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Sunday, September 11, 2005
Religion Majors on the Rise
My father sent me this article that reports on a recent increase in undergraduate religion majors and an overall increase in students taking religion courses:
A report from the American Academy of Religion said that the number of religion majors increased 26 percent from 1996 through 2000 and that total enrollment in religion classes rose 15 percent.
As I started reading I thought of why I decided to take on a religion major in addition to anthropology and almost prophetically (no pun intended) the article said:
Professors cite three possible reasons for the increases: the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, spurred many students to learn about Islam and their own religions; recent immigration has made Americans more curious about their new neighbors' faiths; and Christian evangelical students seem more comfortable studying religion on campus.
The first two reasons are what got me interested in religious studies. As I've mentioned on Nomadic Thoughts before, the 9/11 attacks had a profound impact on me not only emotionally but intellectually as well. I had the sudden desire to try and understand what happened instead of just sit back and run my mouth as so many people have done since. 9/11 happened around the time I lost what little faith I had so having the opportunity to expand my understanding seemed only logical.
One reason the number of religion majors has not risen even higher, professors say, is that many students and their parents worry they won't be able to get good jobs with the degree.
That's why anthropology was my first major...
Posted by Will at September 11, 2005 11:42 AM in Internet and Blogging