Undergraduate

You take five papers designed to give you a broad introduction to the basic concepts, knowledge and skills required in the main areas of study. There are two compulsory subjects:

• one scriptural language - Hebrew, New Testament Greek, Qur'anic Arabic or Sanskrit
• a paper on either the Old Testament or the New Testament (but you can take the other in place of one of the choices below)

Plus three other papers from a choice of five:

• Christianity and the Transformation of Culture - considering key periods and issues in the history of Christianity and its interaction with non-Christian cultures
• Who is Jesus Christ? - introducing some of the major themes of Christian theology through a focus on Jesus Christ
• Understanding Contemporary Religion - an introduction to the sociological study of religion
• World Religions in Comparative Perspective - looking at the history, beliefs and practices of the main religions of the world and the problems of comparing them
• Philosophy of Religion and Ethics - debating questions such as the nature of metaphysics, arguments for the existence of God, and the objectivity of morals

This builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in Part I. A wide choice of options is available, enabling you to develop a course suited to your own interests. You can choose a total of four papers out of 17.

You may wish to continue to study any of the four scriptural languages at a higher level, or you can drop the study of languages at this stage. The other papers can be freely chosen from subject areas studied in the Faculty, for example:

• biblical studies
• church history
• philosophy of religion
• psychology and religion
• religious themes in literature
• the study of religion
• world religions

You can also choose to take the Part IA Logic paper from the Philosophy course.

In your final year, you choose four from a wide range of papers, which includes advanced papers in the Part IIA subject areas as well as Special Subjects and interdisciplinary papers, such as:

• Theology and Science
• Judaism and Hellenism
• Topics in Christian Ethics
• Self and Salvation in Indian and Western Thought
• Sacrifice

You can choose to write a dissertation of 10,000 words in your third year instead of one paper.

Essential No specific subjects
Useful AS/IB Standard Level or above in one or more of English, Religious Studies, History, modern languages

No particular subjects at A Level (or equivalent) are required for Theology and Religious Studies and it is not necessary to have studied Religious Studies at AS or A Level. Subjects such as Religious Studies, History, English and modern languages can be helpful, but so can any subjects that encourage clear, logical thinking and careful analysis of evidence. Students with a completely science background study Theology and Religious Studies and do very well.

Check College websites for College specific requirements. See also Entrance requirements and our Subject Matters leaflet for additional advice about general requirements for entry, qualifications and offers.

The table below sets out the ways in which each College assesses applicants for this subject. For more information about these methods of assessment and why we use them, see the main Admissions tests and written work page.

If you are interested in applying for this course, please see our Applying section for more details.