What jobs can I do with a religious studies major?–

A major in religious studies prepares you for diverse professions in academia, public service, and places of worship. Your religious studies major can lead to a wide range of career opportunities, including these top jobs: Religious Workers. Religious Activities and Education Directors. Community and Social Service Specialists. Clergy. Social and Community Service Managers. Postsecondary Education Administrators. Postsecondary Teachers

Is a research university right for me?–

Research universities are colleges and universities whose faculty are active in research and publishing. Research universities offer a wide array of doctoral programs, especially in the sciences. They tend to be big, with tens of thousands of students. Do you prefer a larger university setting, such as largest public university in your state? Research universities are typically big, offering degrees in many different disciplines. Is a big high-powered research environment the thing for you? If not, you should think about a liberal arts college. In deciding on an undergraduate institution, ask yourself what sort of environment will best help you to be happy and excel. Consider whether you are self motivated enough to be a face in the crowd for some classes and largely unknown on campus at a large university. Of course you can find clubs and friends at a large university, but often liberal arts colleges have a more personal quality to them. If you want the community feel, a research university may not fit you well. Are you interested in STEM fields? Research universities have that name for a reason – real research is happening there. This can create an exciting atmosphere for students interested in STEM. Attending a research university can give you a better chance of getting into better programs for graduate degrees, although a lot of that depends on your performance.

Is an online college right for me?–

Online colleges are typically the same colleges and universities you could attend in-person, but for certain degree programs the college or unviersity has made the degree programs available to be completed online. For over 5 million students, online degree programs allow students to earn their degrees in the most flexible format available. Online degrees are as respected as the on-campus degrees you could earn from the same schools. There’s usually no distinction between the two degrees, and your degree and transcript will not say that the degree was earned online. Online degree programs are offered by a vast majority of colleges and universities, and the number of offering continues to grow. Whether you are searching for an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate, there’s a good chance you can earn your degree online from a respectable online college. Are you a self-driven student? Perhaps the hardest aspect of obtaining an online degree is whether you will be disciplined enough to manage your time and course demands. Many online students report that online college made them more disciplined in all areas of their lives, but the flexible, self-paced learning that makes online colleges attractive can often be the same qualities that make it difficult. If you tend to be a procrastinator, you need to be honest with yourself. You can change your habits and propensities, or you can throw money down the drain. Do you need the flexibility of an online degree program? Most online students study online because of time demands of balancing work and life, or because the online college affords them the chance to attend a better school without moving. If you are serious about earning your degree for career advancement, online colleges make it possible. The most flexible options among online degrees are those that are asynchronous, meaning you don’t have scheduled times to meet with your class online. However, many students seek synchronous online degree programs so that they have some structure – set meeting times, scheduled exams, etc. The good news is that attending an online college doesn’t mean you will miss out on getting to know your professors and classmates. In fact, many online students who have experienced both online and on-campus courses report having easier access to their professors. Since most communication with your professor is expected to be in text – via email or your class learning management system – it makes asking your questions easier. The same students also report that they got to better know the thoughts of their classmates. While in-person course conversations can be dominated by a few extroverts, online courses that require online discussions make it so that you see all of your classmates’ thoughts and questions. If you’re interested in an online bachelor’s degree, check out what the best online colleges offer, or search our online degrees for the exact program that interests you. In either case, you will find well respected colleges and universities that offer online degrees.

Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Religious Studies Degrees 2025

Q: Is a liberal arts college right for me?–

Often referred to as “teaching colleges” liberal arts colleges put a premium on undergraduate studies and offers a broad range of subjects for students to study. A college of liberal arts typically provides smaller class sizes, more direct engagement with professors, and, most importantly, the opportunity to sample a wide range of subject areas on the way to a bachelor’s degree. Do you want your professors to know you? Liberal arts colleges strive to cultivate campus cultures that encourage tight bonds between professors and students. Professors at these schools will typically conduct original research. Yet the best of these schools offer their faculty reduced teaching loads so that they can both be productive researchers and still have plenty of time for students (both in and outside the classroom). Do you want to feel like you know everybody? One of the most enticing features of a liberal arts college is that in very little time, you can feel like you know who’s who, which can create strong friendships and make walks across campus more fun. While your sports teams may never be on ESPN, it’s more likely that you’ll know the athletes as your peers. Beyond student and faculty relationships, it’s not unusual for the school president and other administrators to learn who you are. When faced with problems with your student account or the need to switch classes, this can be comforting during a stressful moment.

