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2022-2023 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Religious Studies & Philosophy, B.A.
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 Return to: Programs of Study
The 120 credit hour Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies & Philosophy has the historic tradition of the liberal arts is designed to enrich humans with a heightened sense of responsibility and autonomy. The integrative major trains students to be critical and independent thinkers who are centered on the larger human purposes for which we work and interact with others. In an age overwhelmingly centered on technological progress, efficient and convenient outcomes, and material satisfaction of desires, focusing on the individual’s intellectual life provides a critical foundation for existence in our global community.
While the predominant orientation of this program is towards enriching your sense of purpose and commitment to the values of social justice, care for others, and dignity for all, it is also important that you enter the workplace with skills and practices which facilitate successful career choices. In today’s job market, employers increasingly seek candidates with the following skills: critical thinking; analytic writing; cultural understanding and sensitivity; communicative empathy; and intellectual initiative. Our program focuses on these marketable skills.
Finally, our integrated major is just that - a mutually-enriching and critical dialogue between two disciplines that are central to the liberal arts at a Catholic institution. In keeping with the tradition of such institutions, faith and reason are taken as valued standpoints from which to approach academic work and community life. Thus, the ordering signifies neither hierarchy nor dependency of one discipline upon the other. Rather, students will grapple with problems, themes, and questions from shared and distinctive standpoints.
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Core Curriculum: 38 - 51 credit hours
Please review the Core Curriculum page for course options.
Required Core Courses
For Religious Studies & Philosophy majors, the following courses are excluded from liberal arts core choices due to being required in the Religious Studies & Philosophy Core Courses.
Liberal Arts, Philosophy (excluded courses)
Liberal Arts, Religious Studies (excluded courses)
Core Designations
For Religious Studies & Philosophy majors the following course is excluded from the Global Studies options since it is required in the Religious Studies & Philosophy Core Courses:
Global Studies (excluded from choices)
Religious Studies & Philosophy Core Courses (27 credit hours)
Courses used to meet the Liberal Arts, Philosophy or Religious studies Core requirement cannot be used within the major.
Religious Studies & Philosophy Concentrations
Students must choose one of the following concentrations to complete their degree.
Philosophy Concentration (12 credit hours)
Choose 12 credit hours from the following courses (one RS course may substitute for one PL course):
Religious Studies Concentration (12 credit hours)
Choose 12 credit hours from the following courses (one PL course may substitute for one RS course):
Electives (minimum of 37 credit hours)
Technology Requirement
Computer competency will be demonstrated by successful completion of CS 210 within the major.
Senior Seminar
Option I - International/Intercultural Experience
Working with one’s major advisor, students who choose the international/intercultural experience may choose one of the following options: an experience which has an international and/or intercultural travel component, a service or service-learning opportunity within the Kansas City region or within the broader U.S., or an intercultural practicum or experience designed in conjunction with your major advisor. Within this experiential option, students work with their major advisor to design a public presentation component that draws together their academic studies with this experience.
Option II - Thesis and Oral Defense
Students who choose the thesis/defense option must complete this work in their Senior year. Working in conjunction with a faculty member in the discipline of concentration, students will write a twenty-five to thirty-page thesis that demonstrates extensive research, critical analysis, and argumentation. Weeks before graduation, students will give a public talk based upon the paper and answer critical questions from both the thesis committee and the general audience.
Outcomes
In addition to the general degree requirements stated earlier in this catalog, majors will be expected to meet the following program outcomes:
Outcome 1.
Develop a global understanding of relationships among reasoned inquiry, religious faiths and human values. (PL 111 , PL 113 , RS 111 , RS 117 , RS 225 , PL 255 )
Outcome 2.
Analyze and evaluate significant philosophies, religious ideas, or discourses in order to systematically and critically articulate one’s own spiritual, intellectual, and/or ethical commitments. (PL 111 , PL 113 , RS 111 , PL 326 /WS 326 , IS 311 )
Outcome 3.
Explore the distinctiveness of rational inquiry as a unique form of human understanding, motivation, and justification. (PL 111 , PL 113 , RS 111 , PL 255 )
Outcome 4.
Investigate historical, socio-cultural, and political dimensions of diverse religious traditions and practices. (RS 111 , RS 117 )
Outcome 5.
Refine your understanding, interpretations, and critical perspectives through writing, speaking, and collaborative work. (all PL/RS courses)
Assessment
The outcomes are assessed through examinations and written assignments. In the final year of study, students will synthesize and utilize their learned skills of cultural understanding, critical thinking, and intellectual initiative through critical independent research, writing, and presentation within the Senior Seminar.
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