Mar 28, 2024  
2022-2023 Graduate Catalog 
    
2022-2023 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Religious Studies


www.smu.edu/Dedman/Academics/Departments/ReligiousStudies/Graduate

Professor Roy Heller, Director

The Graduate Program in Religious Studies (GRPS) is composed of faculty from the Dedman Religious Studies department and the Perkins School of Theology, as well as the two University Ethics Professors.

Dedman Religious Studies Faculty

Professor Jill DeTemple, Department Chair

Professors: William Barnard, Mark Chancey, Jill DeTemple, Johan Elverskog, Serge Frolov
Associate Professors: John Lamoreaux, Steven Lindquist
Senior Lecturer: Shira Lander

Perkins School of Theology Faculty and University Ethics Professors

General Information

The Graduate Program in Religious Studies comprises programs of study leading to the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees. The primary goal of both degree programs is to prepare persons for academic leadership in the field and hence for professional careers as teacher-scholars in colleges, universities and schools of theology. The M.A. degree program also aims to accommodate the qualified nonprofessional student interested in advanced work in religious studies within the context of the liberal arts and sciences. Students specialize in one of the following six fields of study:

Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Systematic Theology
New Testament Religious Ethics (Christian ethics)
The Christian Tradition Religion and Culture

Admission Requirements

The deadline for completed applications is January 5. The requirements for admission to the M.A. and Ph.D. degree programs in religious studies are as follows:

  • The B.A. degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution.
  • A cumulative grade point average of 3.000 or above on a 4.000 scale.
  • A satisfactory score on the GRE general graduate school admission test, ordinarily including a combined score of 310 or greater on the verbal and quantitative sections.
  • Sufficient previous study in religion or related areas to be able to satisfy the requirements of the degree program.
  • When English is not the applicant’s native language, a satisfactory TOEFL English language proficiency test score also is required. Internet-based version: 79-80 or better (preferably 100 or above); or paper-based version: 550 or better (preferably 600 or above).

Language Requirement

All students are expected to demonstrate a reading competence in at least one approved language other than English upon matriculation, by passing an examination in that language in the August examination period preceding the first term of study. Ph.D. students will be expected to pass an examination in a second approved language by the beginning of the second year. (For students in the fields of Hebrew Bible or New Testament, both Biblical Hebrew and Greek are required, as well as two additional languages. The examination in the second language must be taken no later than May of the first year.)

The approved languages for examinations in both the M.A. and Ph.D degree programs are French, Spanish, German, Greek, Hebrew and Latin. Another pertinent language may be substituted with the approval of the GPRS Steering Committee. It is strongly recommended that Ph.D. students enter the program with a solid reading knowledge of the two (or more) languages in which they expect to be examined, since there is little time or opportunity for basic language acquisition during graduate study.

Programs

    Doctoral
    Master

    Courses

      Religious Studies

      Perkins School of Theology Courses

       

      Independent and Directed Studies
      Philosophy of Religion RELI 7300
      Religion and Culture RELI 7320–7334
      History of Christianity RELI 7335–7349
      Systematic Theology RELI 7350–7364
      Religious Ethics RELI 7365–7379
      Old Testament RELI 7380–7389
      New Testament RELI 7390–7399