Religious studies at Seton Hall University is based on a broad liberal education, using the study of religion as a central focus in understanding human history, thought and aesthetic experience. With a concentration in the Catholic Christian tradition, religious studies can also be the basis for further study and work in religious education, particularly in Catholic parishes. Seton Hall's chapter of Theta Alpha Kappa, the national honor society in religious studies, affords our majors other opportunities to expand their education beyond the classroom. The Department of Religious Studies faculty members have doctoral degrees from many of the world's most prestigious academic institutions, including Princeton, Duke, Temple and Emory universities; The Catholic University; New York University; The University of St. Michael's College in Toronto; and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. In recent years, faculty members have been invited to teach as visiting faculty at such institutions as The Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, Princeton University, St. John's University, the École Biblique in Jerusalem and the Gadjah Mada University in Indonesia.  

Religious Studies offers courses in four areas: biblical studies, Christian tradition, world religions and ethical studies. After taking three introductory courses and Methods in the Study of Religion and Theology, students choose a concentration in one of the department’s four areas. They take four upper-level courses in their concentration and three upper-level courses in any of the other fields.  They conclude their major with a Capstone Seminar. 

The awarding of a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies requires a total of 36 credits completed in the major, including the Methods in the Study of Religion and Theology course and the Capstone Seminar, as well as the completion of the College of Arts and Sciences core requirements.   To talk to a faculty adviser, contact Charles Carter, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Religious Studies, at carterch@shu.edu or (973) 761-9480 or (973) 761-9480.