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General Philosophy & Religion

Types of Degrees General Philosophy & Religion Majors Are Earning

Those studying General Philosophy & Religion may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	6
Bachelor’s Degree	100
Master’s Degree	52
Doctor’s Degree	26

What General Philosophy & Religion Majors Need to Know

Studies in General Philosophy & Religion develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that General Philosophy & Religion graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing General Philosophy & Religion emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Philosophy and Theology — Importance 4.8 / 5; level 6.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 6.1 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• History and Archeology — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills emphasized by a General Philosophy & Religion program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to General Philosophy & Religion careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Inductive Reasoning — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, General Philosophy & Religion graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.8 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.9 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	3.9 / 7
Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People	3.8 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	3.8 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by General Philosophy & Religion professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
Philosopher’s Information Center The Philosopher’s Index	Data base user interface and query software	—
University of California Thesaurus Linguae Graecae TLG	Dictionary software	—
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Blackboard Learn	Computer based training software	—
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	✓
Gateway to Logic	Analytical or scientific software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for General Philosophy & Religion graduates include:

• Eastern Philosophy Professor
• Educator
• Divinity Teacher
• Theology Teacher
• University Faculty Member
• Professor
• Pastoral Ministries Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Philosophy Lecturer
• Humanities Professor
• Religion Instructor
• Adjunct Philosophy Professor
• Religion Professor
• Theology Professor
• Instructor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to General Philosophy & Religion graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	73.8%
Master’s degree	13.1%
Post-doctoral training	12.5%
Post-master’s certificate	0.6%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in General Philosophy & Religion?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 40.8% women and 59.2% men among General Philosophy & Religion graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	75	40.8%
Men	109	59.2%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of General Philosophy & Religion graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	120	65.2%
Asian	6	3.3%
Hispanic or Latino	21	11.4%
Black or African American	12	6.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native	2	1.1%
Two or More Races	2	1.1%
Race Unknown	8	4.3%
International Students	13	7.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

Online General Philosophy & Religion Programs

Distance learning is reported by IPEDS for General Philosophy & Religion. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	4	0
Bachelor’s	3	1
Master’s	1	1

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Philosophy and Religious Studies	18,629
Religion/Religious Studies	9,248
Philosophy	8,973
Philosophy and Religious Studies, Other	224

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.