Program Overview

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Theology, Philosophy & Ethics with Foundation Year

Why study this course

This is a forward-thinking and issue-led degree that offers you the opportunity to address and debate difficult and sometimes controversial moral, ethical, and philosophical issues of our time.

Course summary

Whether you describe yourself as agnostic, atheist, or a firm believer, if you have a passionate interest in the ethical, political, philosophical, and religious issues of our time, this course is perfect for you. Here at BGU, we can look back on many years of experience in teaching Religious Studies, Philosophy, and Theology. We designed this undergraduate degree to bring the oldest of academic subjects into the present day – combining the richness of ancient tradition with the relevance and freshness of a 21st-century subject.

Key facts

• Award: BA (Hons)
• UCAS code: VL6F
• Duration: 4 years
• Mode of study: Full time
• Start date: September 2025
• Award: Bishop Grosseteste University
• Institution code: B38

About this course

This course offers a different type of Theology and Ethics – we like to think of it as Theology ‘with its sleeves rolled up’. Our hands-on undergraduate degree will take you beyond the classroom and will open doors that have the potential to change your life and empower you to make a difference to the world you inhabit.

Get ready to look at recent trends in theology alongside the implications of scientific discovery, exploring religious debate together with arguments for atheism and for the existence of God. You won’t stop studying world religions, however. You’ll also explore other key events and issues related to terrorism, race, gender, and sexuality.

What you will study

As a student on this course, you may study some or all of the modules listed below.

• Course modules
  • Foundation
  • Year 1
  • Year 2
  • Year 3
• Self as Learner
  • In this module, you will explore and consider what it means to be a successful learner at university. You’ll explore the principles of effective learning and engage with a range of tools and techniques to practise and develop strategies for your own learning.
• Resourcing Learning
  • You will learn about a range of resources and practise locating and using these resources to support effective learning.
• Critical Engagement
  • This module will allow you to learn to utilise sources in a considered and critical way.
• Critical Thinking
  • Critical thinking is an integral part of university study. While studying this module, you will define critical thinking, its importance, and how it can help you in your learning.
• The Digital Learner
  • The skilled use of digital technologies is an important element in university study and is used to support both the obtaining and demonstration of knowledge.
• Effective Communication
  • This module explores, compares, and evaluates a range of communication types, giving you opportunities to combine written and spoken communication in a range of contexts and for a range of audiences.
• Reflective Learning
  • Reflection is a powerful learning tool that enables you to consider your existing knowledge and also to plan for your future learning and professional development.
• Academic Writing
  • Academic writing is an essential element of successful university study, so this module explores a range of techniques to help develop your own academic writing style.
• Ethics
  • The module explores the range of perspectives within an ethical discourse in post-modernity.
• The World’s Religions (The West)
  • This module introduces the historical manifestations, key writings, and Scripture, as well as the principal beliefs and practices of the three main religions of the west: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
• The World’s Religions (The East)
  • This module provides an introduction to the historical manifestations, key writings, and Scripture, as well as the principal beliefs and practices of the three main religions of the East: Buddhism, Hinduism, and Sikhism.
• Christianity, Christ to the Middle Ages
  • This module covers a broad sweep of Christian history starting with the development of an early Church through major theological developments.
• Christianity, Reformation to Now
  • This module covers a broad sweep of Christian history starting with the development of the Reformation through major theological development to the modern era.
• A Brief History of Thinking: Socrates to the Middle Ages
  • This module covers the broad sweep of the Western Philosophical tradition from Socrates to the Middle Ages.
• A Brief History of Thinking: Descartes to the Present
  • This module covers the broad sweep of the Western Philosophical tradition from the early modern period to the present.
• Religion, Race and Sexuality
  • Liberation Theology was born out of the decision by the Catholic Church leaders to make an option for the poor in late 1960s Latin America.
• Green Theology
  • This module will explore the historical relationship between the World’s main religions and the environment.
• Holocaust Philosophy and Education
  • This module covers both critical approaches to understanding holocaust education and the ways in which it is delivered in contemporary society.
• God and Science
  • The module begins with a study of the nature of explanation in science.
• Religion at the Fringes 1: New Religions and Cults
  • This module builds on the introductory themes studied at Level 4.
• Religion at the Fringes: New Age and paranormal - Part 2
  • This module builds on the introductory themes studied in Religion at the Fringes 1.
• Women and Faiths 1: The West
  • This module covers a broad sweep of the of three major world religion’s attitudes towards and treatment of women.
• Women and Faiths 2: The East
  • This module covers a broad sweep of the last 2,000 years of major world religion’s attitudes towards and treatment of women.
• Cogito ergo Sum
  • After preliminary consideration of what is meant by 'modernity', 'religion', and 'atheism', this module examines the thought of some central thinkers.
• Individual Study
  • During this module, you will undertake a project, drawing on tutors’ advice as well as your own interests and instincts.
• Asian Beliefs
  • The module explores the history and beliefs of major Indo-Chinese religions.
• Media and Message
  • The module takes as its theme "Crisis and Change" and responds to it in such a manner as to historically narrativise the development and dissemination of knowledge and responses to the theme.
• Religion, War and Terrorism
  • This module looks at the historical relationship between Religion and acts of political violence.
• Dissertation
  • You will undertake a project, drawing on tutors’ advice as well as your own interests and instincts.

Entry requirements

Application for this course is via UCAS, although there is no formal requirement for UCAS points to access the course (normally GCSE English or equivalent is desirable). As part of your application, you will have the opportunity to speak with a member of BGU Admissions staff to resolve any questions or queries you may have.

Different degree subjects may have specific entry requirements to allow you to progress from the Foundation Year. Whilst not a condition of entry onto the Foundation Year, you will need to have met these by the time you complete the first year of this four-year course.

How you will be taught

There is no one-size-fits-all method of teaching at BGU – we shape our methods to suit each subject and each group, combining the best aspects of traditional university teaching with innovative techniques to promote student participation and interactivity.

Academic staff

• Mark Plater
• Abigail Dor
• Alan Darley
• John Tomlinson
• Professor Jack Cunningham
• Revd Dr Peter Green
• Revd Canon Professor Leslie J Francis

Assessment

On our Theology courses, we believe that we have an imaginative approach to assessment that allows us to utilise your strengths. We assess our students using a wide range of methods which include written assignments, paired and single presentations, research-based dissertations, files of work, and exams. A good deal of continual assessment and easy access to our course tutors means that we are in a strong position to get the best possible results from our students.

Careers & Further study

Many Theology students will pursue careers directly related to the disciplines of Theology, Ethics, and Religious Studies, in education and schools. However, graduates of this course are highly skilled individuals fully prepared to pursue a wide variety of careers in other fields, such as community work, counselling, policing, librarianship, social work, work in the third sector, politics, museum work, education officers attached to religious buildings or organisations, and media work. Specialised modules and the ability to choose individual routes through our programme will prepare you for whatever career might best suit your interests. As well as an in-depth understanding of ethical and theological issues, you will gain a wide range of transferable skills which will prepare you for further study or employment. Possible future careers for Theology, Philosophy & Ethics graduates may include work as an RE teacher/primary specialist, theology lecturer, social or youth work, politics and policy planning, or museum work.

What Our Students Say

Discover what life is like at Bishop Grosseteste University from our students.

• 92% say staff value students' views and opinions about the course
• 92% of students say teaching staff have supported their learning well.