From politics to medicine to linguistics, religion is a topic, often controversial, that is raised time and time again.
From politics to medicine to linguistics, religion is a topic, often controversial, that is raised time and time again. To understand the policies of much of the Middle East, it is essential to understand religious beliefs and the place those beliefs have in governments. Much of the same can be said of policies in the United States and the rest of the world. Yet, of even deeper importance than influence on the political front is how religions pervade our everyday lives. Indeed, religion is all around us all the time. It is an essential part of how we function and also how we dysfunction.
As such, the Religious Studies Program draws upon authorities, professors, and courses from many different disciplines, departments, and majors. The perspectives and expertise that they provide advance the work that is done within the program. In turn, the valuable work of Religious Studies contributes to other fields as well. This mutual cooperation among fields makes our work not merely relevant but also incredibly interesting.
Because the Religious Studies Program values its interdisciplinary resources, the skills that one learns in Religious Studies are broadly versatile. Understanding social interaction and the historical development of religio-political outlooks, tracing the geographical migration and reach of groups over time, reading texts in ways that emphasize social contexts and intended audiences are only a few of the skills that are developed in the Religious Studies major.
Majors and minors in the program benefit greatly from the flexibility, skills, and solid education that this interdisciplinary approach provides. Upon graduation, they are well-prepared to move into focused training in a host of fields.