The Religious Studies Department Welcomes Newly Approved Graduate Program
By Catherine Szilagyi, Student Intern of CHASS College Computing
The Religious Studies department, and likewise CHASS, has had much to cheer about recently. After patiently awaiting the approval of a proposed graduate program in Religious Studies, UC Riverside’s program advocates were able to breathe a triumphant sigh of relief when news came to them in late June that UC President Robert C. Dynes had given them his official signature of approval on the program, closing the deal and ending the approval process, which often spans a few years.
“It's a real tribute to the quality and vision of the faculty in the Department that they have gained this approval from the highest levels of the system for a new graduate program,” commented Interim Dean Joel Martin, “The need for study and analysis of religion is more critical than ever and this distinctive program will focus on religion in the contemporary context of globalization.”
The Department of Religious Studies at UCR will offers its new graduate program as a small, focused program designed to train advanced students in the critical study of religious traditions. The program’s aim will also be to engage religion as a political and social dynamic on the international stage, in critical appraisal of the force of religion in contemporary global cultures, contacts, and conflicts.
UC Riverside has offered a B.A. in Religious Studies for many years, but this new graduate program will offer two other degree tracks to interested students: a terminal M.A. program and a more specialized Ph.D. program. The masters program is intended for students seeking only to further explore this field of academic study more broadly, while the doctoral degree is ideal for preparing students for entering into academia as researchers and university instructors in a specific field of expertise.
The Department has said that they will begin accepting applications for the program in Fall 2005 and will begin receiving students into the program beginning with the 2006-2007 academic year. In the meantime, however, the Department has taken to concerning itself with more pressing issues as a result of the program’s approval.
“Our next steps are putting information out about the program, setting up the infrastructure and staff, and deciding on courses and who will be teaching which,” said the program’s graduate advisor Andrew Jacobs, “We’re very excited.”
This new program is also expected to raise the academic profile of UCR; UC Santa Barbara has been the only other university in the UC system offering a graduate program in Religious Studies before now. Prior to the approval of UCR’s program, the only other institutions in the Southern California region to offer a Religious Studies graduate program were a select few state universities and religious seminaries. Consequently, CHASS’ newly approved program will soon provide a UC option for students in the nearby region.
“Even among people who are not themselves religious, there's a deep hunger to understand religion, its complex modes of expression, and its resurgent social power. This program will help satisfy that hunger, provide important critical perspectives, and help future scholars generate new tools of analysis,” said Interim Dean Joel Martin.
For more information and details regarding the Religious Studies department’s new graduate program, please visit The Department of Religious Studies graduate program website.