Religious Studies and Sociocultural Discourses

In your doctoral research, you will analyse issues of religion, ethics, world view and culture in their contexts, such as politics, education or the media.

The submission deadline for the summer semester 2025 for this doctoral program starts on January 7 and ends on February 4, 2025.

Applications submitted after this deadline will not be processed!

Doctoral Program in Religious Studies and Sociocultural Discourses

The doctoral program in Religious Studies and Sociocultural Discourses provides an academic qualification at an international level. It is a humanities and cultural studies degree program that, in cooperation with other humanities and cultural studies disciplines as well as theology, analyzes questions of religion, ethics, worldview and culture in their respective contexts such as politics, education or media and brings them up for discussion in the scientific community. The reference point of the respective other academic discipline is derived from the particular research question. The doctoral program deals with the complex interrelationships of religious, cultural and ethical discourses from a historical, systematic and/or current perspective. In particular, the doctoral program aims to examine complex questions of society, culture and politics in their interdependencies with religion, to process them scientifically and to present their relevance for society, culture and politics.

Visit the website of the Faculty of Catholic Theology for further information on the doctoral program.

Before applying for admission: Find a supervisor and a topic for your dissertation project.

You have not yet found a supervisor and/or selected a topic for your dissertation? Then read our tips for preparing for the doctorate here.

Step 1: Fill out and gather the necessary documents, including the supervision agreement and application for admission to doctoral studies.

You can find the required forms on the information page of the dean's office.
Information on other required documents (e.g. degree certificates) can be found in our Admission Guide.

Step 2: Complete the online application.