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Department of Religious Studies

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Study

What force in all human history has done the most to bring out the best in people, to help in building up human communities, to bring about peace? What force in all human history has done the most to bring out the worst in people, to destroy human communities, and to bring about war? Religion may be the answer to both of those questions.

It’s like the famous beginning of Charles Dickens’ novel A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” Religion can be the occasion for expressing one's highest ideals, but also for expressing the worst of one's instincts.

Meanwhile, between the lofty and low, religious practices bring order and meaning to the movements of ordinary people's daily lives. Our faculty and students explore religion across the world, in many different contexts.

 

Major Exploration

As a religious studies major, you will explore the many roles religion has played and continues to play both in society and in individual people's lives. Whether it is Zen monks, ancient Christian martyrs, Muslim and Jewish women, Hindu saints or Chinese philosophers, our courses introduce you to people and phenomena from all over the world. Learning about religion provides an opportunity to explore different cultures and develop a more global perspective.

Religious studies courses help to develop your critical-thinking abilities, your analytical reading and writing skills and your capacity for interpretation and comparison, abilities that are essential in every field of study. Through Summer Session programs and study abroad opportunities, students have been able to travel to India, China, Japan, Greece, Turkey and elsewhere.

Typical courses for religious studies majors include:

  • Exploring Religions
  • Hebrew Bible
  • New Testament
  • Introduction to Islam
  • Introduction to African-American Religions
  • Morality, Ethics, and Religion
  • Religion, Medicines, and Healing
  • Introduction to Buddhism
  • Religion and Science: Human Sex, Gender and Religion
  • Psychology of Religion

Major Requirements

Religious Studies offers a highly flexible major (24 credits), with few specific requirements and a lot of choice among electives. Students can thus follow their interests by selecting courses that focus on a specific religious tradition, a variety of global traditions, or on themes and concepts that apply to many traditions and communities. 

Students may also complete an intensive major by taking an additional elective course, completing an independent research project, and maintaining a high GPA.

Major requirements

 

Minor Requirements

Religious Studies also offers a highly flexible minor (18 credits), which requires only a selection from the same elective courses as the major.  Students can thus follow their interests in many directions. 

Minor requirements

 

Your Future in Religious Studies

Graduates with a BA in Religious Studies may want to pursue MA and PhD at USC in areas related to Religious Studies such as: Anthropology, Philosophy, History, English, Psychology, etc. Some may consider getting a Master of Divinity or Doctor of Divinity in theology or pastoral ministry, at other institutions. Religious Studies graduates also have gone on to professional schools, including both law and business schools.

The foundation of the Religious Studies degree prepares the graduate with a greater comprehension of the globally interactive and complex ways human religious thought and practice intersect with many other fields of study.


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