Update to Department of Religious Studies

This message is intended for all campus contacts who receive program of study (POS) memo updates via email from the Office of the Registrar.

At the request of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and with approval from the Office of the Provost and Iowa Board of Regents, the department of Religious Studies will close, and the department of Classics will be renamed to Classics and Religious Studies, effective July 1, 2026. To coincide with this update, several religious studies programs of study and the RELS course subject will be updated, effective fall 2026. Existing students and students admitted fall 2026 and forward should be placed in the new programs of study. 

Programs of Study Created (Classics)

The following programs of study have been created with the Department of Classics, effective fall 2026. 

• Religious Studies BA
• Religious Studies MA
• Religious Studies MA (thesis)
• Religious Studies Minor
• Religious Studies PD
• Religious Studies PhD
• Religious Studies PI

Programs of Study Ending (Religious Studies)

The following programs of study with the Department of Religious Studies will end effective fall 2026. 

• Religious Studies BA
• Religious Studies MA
• Religious Studies MA (thesis)
• Religious Studies Minor
• Religious Studies PD
• Religious Studies PhD
• Religious Studies PI

Please update your records accordingly. 

You can view more documentation of this change via the linked MAUI program of study page(s).

Questions?

Contact the Academic Structure Team at reg-acad-structure@uiowa.edu.