MA Religion and Political Life
Over the past five years our MA degree programme has attracted international students from China, The United States, Europe, and Africa. Currently we offer Religion and Political Life, and a more general programme, Religions and Theology. Theologically engaged and philosophically astute, both pathways aim to furnish students with a critical understanding of key concepts and themes in the field of religion and civil society. Our programme pathways are unique in their research-led and interdisciplinary structure. Students will acquire knowledge of the historical and continuing involvement of religion in various forms of political culture. They will acquire the ability to analyse critically religious traditions or aspects thereof from the standpoint of their involvement with governing ideologies, policy-making and legal regulations. The programme will also provide the necessary historical, conceptual and methodological foundations for further research in the humanities.
The following course units are typically taught for this degree programme:
- Religion and Civil Society (PDF)
- Religion, Politics and the Media (PDF)
- Religion, Nature and Society (PDF)
In these course units students will be encouraged to take up in depth research on:
- a range of contemporary political and ethical issues which arise from the relationship between religion and civil society
- the complex history of interactions between religion and politics
- social-scientific research methods such as ethnography, narrative, analysis of empirical data and their relevance for the study of religion
- different models of theological reflection on culture and society - e.g. critical correlation, contextual theologies, radical orthodoxy and their critical interactions
After the successful completion of the programme students might further their studies in a PhD or seek employment in NGOs, the media, governmental and international offices or faith based communities.
Further Course Description
At one time there was a radical division between religion and public life, but today there is enormous interest in the role of religion in the public sphere. The relationship between religion and politics is receiving much attention in the social sciences. Our programme pathways aim to furnish students with a critical understanding of key concepts and themes in the field of religion and civil society, and will explore various approaches to studying this field (theoretical, historical, anthropological, ethnographic, and sociological methods, for example). Students will acquire knowledge of the historical and continuing involvement of religion in various forms of political culture, and the ability to analyse critically religious traditions or aspects thereof from the standpoint of their involvement with civil society. The programme will also provide the necessary foundations for further research in this field.
Module Details
The subject core course unit is Religion and Civil Society, which will provide a grounding in a number of methodological approaches to examining the relationship between religion and civil society (historical, philosophical, theological, ethnographic, political). Optional course units typically include: From Religion to Politics; Gender and Globalisation; Exploring Hindu Nationalism; Christianity, Culture and Society in England c.1750 - 2000. After successful completion of the taught course units you will write a dissertation for which you will usually have one-to-one supervision.
Scholarships and Bursaries
UK and EU applicants may enter the AHRC or ESRC competition(internal deadline in March/April for this year). This is highly competitive, and applicants should discuss applying with the Programme Director as soon as possible.Some awards are usually offered by the School or department: see here for current information, or contact the Admissions Administrator andrew.rigg@manchester.ac.uk. Some awards are reserved for international applicants. For further information about the cost of this degree click here.
Progression and Assessment
Teaching is mainly in lectures and seminars, with tutorials for dissertation supervision. Assessment of each course unit is normally by means of a 6,000 word essay, but may include book reviews, source reports, presentations, seminar papers. Language course units will usually involve examination. The MA dissertation Is of 12,000-15,000 words.