Theology and Religion

About the course

Theology is an ancient intellectual discipline, with continuing and momentous social significance around the world today.

Students gain an understanding of the intellectual underpinning of religious traditions, and of the social and cultural contexts for religious belief and practice.

(Please note that this video refers to the course BA Religion and Oriental Studies, which has since been retitled BA Religion and Asian and Middle Eastern Studies.)

In order to engage fully with the questions raised by the critical study of Theology and Religion, you will have to become something of a historian and a philosopher, a textual and literary critic, and a linguist. The range of disciplines that may be encountered on the course makes study vibrant and challenging and means that our graduates are versatile and equipped with a variety of skills.

Oxford has been at the very heart of religious debate, reform and turmoil in the British Isles for eight centuries and so the faculty here wears a mantle of history not available in many other universities. At the same time Theology and Religion at Oxford is embracing its 21st-century context: students have the opportunity to study five major world religions and their primary languages. They can also explore the relationship between religion and science, the philosophy of religion and the place of religious ethics in public life.

On completion of this course you will have gained knowledge and understanding of different religious traditions. You will have thought about what a religion is and how to approach learning about it. You will have studied the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, the development of Christian doctrine in its historical context, and the thought of modern theologians. In doing so you will be required to study a wide variety of texts, which will develop your critical, analytical and comparative skills.

You will also acquire competence in at least one of six languages and should find that being able to read sacred texts in their original language is a deeply satisfying experience.

Members of the Faculty of Theology and Religion include more than 100 academics, including experts in the ancient languages and literature of the world’s religions, church historians and systematic theologians. The faculty’s reputation and excellent library facilities attract scholars from all over the world.

Astrophoria Foundation Year

If you’re interested in studying Theology and Religion but your personal or educational circumstances have meant you are unlikely to achieve the grades typically required for Oxford courses, then choosing to apply for a Foundation Year might be right for you.

Visit our Foundation Year course pages for more details. 

'The Oxford tutorial system is thoroughly enjoyable and engaging because it challenges you to defend and develop your views on a whole range of topics and authors. Being able to talk to some of the leading academics in the world really encourages you to reflect on your own thinking and writing. Theology incorporates such a broad range of skills that are transferable to many different situations, from literary-critical to historical-critical to evaluative skills. The subject gives you great potential for academic and personal development.' Gemma		'The Theology course at Oxford is very diverse; it gives you an opportunity to explore interests from Pauline literature to modern Judaism in society. The Reformation papers that I opted to study allowed me to engage with the subject as if I was an historian or literature student, as well as tackling major theological issues. Theology students here are required to study a biblical language, classical Arabic, Pali or Sanskrit in their first year. Coming to university with little more than a GCSE in German, I was apprehensive about this at first! However, I was guided through the study of New Testament Greek with classes and one-to-one sessions, and although challenging, the benefits of studying texts in their original languages have proved invaluable.' Janelle

Unistats information

Discover Uni course data provides applicants with Unistats statistics about undergraduate life at Oxford for a particular undergraduate course.

Please select 'see course data' to view the full Unistats data for Theology and Religion. 

Please note that there may be no data available if the number of course participants is very small. 

Visit the Studying at Oxford section of this page for a more general insight into what studying here is likely to be like.

Academic requirements

Wherever possible, your grades are considered in the context in which they have been achieved.

Read further information on how we use contextual data.

Subject requirements

If your personal or educational circumstances have meant you are unlikely to achieve the grades listed above for undergraduate study, but you still have a strong interest in the subject, then applying for Theology and Religion with a Foundation Year might be right for you.

Visit the Foundation Year course pages for more details of academic requirements and eligibility.

Applying

All candidates must follow the application procedure as shown on our Applying to Oxford pages.

The following information gives specific details for students applying for this course.

Admissions test

You do not need to take a written test as part of an application for this course.

Written work

Read our further guidance on the submission of written work for more information, and to download a cover sheet.

If you have any questions, please contact the college handling your application, or email the Faculty of Theology and Religion at access.undergraduate@theology.ox.ac.uk. 

What are tutors looking for?

Tutors consider your whole application very carefully. They look for evidence of a consistently excellent academic record, for example in GCSE or other examination results.

Your submitted piece of work should demonstrate your ability to: 

• think clearly and to reason coherently
• structure work and arguments in a logical way
• write clearly (and grammatically), with clear expression of thought
• provide evidence of independence of thought.

Your UCAS personal statement should focus on your academic reasons for wishing to study Theology and Religion. References should comment primarily on academic performance.

In interviews, tutors will look for:

• your ability to think clearly, including understanding complex concepts, forming sound arguments and listening and responding to counterarguments;
• your openness to learning;
• your ability at close textual reading and interpretation;
• evidence of your enthusiasm and motivation for the course, including dedication and diligence in work, and evidence of independent thought and reading;
• your ability to develop ideas presented in your submitted written work; and
• your oral communication skills. 

You may be asked to consider a religious, philosophical or ethical question or to study a brief text or image. Whatever the subject of discussion, interviewers are interested in how you think and how you approach questions. Students are not expected to have prior subject knowledge.

Visit the Theology and Religion website for more detail on the selection criteria for this course. 

Fees

Additional Fees and Charges Information for Theology and Religion

There are no compulsory costs for this course beyond the fees shown above and your living costs.