Religious Studies, Contemplative Studies (BA in Religious Studies)

The Contemplative Studies major explores the nature, practices, and effects of contemplative experience across cultures and traditions, examining how practices like meditation, mindfulness, prayer, and ritual shape human consciousness, ethics, and well-being. Contemplative Studies bridges disciplines like neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, religious studies, education, and the arts, and involves active experiential learning, to explore fundamental questions of self and one’s being in the world–how we think, feel, relate, and flourish. Consultation with a Contemplative Studies advisor is expected. 

Required Credit Hours: 30

Major Writing Requirement:

Students can fulfill the Major Writing Requirement by completing RELG 391 Theory and Method in the Study of Religion with a C- grade or better.

Contemplative Studies Requirements:

Religious literacy is foundational to Contemplative Studies because contemplative practices are deeply embedded in the historical and philosophical traditions that shaped them. By requiring case studies in Buddhism and Hindu Traditions students engage two of the world’s richest contemplative lineages through historical and textual case studies. These courses provide essential context for understanding how practices of contemplation, wisdom, and self-transformation developed, and how they continue to inform contemporary practices.