School of Religion
Director
Donald Miller
Contact Information
Taper Hall (THH) 328
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0355
Tel: (213) 740-0270
Fax: (213) 740-7158
More Information
Department Web Site: http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/religion
Course Catalogue
Schedule of Classes
Faculty Roster
Selected Ph.D. and Postdoctoral Placements
Religious studies in USC College’s School of Religion span a wide spectrum of topics in the field including American studies, archaeology, ethics, history, biblical studies, East Asian religions, ethics, Old and New Testament studies, sociology of religion and women’s studies.
As a discipline involving multiple tools—literary analysis, language and cultural studies, sociological data, psychology and ethics—religion often leads students to many different kinds of graduate education.
Opportunities for comparative religious study abound. USC and its surrounding neighborhood serve more than a dozen distinct faith communities.
With a $2.4 million grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts, USC’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture is launching a major interdisciplinary research effort in religion and civic culture. The grant will fund faculty and student research related to religion and immigration, faith-based community development and organizing, and religion and culture.
For more hands-on research, The Archaeological Research Collection includes more than 5,000 ancient artifacts from the Near East and classical Mediterranean lands, dating from 10,000 BCE through the Byzantine and Islamic periods. In addition, the West Semitic Research Project houses ancient images and commentary relating to the Bible and the ancient Near East.
Students can major or minor in religion, or can earn a bioethics minor. The College’s classics department and the School of Religion jointly offer a minor in ancient religion and classical languages. An emphasis in Judaic studies is offered in cooperation with Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Judaism in American culture, with emphasis on California and the Western United States, is examined through film, literature, social and political movements, and religious response. The Casden Institute for the Study of Jews in American Life sponsors frequent speakers and cultural events.
Many students spend time at Hebrew Union College, which fields one of its five worldwide campuses just two blocks from USC. To further sharpen global understanding, students are encouraged to study abroad. Many spend a semester learning in Israel.
Undergraduate degrees and programs
Religion, B.A., Minor
Judaic Studies, Emphasis
Judaic Studies, Minor
Bioethics, Minor
Ancient Religion and Classical Languages, Minor
Related research centers
Center for Religion and Civic Culture, http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/religion_online
West Semitic Research Project, http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/wsrp/index.html
Archaeological Research Collection, http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/religion/arc/ |
