PRS Minor Requirements
A. Core course: REL 107a (Introduction to World Religions). Ideally, the core course should be taken early in the student's career at Brandeis, but not necessarily as the first course in the program.
B. At least two courses from the traditions courses listed below covering at least two different disciplines.
C. At least two courses from the electives listed below.
D. A Senior Essay (REL 97a or b) may replace one of the two electives with the approval of the program chair.
E. A passing letter grade (C-) must be obtained in each course taken for program credit. Pass/fail courses are not allowed. Students must achieve a GPA of at least 2.0 in program courses.
If you are interested in seeing how close you might be to fulfilling a Program in Religious Studies Minor, it 's as easy as printing up and filling out our PRS Minor Requirement Worksheet. If you have any difficulties printing out this form, there are always some outside of the PRS Administrator's office (259 Rabb); but if you should have questions or concerns about this form or pursueing a PRS degree, please feel free to contact us.</a>
PRS Major Requirements
For those students who would like to explore the possibility of achieving a Major degree in Religious Studies, this degree can be achieved through developing an IIM (ie an Individual Interdisciplinary Major) in Religious Studies and interested individuals should go to the IIM webpage on the Academic Services website (http://www.brandeis.edu/acserv/advising/sophomores/iim/index.html)for detailed guidelines and form links.
Here's a rough sketch of IIM requirements:
- Core Courses: A coherent group of twelve courses (48 credits) ranging from three or more academic areas including a senior capstone project (IIM 98b Independent Study or IIM 99d: Senior Research).
- A maximum of four courses (16 credits) may be from study abroad, summer school, or cross-registration. No more than six course may be used toward any additional major(s) and minor(s).
- Submission of the provided petition as well as a proposal, a letter of support signed by all advisors, and evidence of comparable majors offered at other liberal arts institutions by the expected deadline.
- Students must receive approval before the end of their junior year by the Independent Interdisciplinary Major Sub-committee. See website (http://www.brandeis.edu/acserv/advising/sophomores/iim/index.html)for petition deadlines.
An IIM is designed in collaboration with three faculty members from at least two, preferably three, different departments. While an IIM student chooses their own advisory group, we encourage those students pursuing an IIM in Religious Studies to invite the PRS chair along with two other PRS Steering Committee members to fulfill these advisory roles, receiving not only the benefit of our faculty's experience and expertise; but the administrative support of the PRS office as well. Students interested in creating an IIM should pick up the packet available in the Office of Academic Services, Usdan 130, and schedule appointments with both Jennifer Kim, IIM Coordinator (jkim@brandeis.edu or 6-3470) and our PRS Chair, Professor Patricia Johnston (johnston@brandeis.edu or 63214).