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Graduate Options for Religious Studies Majors Your Religious Studies major has prepared you well for a variety of post-graduate options. At Penn you have been provided with strong critical and analytical skills through your careful reading of religious texts, and have developed solid research, written and oral communication skills. In addition, because of the interdisciplinary nature of your major, you have been introduced to various literary traditions and to history, philosophy, anthropology, sociology and psychology, all important fields in the liberal arts. Finally, as you have been studying various systems of belief, you have learned sensitivity for cultures other than your own, an attitude which will enable you to decode more easily the complex, diverse world in which you will live and work.
As you begin to consider what you want to do after graduation, it is important to think about the foundation that you have developed and how it has prepared you for a career. Religion majors at Penn have gone on to work in a broad range of fields, from law, medicine, journalism, business, government, international development, public health, education, to graduate work in various disciplines within the humanities and social sciences. Of course, some Religious Studies majors (and individuals in other majors) have also gone on to prepare for ministry. For a snapshot of post senior year job possibilities, check our Career Services’ survey of religious studies majors. The Career Services website also has extensive information about options for graduate training in various academic disciplines, along with law, medicine, business, public policy, public health, criminal justice etc. You may make an appointment with a career counselor to go over job search strategies, or with a graduate and professional school advisor to discuss the application process in various fields of study. Most importantly, if you want to continue in religious studies, it is imperative that you discuss your plans with one or more faculty members in your department. TYPES OF GRADUATE DEGREES There are a variety of degrees available to individuals who would like further training in the field of religion, either for ordination as a minister or rabbi, an educator, or an academic. Master of Divinity (M.Div.) Some well-known divinity schools are associated with the following universities: Harvard An M.Div. follows a three year course of study which varies greatly by school. Depending upon the denomination or orientation of the program, coursework typically includes Biblical exegesis, homiletics, ethics, pastoral care and counseling, administration and program development, public policy and planning, along with a year of supervised ministry work. There is often a language requirement, such as Greek, Latin or Hebrew, and/or a modern language that would enable one to serve a particular ethnic congregation. The typical candidate for admission to an M.Div. program is someone with a solid liberal arts background, who has been active in various community service projects on campus and has displayed leadership qualities. Certainly, if you are applying to a divinity program that trains individuals for ministry in a particular faith, you should have discussed your plans in detail with your pastor (and s/he is likely to be one of your recommenders.) If you want to apply for admission to a divinity school, you must be able to articulate clearly in an admissions essay your commitment to serving others and show clarity of purpose about your goals. Typically, the application process does not require the GRE, but three letters of recommendation (a mix of academic, possibly a director of community service, and/or a minister,) transcripts, and a statement of purpose, are the essential components of the application. Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.) Master of Theological Studies (M.T.S.) Rabbinical Studies For preliminary information about curriculum, requirements, and degree options, Bernard Revel Graduate School at Yeshiva University Doctoral programs in the humanities generally take five to seven years to complete. The first three years are taken up with required and elective seminars, language proficiency tests, and a series of examinations, both written and oral, that cover the overall discipline and your areas of concentration. Typically, in your second and third years you will also assist in teaching classes, as a Teaching Assistant, thus learning an important aspect of your trade. The process requires a prodigious amount of reading, writing, and class preparation, so be sure that you generally enjoy doing these things. If you are admitted directly into a Ph.D. program, after your second or third year, you will be awarded a Master of Arts, upon completion of exams or a Master’s thesis. Your next step in the doctoral process will be to produce a dissertation prospectus that will be reviewed by a standing committee. Once your topic has been accepted you will collect your data, do your archival research and field work, and write your dissertation. Those activities can take two to five years, depending upon a variety of personal, logistical and professional factors. Given the length and demanding nature of the Ph.D. process, along with the tight job market awaiting individuals upon completion of the degree, it is important to be sober and informed about your decision to undertake graduate school. Spend time discussing your ambitions will graduate students and faculty in your department. When it comes time for you to decide upon a program, you should aim for admittance to a prestigious, well-resourced program, as a well-funded student. Do not attend a program that does not adequately support you financially, because you do not want to have a heavy debt load upon completion of the degree. (It also means that the department does not support your Ph.D. candidacy wholeheartedly, which can be problematic down the road.) For some very useful advice on how to maximize your chances for a positive outcome to your graduate school experience read: “Netting a Job in Religious Studies: Some Notes from the Field” by Michel Desjardins. To prepare as an undergraduate for application to a Ph.D. program, you should turn first to your faculty in the department for consultation about your goal. Ask them for their advice on a course of action and suggestions for appropriate graduate programs. Faculty recommendations are a key component of your successful application to graduate school - three are the usual number required. The authors of your recommendation letters must know you well enough to assess your potential as a scholar through your performance in class and other research work. Thus, it is essential to spend time developing a relationship with your faculty and letting them serve as mentors to you in the discipline. It is obviously competitive to get into a prestigious Ph.D. program, thus it is important to distinguish yourself in your undergraduate major and other relevant courses, and to challenge yourself academically. If possible, take seminar classes and write an honor’s thesis. The latter will demonstrate that you have some familiarity with and affinity for research and writing, making you a more attractive candidate. Likewise, it might be a good idea to take one or two graduate courses, something possible to do here at Penn. Linguistic requirements are stringent for Ph.D. programs, so as soon as you have chosen your field of specialty, begin to learn the appropriate languages. For example, it is essential to have strong skills in Japanese (and some knowledge of Chinese) for the study of Zen Buddhism; or Pali and/or Sanskrit for the study of Indian religions. Likewise, Jewish Studies will require a sophisticated knowledge of Hebrew and frequently other ancient languages, and applicants to programs in medieval Christianity must demonstrate of good grasp of Latin, along with proficiency in French and German. Since the most competitive programs generally admit applicants with GREs in the high 600s or 700s, it might be a good idea to prepare for this standardized test while you are still in college or soon thereafter, when you are in a test-taking mode. The scores are valid for five years, so you may want to get them out of the way before you move on to other aspects of the application process. High scores are particularly helpful for obtaining university-wide fellowships. One of the most important components of an application to a Ph.D. program in -Indicate what you would bring to the program, i.e., how you have prepared thus far for graduate work in religious studies (summary of coursework, research and writing experiences, linguistic preparation, teaching, etc.) -In discussing your research experience demonstrate an awareness of important questions and issues in the discipline that you have considered and explain the general direction you hope to take future research (you should not write a thesis proposal, just have some credible research interests.) -You should give the admissions committee an idea of your goals, i.e. what you intend to do with the degree. -Finally, it is helpful to indicate which scholars you want to work with and why, (i.e., know their work). You must also show an awareness of archival or other research resources available at the specific program to which you are applying, along with any other details about its curriculum, interdisciplinary opportunities, etc. that make it especially attractive to you. Your statement of purpose should be an opportunity for you to clarify your academic and professional goals, something that you will have to do frequently throughout your career.
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