Theology & Religious Studies Research MPhil/PhD

At King's you will find a broad range of overlapping areas of research. Students can pursue traditional areas of study through:

• Theology (Systematics; Philosophical Theology; Patristics and Medieval Theology; History of Christianity in the reformation and modern period; Biblical Theology, Ethics, Business Ethics, and Christianity and the Arts)
• Biblical Studies (literary, ideological and theological approaches to the Hebrew Bible; Second Temple Judaism, gender and the Dead Sea Scrolls; New Testament studies, including biography, genre, environment and ethics).

Central to our department, too, is the social scientific study of religion (anthropology, sociology, history and politics), together with philosophy of religion, the world of Jews in modern Europe, contemporary Islamic thought, and Chinese religions.

REF rankings: The Department ranked 3rd in the country according to the ‘power’ metric, which takes into account both the quality and quantity of research activity, and received an outstanding score for the impact of its research. Overall, 76% of the Department’s research was rated 3* or 4* - indicating internationally excellent and world-leading quality – in the Research Excellence Framework (REF)- which assesses the quality of research taking place between 2008 and 2013 in UK higher education institutions.

Current number of academic staff: 28

Current number of research students: 120

Partner organisations: London School of Jewish Studies & Leo Baeck College, and the National Gallery.

The lively research-orientated atmosphere of our department offers a stimulating environment for graduate research.

The department represents a broad range of overlapping research areas. Students can pursue traditional areas of study through theology and Biblical Studies. Central to our department, too is the social scientific study of religion (anthropology), together with philosophy of religion, the world of Jews in modern Europe, contemporary Islamic thought, and Chinese religions. Staff are engaged in research and publishing at the cutting edge of their areas, and several are involved in editing leading academic journals and monograph series.

Students pursue their research by working with a supervisor, and the department's graduate seminars and day conferences offer excellent opportunities for interaction with other staff and students, including the chance to try out research papers on a friendly audience. We pride ourselves on the quality of our research training at every level.

Contact: Dr Taushif Kara (taushif.kara@kcl.ac.uk).