In search of the religion factor

If you want to learn more about the religion factor in culture and society, then you must come to Groningen to study! The Dutch Higher Education Guide has granted our Bachelor’s degree programmes in Theology and Religious Studies the predicate of top rated programme for years in a row, and our Master’s degree programme in Theology and Religious Studies is annually assessed as one of the best degree programmes in the Netherlands in the field of religion.

Our plus points

We owe the positive evaluation to our outstanding lecturers and the way we have designed our teaching.

• Personal attention. Our teaching in small groups allows you to benefit the most from the extensive expertise of the lecturers. It also creates a lot of room for discussion with your fellow students, and you learn how to construct an argument and be convincing. Also after clkasses, it is easy to contact your lecturer if you have a question.
• Public Faculty You will be studying at a public university that is not linked to a confessional movement. This means that you will be challenged to enter into discussions with your fellow students and lecturers with many different ideological backgrounds. Our Faculty is the only autonomous Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies at a public Dutch university.
• Interdisciplinary teaching and research. We offer very broad-based degree programmes where religion is studied from sociological, anthropological, psychological, linguistic, historical and cultural-historical angles.
• Interwoven teaching and research . The content of our teaching is closely interwoven with the research conducted by our lecturers. You will also learn to conduct research yourself and can collaborate on the research of our lecturers. Our Faculty is the best in the Netherlands in the field of Theology and Religious Studies research. This is the conclusion of every independent assessment committee since 1989.
• Social relevance. Religion is inextricably linked to the world around us. Our teaching programmes stand with both feet in current affairs. You will learn to understand the dynamic interaction between religion, culture and society and eventually be able to make a well-founded contribution to the public debate and to developing government policy.
• International environment. An international topic like religion needs an international approach. Our lecturers are international leaders in their fields and over 60% come from outside the Netherlands. The Bachelor’s degree programme in Religious Studies is taught in both Dutch and in English. The Master’s degree programme in Theology and Religious Studies is taught in English. You will also meet a lot of foreign exchange students. About 25% of our total student population comes from outside the Netherlands.
• Close community. As we are a small Faculty, we form a tigh-nit community where nobody is left behind. You will become a member of the Faculty Student Association who organizes social and study related events, often with the teaching staff joining the activity.