Religious Studies

Entry requirements

Bachelor's degree: 2:1 Hons degree (UK or equivalent) in a relevant social science subject

Master's degree: a good Master's degree in a social science background.

We may also consider non-standard applicants, please contact us for information.

If you have studied outside of the UK, we would advise you to check our list of international qualifications before submitting your application.

Additional Requirements

As part of your application you will also need to provide a viable research proposal. Guidance can be found on our writing a research proposal webpage.

Months of entry

January, April, July, October

Course content

Based on our current staff research, we welcome proposals from those with an interest in the following broad areas: Buddhism; Christianity; Islam; Hinduism; the social and cultural transformations of contemporary religion and spirituality; sociology of religion; religion and popular culture; modern religious thought and history; religion and politics; occult and esoteric thought; and religion and gender. We enjoy good working relationships with related departments and centres, and joint supervision arrangements are sometimes possible.

Our MPhil variant culminates in the writing of a 40,000 word thesis, whereas our PhD programme culminates in an 80,000 word thesis. The PhD programme is formed of two parts:

• During the initial or ‘probationary’ period we encourage you to dedicate your time to research training and general preparation for the thesis. We offer you the opportunity to take research training modules covering research skills and key concepts, theories and approaches in the sub-field in which you intend to write your thesis. During this period you would also be expected to write a literature review and begin the process of writing your thesis.
• During the final phase, which is subject to confirmation by an Upgrade Panel, you will complete your research, write the remainder of your thesis, and prepare for submission and examination.

PPR has a lively research culture, including stimulating weekly research seminars. In addition, you are encouraged to participate in faculty-wide workshops, and research programmes. We also encourage all researchers to make links with other departments across the university.

Information for international students

We may ask you to provide a recognised English language qualification, dependent upon your nationality and where you have studied previously.

We normally require an IELTS (Academic) Test with an overall score of at least 6.5, and a minimum of 5.5 in each element of the test. We also consider other English language qualifications.

If your score is below our requirements, you may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English language programmes.

Contact: Admissions Team +44 (0) 1524 592032 or email pgadmissions@lancaster.ac.uk

Fees and funding

Learn more at our fees and funding page