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Frequently Asked Questions about the Division
of Religious and Theological Studies
(DRTS) Admissions Process
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Visiting the Division of Religious and
Theological Studies
January 15 is the application deadline
for September admission. Applicants must
submit
(1) application forms;
(2) transcripts of all college or university
work;
(3) three letters of reference;
(4) a statement of purpose;
(5) writing sample;
(6) recent GRE scores. International
applicants must also submit TOEFL scores.
An applicant must indicate the specific
area of specialization into which he or
she seeks admission. The DRTS does not
offer a general MA or PhD in religious
studies; it does not offer ThD and DMin
degrees, which are offered through the
School of Theology. There is no spring
admission.
For questions about the
admissions process, you may call 617-353-4427
and leave a voicemail, or email. A
DRTS staff member will return your call
or email within 48 hours. We request that
before emailing or phoning, you review
our Web site thoroughly.
All applicants are reminded
that notices regarding the completion or
incompletion of applications will be sent
out at the end of January for the upcoming
fall. If applicants want immediate information
regarding applications items currently
on file they can contact the Graduate
School of Arts and Sciences Department
of Admisssions.
An applicant to the MA or
MA/PhD (post-Bachelor's PhD) program should
hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in an area
related to the proposed field of concentration.
An applicant to the post-Master's PhD program
should hold an accredited Master of Arts
or Master of Divinity degree in an area
related to the area of specialization.
The Master's degree program must have included
at least four courses in the proposed field.
The student's prior academic
work must reflect the study of at least
two (2) religious traditions. Students
who have not met this requirement may fulfill
it by taking co-requisite(s) to their Program
of Study in DRTS. Please note that courses
taken to satisfy this requirement are not
considered part of the minimum coursework
requirements.
Theoretical Approaches to the
Study of Religion I & II (GRS RN
795/796 or STH TZ 802/803)
All MA and PhD students
must pass this two-semester course. This
course does not count toward the minimum
course requirements for the PhD. It does
count toward the minimum course requirements
for the MA degree.
Master’s students
have 3 years to complete their degree.
Post-master's doctoral students have 7
years to complete their degree, while post-bachelor's
students have 8. After this time limit
has been reached, students must successfully
petition the Graduate School of Arts and
Sciences for an extension. If the extension
is granted, the student will continue in
the program, but will be charged the Graduate
School rate for continuing student fees.
Coursework may only be counted toward the
degree for 10 years after the student completes
all of their coursework and begins to pay
continuing fees. Once the 10-year mark
has been reached, the coursework may no
longer be applied to the completion of
the degree.
________________________________________________________________
Master of Arts degrees are
offered in all fields of concentration
except Counseling Psychology and Religion
(CPAR) and Psychology of Religion.
Courses
In addition to the prerequisite and requisite
courses set forth above, eight 4-hour semester
courses (32 credit hours) are required
as a minimum for the Master of Arts degree.
Additional courses may be required at the
discretion of the specialization Coordinator,
the Advisor, or the Director of the graduate
program when the Program of Study is designed.
Language
French or German is required of all MA
candidates. This requirement may be satisfied
by transcript evidence of having passed
two years of undergraduate study of the
language, by DRTS examination, or by passing
GRS LG 621 (German) or GRS LF 621 (French).
These are non-credit courses offered by
the Department of Modern Foreign Languages
and Literatures. Additional languages may
be required at the discretion of the coordinator
of the student's advisor.
After fulfilling course
requirements, an MA candidate must write
and defend a thesis or pass a comprehensive
examination.
_____________________________________________________________
Doctor of Philosophy degrees
are offered in all areas of specialization.
Admission is to PhD candidacy,
but the MA may be awarded to a candidate
upon his or her petition when all MA requirements
have been fulfilled.
Course Requirements
In addition to the prerequisite and requisite
courses set forth in the general requirements,
sixteen 4-hour courses (64 credit hours)
are required as a minimum for the post-Bachelor's
PhD degree. Additional courses may be required
at the discretion of the specialization
Coordinator, the Advisor, or the Director
of the graduate program when the Program
of Study is designed. All other requirements
are the same as for the post-master's PhD
and are outlined below.
Course
Requirements
In addition to the prerequisite and requisite
courses set forth above, eight 4-hour semester
courses (32 credit hours) are required
as a minimum for the post-Master's PhD
degree. Additional courses may be required
at the discretion of the specialization
Coordinator, the Advisor, or the Director
of the graduate program when the Program
of Study is designed.
Language and Research Competence Requirements
During the first two years of graduate
study, PhD candidates are required to demonstrate
a reading knowledge of two foreign languages,
one of which must be French or German.
The second language, if not French or German,
should be clearly related to the dissertation
research. In some concentrations, such
as Counseling Psychology and Religion,
and Science, Philosophy, and Religion,
research methods are substituted for the
second foreign language.
PhD language requirements
must be satisfied by examination. The Department
of Modern Foreign Languages offers free
non-credit courses in French and German
reading for graduate students.
Passed language exams must
be reported to the DRTS office in 145 Bay
State Road, Room 102.
Fulfillment of each language
requirement is noted on the transcript.
Qualifying Examinations
Before proceeding to the dissertation,
students are required to pass three to
four separate qualifying examinations.
PhD candidates may schedule qualifying
examinations after successful completion
of all coursework and language requirements.
One retake is allowed for each examination.
Qualifying examinations may not be extended
longer than two semesters. Passage of each
qualifying exam must be reported to the
DRTS office in 145 Bay State Road, Room
102. Completion of all qualifying examinations
is noted on the transcript.
Prospectus (Dissertation
Outline)
After passing qualifying examinations,
the student must present a formal proposal
for the dissertation, which, after approval
by the Committee on Academic Programs,
is filed in the Graduate School Records
Office.
Dissertation and Final
Oral Examination
Also see General
Requirements for the PhD.
________________________________________________________________
Through the Boston Theological
Institute, DRTS students may register for
courses in the consortium which includes
Andover-Newton Theological School, Boston
College, Harvard Divinity School, Gordon-Conwell
School of Theology, St. John's Seminary,
and Weston School of Theology. Access to
the libraries of the consortium members
is available to all DRTS PhD students,
whether or not they are enrolled in courses
there.
When it is beneficial to
their academic programs, students in the
DRTS may take courses in other departments/schools,
including but not limited to the following:
Anthropology
Art History
Classical
Studies
English
History
Modern
Languages and Comparative Literature
Philosophy
Romance
Studies
Sociology
School
of Theology
University
Professors
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