Badge for BEST FOR RELIGIOUS STUDIES LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES

By Dr. James Barham
Reviewed By Chloe Dembski

Published: Nov 8, 2021
Updated: Nov 6, 2024

The best religious studies liberal arts colleges are those with rich histories of influence, proven through the work produced by the program’s faculty and alumni. Beyond demonstrating scholarly impact in the field, the best religious studies degree programs maximize your opportunities to interact with outstanding religious studies faculty.

Key Takeaways

Many of the best liberal arts colleges for religious studies combine religious studies with philosophy, history, and cultural studies, providing students with a well-rounded understanding of religious traditions and their impact on society.
Students at one of the best liberal arts colleges for religious studies may participate in study-abroad programs, internships with faith-based organizations, or community service initiatives that connect academic learning with real-world religious and cultural experiences.
The colleges in our ranking often emphasize personal and spiritual development, offering spaces for worship, meditation, and ethical discussion that enhance students’ exploration of faith and values.

Table of Contents

Top 10 Liberal Arts Colleges Religious Studies Programs in 2025

Wesleyan University
+5
Amherst College
+3
Swarthmore College
+1
Williams College
–1
Oberlin College
+14
Wellesley College
+1
Barnard College
+6
Haverford College
+6
Pomona College
–8
College of the Holy Cross
+11

2025 Ranking Update

Our Influence Ranking Engine™ leverages machine learning to track the real-world influence of colleges and universities over time. Below you’ll see which schools gained or lost ground for the 2025 school year.

In 2025, the top ten schools in our ranking of the best liberal arts colleges for religious studies saw a substantial amount of movement. Oberlin College gained the most ranking positions as the college now offers an interdisciplinary curriculum that explores religious traditions through history, arts, ethics, and society, equipping students with diverse perspectives on religious thought and practice. For those interested in Jewish studies, Oberlin provides a dedicated major with a focus on Jewish history, texts, and community roles.

Additionally, the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL) supports students’ spiritual journeys through advising, educational resources, and connections to community organizations, enriching the religious studies experience.

Featured Programs

Ranking: Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Religious Studies Bachelor’s Degree Programs

Career Outlook for Students with Religious Studies Degree

Go to Degree Finder tool

Religion/Religious Studies

Degree Level: Bachelor's

Location: The U.S. (Private Schools)
Avg. Starting Salary*: $26,597
Avg. Salary after 4 Years*: $39,969
* denotes ‘annually’

Career Salaries

Career	Job Growth	Avg. Salary
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary	4.08%	$86,030
Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary	2.27%	$79,930

Top Industries

Industry	Avg. Salary
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary	$86,030
Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary	$79,930

Data from The Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Department of Education College Scorecard, The Department of Education NCES, and The Council for Community and Economic Research.

Frequently Asked Questions About Religious Studies Bachelor’s Degrees

While many will go on to work directly in religious settings as clergy, religious studies majors can find employment in various professions. Religious studies majors build knowledge and skills that can apply in social services, education, public relations, media, business, politics, and countless other professional settings. Moreover, many undergraduate religious studies degrees are rooted in a firm liberal arts education tradition. This means you get to study a bit of everything, and develop a well-rounded knowledge base, with the critical and analytical skills to navigate new challenges, and learn in unfamiliar situations.

Whether serving as clergy within a religion, or functioning as a culture critic, religious studies majors influence how we understand and interact with religion in our daily lives. Today, top influencers in religious studies are bringing light to topics like New Testament analysis, Christian apologetics, Science and Christianity, and much more.

Religious studies is an idea major for those who have a practical interest in combining their faith and profession. Religious studies degrees are frequently offered by religious institutions. For instance, a Bachelor of Ministry (BM) may be offered by a Christian school, Bible school, or seminary. These degrees provide focused religious instruction for students who wish to apply their Christian faith to a leadership role within a religious community or organization. Similarly, degrees for aspiring clergy in the Jewish or Muslim faiths are likely to be offered by Rabbinical schools or Madrasa respectively.

