Program Requirements

Advising & Mentoring

All entering students meet with the JDP Assistant Director who is their advisor for the first two years and will help navigate academic requirements. Students may also identify a faculty mentor who has added expertise in their area of interest and who may ultimately become their dissertation advisor. All students should have their Dissertation Director/Advisor in place by the end of the second year.

90 Quarter Hours of Academic Credit

The degree requires 82 hours of courses and 8 hours of dissertation credits. The academic year is divided into three quarters of 10 to 11 weeks each. Most classes receive 4 quarter hours of credit, meaning that they meet four hours per week in the classroom and at least double that many hours of work is expected out of the classroom. Most classwork is done in fall, winter and spring quarters. Summer is a separate, optional term but there are limited course offerings in the summer.

Within the 90 hours, students take 6 required classes (24 quarter hours): (Add class descriptions)

• RLGN 4000: Theories and Methods in the Study of Religion
• RLGN 5010: Lived Religion Colloquium
• RLGN 5020: Conceptual Approaches to Religion Colloquium
• RLGN 5030: Text, Image, and Artifact Colloquium
• RLGN 5000: Pedagogy and the Teaching of Religion
• RLGN 6000: Dissertation Proposal Seminar

...and at least 42 quarter hours of electives:

Students may take any graduate-level course that has an RLGN designator and any other graduate-level course approved for which they have met the prerequisites.  Most relevant courses are listed in the DU Course Catalog under the subjects: 

• Religion
• Religious Studies
• Judaic Studies
• Philosophy
• Anthropology
• Art History
• Communication
• Education
• English
• International Studies
• Media, Film & Journalism Studies
• Social Work

For a sample schedule, click here.

Modern Language

Typically French, German, or Spanish, this language allows the student to read scholarship in the field of religious studies. This requirement can be completed through an exam or coursework (outside of the required 90 credits).

Comprehensive Exams (16 Quarter hours)

Comprehensive exams are taken in the third year at the end of the coursework. These written exams and papers are designed to test the student’s knowledge of foundational concepts, methods, and bibliographies in religious studies as well as the student’s specific areas of focus. There are two exams and two papers.  Together, the exams comprise a major component of the program. Passing them is recognized as a milestone in working toward the degree. 

Dissertation (8 Quarter Hours)

Normally researched and written within 2-5 years after advancement to candidacy under the guidance of the chosen dissertation advisor and committee.

See examples of past dissertation topics

Residency, Modalities, and Time Limits

The JDP is a residential program. All six of the required courses are in-person and on-campus.  Students should also plan to be in Denver while preparing for and taking their comp exams in year 3. A few of the elective courses are offered online or in a hybrid format, but this is not a distance learning program and all students must be in residence for three years. 

Full-time status requires enrollment in at least eight credit hours per quarter, although some quarters will require ten or twelve credit hours.  The completion of coursework, including comprehensive exams and the dissertation proposal, within 3 years. All students have a 7-year time limit from the start of coursework. 

The above is an overview of the program. Each incoming class will have a student handbook with specific policy details.