Undergraduate Degree Programmes (BA)

 

The Faculty offers five undergraduate degree programmes: Theology, International Theology (International Students), Theology (English), Theology (Arabic), and Teacher Training for Religion and Ethics Courses in Primary Schools.

 

1. Theology

This programme aims at training students who would like to specialize in religious disciplines. The courses are conducted in Turkish (70%) and Arabic (30%), and there is a one-year preparatory Arabic language class for students who do not have the required level in the language. Graduates are expected to have a comprehensive knowledge of religious studies and to be able to critically evaluate the Islamic intellectual heritage. They may enter a wide variety of professions. They may pursue academic careers or work as teachers of religion and ethics at high schools. They may also seek employment in religious services under various governmental and non-governmental institutions.

 

2. International Theology (International Students)

Marmara University established a new programme in 2007 under its Faculty of Theology in order to open its gates to international students of Turkish descent. Courses are conducted in Turkish (%70) and Arabic (%30), and there is a one-year preparatory Arabic language class for students who do not have the required level in the language. The programme educates students to provide religious services for Turks living in foreign countries. Students are accepted into this program through a meticulous selection process conducted by the Faculty of Theology in collaboration with the Presidency of Religious Affairs. Applicants must hold a high school degree awarded in their countries. Students are financially supported throughout their education by the Turkish Religious Foundation.

 

3. Theology (English)

Starting in the 2010-2011 academic year, Marmara University established a new programme under its Faculty of Theology in order to open its gates to Turkish and international students who seek to gain a well-grounded academic education in the fields of Islamic Theology and Religious Studies. The courses are conducted in the English language, and there is a one-year preparatory English language class for students who do not have the required level in the language. At the end of the fourth academic year, the students qualify for a BA degree.

 

3. Theology (Arabic)

This programme was established under Marmara University Faculty of Theology by the academic year of 2015-2016 academic year, Marmara University. The courses are conducted in the Arabic language, and there is a one-year preparatory Arabic language class for students who do not have the required level in the language. At the end of the fourth academic year, the students qualify for a BA degree.

 

4. Teacher Training for Religion and Ethics Courses in Primary Schools

The Faculty of Theology launched a programme in 1998 to meet the need for teachers of religion and ethics courses in primary schools. Between the years of 2006 and 2012, the programme was administered under the Ataturk Faculty of Education, however, starting from the academic year of 2012-2013 it moved back to the Faculty of Theology. The programme provides teacher-candidates the knowledge of the profession of teaching and school environment. It offers courses on pedagogical formation, in addition to the Faculty’s already strong curriculum of Islamic Theology and Religious Studies. The programme aims at improving the capacities of the teacher-candidates with respect to their spiritual awareness, social integration, cultural sensitivity, and good morals from the perspective of religious education as a social science and in the context of intercultural and interreligious understanding.

 

 

Courses at the Faculty of Theology

 

Preparatory Class in Arabic

The Faculty offers a preparatory Arabic language class for the Theology, Theology (Arabic) and International Theology programmes. The one-year preparatory curriculum for the Arabic language programme is designed to help students develop their Arabic skills in reading, speaking, listening, and writing. Since Arabic is the language of the Islamic religious texts, namely the Qur’an and the hadith, and the language of most of the scientific and the historical texts of the pre-modern Islamic world, the programme specifically focuses on reading and understanding traditional texts with an emphasis on solid knowledge of grammar (sarf and nahw). After the preparatory class courses that are conducted in the Arabic language give students a chance to familiarize themselves with the terminology of each traditional Islamic discipline as well as further develop their listening, speaking, and writing skills.

 

Preparatory Class in English

The one-year intensive preparatory curriculum for the English-medium Theology programme is designed to take students above and beyond general English skills. It does this by first introducing them to communicative and participatory language instruction. As the students develop their confidence in speaking and writing, Academic English skills are introduced. Students learn organization and structure in writing sections and public speaking and presentation skills in speaking sections. They also learn academic reading and listening skills, such as note-taking and outlining. Finally, students engage in integrated-skills tasks with performance-based assessment – such as researched presentations with Power-Point and written components, or web-quests with independent review of sources. At the conclusion of the preparatory program, students are equipped with the necessary skills for productive engagement in the Theology (English) programme using English as the sole medium of instruction.

 

Modules in Undergraduate Degree Programmes

Most of the modules in the curricula of these different programmes are required, but there are many elective modules to choose from with a wide range of topics. Required modules are designed to familiarize students with the history, sources, and problems of various disciplines of Islamic and Religious Studies and to teach them how to think critically in religious matters. Elective modules build upon the compulsory modules and aim to develop students’ skills in interdisciplinary studies by integrating traditional Islamic disciplines with modern developments in the area of Religious Studies.

In addition to the regular required and elective modules, students must write a graduation thesis on a topic they choose under the supervision of a faculty member by the end of the eight semester in order to complete the degree requirements.

 

Key features of the undergraduate degree programs are compared in the table below. This is followed by tables of the modules offered in each programme with their national and ECTS credits.