RCT students in this program focus on issues, problems, and texts concerning:
- Philosophy and religion
- Religious ethics (that is, the interrelation among religion, ethics, and politics)
- Theory of religion
The program endeavors to integrate these areas, encouraging students to work at the intersection of normative and critical approaches, topics and disciplines.
Given the program’s emphasis on theory and critical thought, students are given broad exposure to classic and contemporary issues, problems, and texts associated with philosophy of religion, ethics, social-scientific theory, theology, and political philosophy. At the same time, students are required to gain competence in at least one religious tradition in order to lend specificity to critical reflection on various aspects of religion and the study of religion.
Admission
Candidates are admitted to the program with a Master’s Degree and also directly from their undergraduate programs. Typically, students will have done previous work in the socio-critical and philosophical study of religion.
Coursework
Students with a masters degree in a relevant field will normally take two years of coursework; students entering with a bachelor’s degree will normally take three years. During the coursework stage, students are expected to enroll in 4 courses each semester the first year, and three in subsequent years. Students in their first three years of graduate studies are normally expected to participate in at least three RCT graduate seminars. After the third year, students should consult with the RCT advisor about whether they are expected to take a particular RCT seminar. Generally speaking, students will draw on resources throughout the humanities and social sciences, for example, in the departments of Philosophy, Political Science, Comparative Literature, Africana Studies, Judaic Studies, Classics, Anthropology, and Sociology. In consultation with the core RCT faculty, students will develop a schedule that will satisfy the requirement for competence in a religious tradition through coursework. Additionnally, students must demonstrate familiarity with a second religious tradition; this religious diversity requirement, depending on the judgment of the RCT faculty, may be satisfied by coursework done prior to attendance at Brown or by one or two additional courses at Brown.
Annual Meeting with Faculty
The student will meet annually with the RCT core faculty, normally toward the end of the spring semester. This informal meeting is an opportunity to talk broadly about the student’s trajectory in the program, that is, about one’s past, preset, and future work.
Language Requirements
All students must pass examinations in French and German before taking their Preliminary Exams; subject to approval, French or German (but not both) may be replaced with an alternate. Depending on their areas of interest, students may need to acquire additional language competence, for which there is no set examination structure.