My name is Wolfgang Vondey. I am the Head
of Postgraduate Studies at the School of Philosophy,
Theology and Religion. I'm also a Reader in
Contemporary Christianity and I am the Director
of the Centre for Pentecostal and Charismatic
Studies.
The MA by Research and the PhD Theology and
Religion is aimed at the postgraduate study
of Theology and Religion. The MA by Research
is a Masters level degree designed to prepare
students for doctoral level research on a
specific topic. This type of programme is
also useful if a student wants to prepare
for a career in the commercial world where
research focus is a key aspect but a PhD is
not specifically required. Or if a student
is unclear whether a PhD is right or not.
Then the MA by Research can lend useful experience
of what studying for a doctorate might look
like while providing the student with the
opportunity to earn a valuable Masters level
qualification.
The PhD of course is our highest research
degree and you can study both programmes on
campus and as a distance learning student
and this kind of flexibility is aimed at a
variety of audiences and students for example
early career students who are interested in
pursuing an academic career or mid-career
professionals and religious practitioners
or clergy who want to invest in research knowledge
or who need an academic degree for professional
development. But also at late career students
and retired students who just want to fulfill
a lifelong ambition of studying in depth one
of the fundamental questions of life and of
faith. Our students have a variety of interests
in biblical studies, historical theology,
constructive systematic theology, ethics,
worship, literary criticism, but also in policy
making, political leadership, and in just
a variety of areas that have to do with the
diversity of religions and the dynamics of
falth as well as with the character of god.
The MA by Research and the PhD in Theology
and Religion has various specialisms. We have
a research focus on Christian Muslim relations,
biblical studies, especially New Testament
textual criticism, pentecostal and charismatic
studies, and Practical Theology. We also have
research groups in Biblical Studies and in
Religious Studies. We have the Institute for
Textual Scholarship and Electronic Editing.
And a variety of our research strands are
represented by our various centres. For example,
the Centre for Islamic and Middle Eastern
Studies. We have the Centre for Pentecostal
and Charismatic Studies. The Centre for Philosophy
of Religion. And the Centre for the Public
Understanding of Religion.
The MA by Research and the PhD in Theology
and Religion are both research degrees with
no taught elements. The MA by Research leads
to a dissertation of up to 40000 words under
supervision of one of our academic staff and
the PhD in Theology and Religion which is
the highest research degree leads to a thesis
of up to 80000 words.
We have a high number of employment of our
graduates in Theology and Religion. Although
many of our students are already in a working
relationship during their studies to which
they return, many of our students have gone
on to traditional religious occupations, religious
ministries, clergy activities, but also to
the commercial world or to public services
and as well as to a variety of other areas
of employment because a degree in Theology
and Religion develops a range of transferable
skills that are highly sought after in diverse
employment sectors.
There are a variety of opportunities to locate
funding for a degree in Theology and Religion.
There are seven government-funded research
councils who support postgraduate study and
those can be accessed at the Research Councils
UK website. The postgraduate funding database
that's hosted by the University of Birmingham
and that can be filtered by nationality, subject
matter and a variety of other variables. There
is a doctoral researchers database at Findaphd.com
and that provides information on funding.
The University of Birmingham also in collaboration
with international governments, especially
the Canadian and American governments, for
students who are interested in pursuing postgraduate
study in the United Kingdom. And then of course
one of the primary means of funding a degree
is part-time employment and the University
can help here by providing graduate assistantships,
postgraduate ambassador and mentoring schemes.
if you're interested in an MA by Research
or a PhD in Theology and Religion, the first
step would be to identify a member of academics
staff who potentially matches the research
interest of the student. Contact the person
and provide them with a well-defined specific
area of research. And also begin early to
look for funding opportunities by having a
clearly-defined research project and the support
of a potential supervisor.