By contrast, a bachelor of Theology (BTh) is more academically focused and more likely to be offered at a secular institution (as well as through most religious institutions). The Bachelor of Theology is designed for students who wish to engage with deep study of the scriptures, history and culture surrounding either a specific religion, or a variety of major world religions, without necessarily training for service in the clergy. The best religious studies degree for you will depend on both your career goals and religious affiliation.

Once you’ve declared your major in religious studies, you will likely be required to complete a set of core courses in a number of related subject areas. While your concentration will give you a chance to choose from a wide range of highly-specialized religious studies electives, there are several common courses that most religious studies majors will be required to take, including:

Old Testament
New Testament
Church History
Introduction to Philosophy
Introduction to Theology
World Religions
Christian Apologetics
Jewish Diaspora

A major in religious studies prepares you for diverse professions in academia, public service, and places of worship. Your religious studies major can lead to a wide range of career opportunities, including these top jobs:

Frequently Asked Questions About Research Universities, Liberal Arts Colleges, Online Colleges

In pursuing a bachelor’s degree, you will need to choose between three kinds of schools: research universities, liberal arts colleges, and online colleges.

Research universities are colleges and universities whose faculty are active in research and publishing. Research universities offer a wide array of doctoral programs, especially in the sciences. They tend to be big, with tens of thousands of students.

Do you prefer a larger university setting, such as largest public university in your state? Research universities are typically big, offering degrees in many different disciplines.

Is a big high-powered research environment the thing for you? If not, you should think about a liberal arts college. In deciding on an undergraduate institution, ask yourself what sort of environment will best help you to be happy and excel.

Consider whether you are self motivated enough to be a face in the crowd for some classes and largely unknown on campus at a large university. Of course you can find clubs and friends at a large university, but often liberal arts colleges have a more personal quality to them. If you want the community feel, a research university may not fit you well.
Are you interested in STEM fields? Research universities have that name for a reason – real research is happening there. This can create an exciting atmosphere for students interested in STEM. Attending a research university can give you a better chance of getting into better programs for graduate degrees, although a lot of that depends on your performance.

Learn more about research universities by reading about the best research universities in the US.

Often referred to as “teaching colleges” liberal arts colleges put a premium on undergraduate studies and offers a broad range of subjects for students to study. A college of liberal arts typically provides smaller class sizes, more direct engagement with professors, and, most importantly, the opportunity to sample a wide range of subject areas on the way to a bachelor’s degree.

Do you want your professors to know you? Liberal arts colleges strive to cultivate campus cultures that encourage tight bonds between professors and students.

Professors at these schools will typically conduct original research. Yet the best of these schools offer their faculty reduced teaching loads so that they can both be productive researchers and still have plenty of time for students (both in and outside the classroom).

Do you want to feel like you know everybody? One of the most enticing features of a liberal arts college is that in very little time, you can feel like you know who’s who, which can create strong friendships and make walks across campus more fun. While your sports teams may never be on ESPN, it’s more likely that you’ll know the athletes as your peers.

Beyond student and faculty relationships, it’s not unusual for the school president and other administrators to learn who you are. When faced with problems with your student account or the need to switch classes, this can be comforting during a stressful moment.

Learn more about liberal arts colleges by reading about the best liberal arts colleges in the US.

Online colleges are typically the same colleges and universities you could attend in-person, but for certain degree programs the college or unviersity has made the degree programs available to be completed online. For over 5 million students, online degree programs allow students to earn their degrees in the most flexible format available.

Online degrees are as respected as the on-campus degrees you could earn from the same schools. There’s usually no distinction between the two degrees, and your degree and transcript will not say that the degree was earned online.

Online degree programs are offered by a vast majority of colleges and universities, and the number of offering continues to grow. Whether you are searching for an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate, there’s a good chance you can earn your degree online from a respectable online college.

Are you a self-driven student? Perhaps the hardest aspect of obtaining an online degree is whether you will be disciplined enough to manage your time and course demands.

Many online students report that online college made them more disciplined in all areas of their lives, but the flexible, self-paced learning that makes online colleges attractive can often be the same qualities that make it difficult. If you tend to be a procrastinator, you need to be honest with yourself. You can change your habits and propensities, or you can throw money down the drain.

