Are there any online Master of Arts degrees in Religion? I am helping a friend find a program. She wants a program that covers all major religions. I have found lots of traditional classroom-based programs, but she needs an online program. Thanks for any suggestions.
Try the search function on Jason Baker's site. Baker's Guide to Christian Online Learning | Accredited Bible, College, Seminary Degrees
Do you know why she wants a graduate degree in comparative religion? I know that plenty of Christian institutions offer online theology/religion programs focused on Christianity (which appeals to ministers, church leaders, and interested laity), but religious studies/comparative religion, as a field, is not in particularly high demand. You can find some programs focused on apologetics from a Christian perspective, and these will focus on a Christian worldview but will explore the tenets of other faiths with the intent of establishing Christianity's superiority to them. Do you know what she wants to do with the degree?
She wants to study religion to prepare for a role as a chaplain or non-denominational minister. She has looked at programs at schools that are affiliated with church denominations but would prefer an advanced degree in religion from a non-denominational or secular college.
A Very Big Thing here is that a degree in the academic discipline of religious studies is not going to include the study and experience in pastoral human service skills that should be essential to qualifying as a chaplain or non-denominational minister in any meaningful appointment, e.g. employment by a hospital or a college or another institution. Also, my understanding is that chaplains and nondenominational ministers almost always qualify for the ministry in a 'home' denomination first. A hospital, college, etc. won't decide independently that a person is a qualified minister; they'll do this based on their credentials from an established denomination, even though the job they're being hired to do is nondenominational. All this said! Your friend might want to look at these: Meadville Lombard Theological School Unitarian Universalist. Earlham School of Religion Friends, i.e. Quaker. University of London International Programmes with Heythrop College Historically Jesuit. Note that while the M.Div. is a typical degree for ministry preparation in the U.S., the Bachelor of Divinity is this in the U.K. and it might be credited as such in the U.S. or elsewhere. Atheist Theology 2013 thread here on DI. Pastoral Counseling Query 2009 thread on DegreeDiscussion.
Harvard Extension School: Religious Studies and Education Certificate (can be completed online - offered in collaboration with Harvard Divinity School) Religious Studies and Education Certificate University of Wales-Trinity Saint David: University of Wales Trinity Saint David University of Philosophical Research: M.A. Consciousness Studies (DETC) Online Master's in Consciousness Studies | University of Philosophical Research | University of Philosophical Research
