified and highly motivated students, who are non-native speakers of English, whose full potential can be realised with a limited amount of English Language training either prior to entry or through pre-sessional and/or in-sessional courses.
It is the normal expectation that candidates for admission should be able to demonstrate satisfactory English proficiency before the start of a programme of study, whether via the submission of an appropriate English language qualification or by attendance on an appropriate pre-sessional course.
Acceptable evidence and levels required can be viewed by following the link provided.