Do you need the flexibility of an online degree program? Most online students study online because of time demands of balancing work and life, or because the online college affords them the chance to attend a better school without moving.

If you are serious about earning your degree for career advancement, online colleges make it possible. The most flexible options among online degrees are those that are asynchronous, meaning you don’t have scheduled times to meet with your class online. However, many students seek synchronous online degree programs so that they have some structure – set meeting times, scheduled exams, etc.

The good news is that attending an online college doesn’t mean you will miss out on getting to know your professors and classmates. In fact, many online students who have experienced both online and on-campus courses report having easier access to their professors.

Since most communication with your professor is expected to be in text – via email or your class learning management system – it makes asking your questions easier. The same students also report that they got to better know the thoughts of their classmates. While in-person course conversations can be dominated by a few extroverts, online courses that require online discussions make it so that you see all of your classmates’ thoughts and questions.

If you’re interested in an online bachelor’s degree, check out what the best online colleges offer, or search our online degrees for the exact program that interests you. In either case, you will find well respected colleges and universities that offer online degrees.

If you think a research university may be a better fit for you, see our ranking of the best research universities for a bachelor’s in religious studies.

How do we determine the best religious studies liberal arts colleges?

Methodology

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why we rank the best colleges and universities based on what we call “Influence”.

The influence of a college or university is based on the schools’s top academic influencers related to the discipline in this ranking. We track the influence of faculty and alumni affiliate with these school counting not only the publications and citations of the school’s affiliated people, but we also consider the overall web presence of the faculty and alumni. The greater the citations, authority of web links, web searches, and page views, the greater the individuals’s influence. Those combined make up the departments’s influence in the field of study. We believe tracking the academic influence of the people affiliated with a school is the best indicator of academic excellence.

If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching, and whether their graduates themselves are advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence. Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and misused performance metrics. Influence, as measured by our InfluenceRanking engine, provides a ranking that is more insulated from manipulation, and more reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

Go to all Liberal Arts Colleges for religious studies programs

The Best Religious Studies Schools in Your State

Learn More About Religious Studies

If you want to know more about religious studies, then check out our related content:

Learn how to major in religious studies
Think about your next step and what you can do with a master’s degree in religious studies
Find out who are the most influential religious studies scholars today

Do you have a question about this topic? Ask it here

Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Religious Studies Degrees 2025

Key Takeaways

Top 10 Liberal Arts Colleges Religious Studies Programs in 2025

2025 Ranking Update

Featured Programs

Ranking: Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Religious Studies Bachelor’s Degree Programs

Last Year’s Ranking:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Wesleyan University

Most Influential Alumni

Wesleyan College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Amherst College

Most Influential Alumni

Amherst Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Swarthmore College

Most Influential Alumni

Swarthmore Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Williams College

Most Influential Alumni

Williams College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Oberlin College

Most Influential Alumni

Oberlin College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Wellesley College

Most Influential Alumni

Wellesley College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Barnard College

Most Influential Alumni

Barnard College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Haverford College

Most Influential Alumni

Haverford College Religious Studies Major Concentrations:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Pomona College

Most Influential Alumni

Pomona College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at College of the Holy Cross

Most Influential Alumni

CHC Religious Studies Major Concentrations:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Bowdoin College

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Bowdoin College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Middlebury College

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Middlebury College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Colgate University

Most Influential Alumni

Colgate University Religious Studies Majors:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Wheaton College

Most Influential Alumni

Wheaton College Religious Studies Majors:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Carleton College

Most Influential Alumni

Carleton College Religious Studies Interdisciplinary Major Concentrations:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Bates College

Most Influential Alumni

Bates College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Kenyon College

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Kenyon College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Colorado College

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Colorado College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Davidson College

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Davidson College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Bucknell University

Most Influential Alumni

Bucknell University Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Claremont McKenna College

Most Influential Alumni

CMC Religious Studies Major Concentrations:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Macalester College

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Macalester College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Pitzer College

Most Influential Alumni

Pitzer College Religious Studies Major:

Career Outlook for Religious Studies degree at Houston Christian University

Most Influential Alumni

HBU Religious Studies Majors:

Houston Christian University’s Online Degrees