BA in Religious Studies
Degree Program Description
What do shamans, politicians, nurses, prophets, intellectuals, nuns, and soldiers have in common? They are all part of the Religious Studies curriculum at MU, which studies religion as a powerful influence in human life and history, shaping global cultures, national identities, and the values of individuals. Religious Studies majors explore the roles religion plays in societies, the ways that religious institutions grow and change, the meanings of scriptures from around the world, the extraordinary experiences of religious specialists, and much more. Graduates of the major pursue a variety of employment and graduate school opportunities.
Major Program Requirements
A student must take a total of 24 credit hours in Religious Studies, of which at least 21 hours must be at the 2000-level or above. Students must earn a minimum GPA of 2.0 or higher in order to have the credit applied. In addition to University, general education, and College of Arts and Science requirements, students must also meet the following major program requirements. All major requirements in the College of Arts and Science must be completed with grades of C- or higher unless otherwise indicated.
| Major Core Requirements | ||
| REL_ST 1100 | Introduction to Religion | 3 |
| or REL_ST 1500 | Religion and Culture | |
| or REL_ST 2110 | Global Religions | |
Semester Plan
Below is a sample plan of study, semester by semester. A student's actual plan may vary based on course choices where options are available.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| REL_ST 1100, 1500, or 2110 | 3 | Religious Studies, 2000-level | 3 |
| ENGLSH 1000 or 1000H | 3 | Math and Quantitative Reasoning | 3 |
| Biological, Physical, or Mathematical Sciences with Lab | 4 | Biological, Physical, or Mathematical Sciences | 3 |
| Behavioral Science | 3 | Missouri State Law Requirement, Social Science from Arts and Science | 3 |
| SSC 1150 | 2 | Humanities | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 2 | ||
| 17 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Behavioral Science from Arts and Science | 3 | REL_ST 2100 | 3 |
| Humanities | 3 | First Writing Intensive | 3 |
| Religious Studies 2000+-level | 3 | Humanities from Arts and Science | 3 |
| Second Language Requirement | 4 | Second Language Requirement | 4 |
| Social Science, 2000-level | 3 | Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 |
| 16 | 16 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Religious Studies, 3000-level | 3 | Religious Studies, 3000-level | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 | Humanities, 3000-level | 3 |
| Second Language Requirement | 4 | Internship or Undergraduate Research in Religious Studies | 3 |
| Biological or Physical Sciences with Lab | 4 | Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 | ||
| 14 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Religious Studies Capstone, 4000-level | 3 | Religious Studies, 3000-level | 3 |
| Religious Studies Writing Intensive, 3000-level | 3 | Religious Studies, 3000-level | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 | Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 | Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 |
| Second major, minor, certificate, or elective | 3 | ||
| 12 | 15 | ||
| Total Credits: 120 | |||
Degree Audit
The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree.
MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.
Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.
Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.
For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.
Major and Career Exploration
The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.
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If you are considering a change of major or are exploring multiple majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573)884-9700 or through MU Connect Discovery Center service in you success network.
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If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring the major.
- If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values and talents, visit the MU Career Center. No Appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.
- If you would like information about MU majors and degree programs, visit:
- the Degrees, Majors (Degree Programs), Emphasis Areas, Minors and Certificates page in the catalog,
- the MU Majors website.
For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.