Doctorate of divinity programs address culture-based religions

Individuals who are working toward a PhD in religious studies may examine the role certain religions can have on cultural change, as some theology graduate schools are beginning to offer courses on this subject.

For instance, the Harvard Divinity School recently developed classes on African American religions, and the ways that these belief systems have influenced social change in the U.S., The Chronicle of Higher Education reports.

While African American religious studies typically frame justice for the poor and oppressed as a central doctrine, the school’s classes will examine the beliefs of Africans before they were introduced to slavery and brought to America as slaves.

Through these courses, school officials aim to help PhD candidates better understand the roots of religions’ effect on social change as well as “in what ways, right now, even unrecognizable ways, is this still going on, and/or where we're falling short,” Jonathan L. Walton, an assistant professor of African American religions at the college, told the news source.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, PhD holders earn, on average, more than $1,500 per week.