Islamic Studies is an academic discipline that unveils a multidisciplinary view of all aspects of Islam and the Islamic world.

Islam being the second-largest religion, with 1.8 billion Muslims around the world, Islamic Studies offers an approach that integrates comparative and theoretical methods that developed in the modern academic study of Islam and besides the religion, its main interest includes topics such as the socio-economic structure, military, administration, development of various sciences and thought, cultural life, cosmology, mysticism, literature and fine arts, and many other aspects of Islamic civilisation.

Additionally, Islamic Studies include information on the Arab-Islamic civilisation, such as its main defining features, society and the culture of the Ottoman Empire. Students also gain knowledge of language divergence and cultural convergence in the Islamic world throughout history and other topics include the crisis revolution in the Middle East and the Quran and its interpretation.

The discipline allows students to attain foundational and solid Islamic knowledge which includes a highly developed comprehension of the theological, jurisprudential, historical, contemporary and spiritual aspects of Islam. Programmes also prepare students for understanding the multiple ways in which Islam has shaped human experience both past and present.

Study levels:

Islamic Studies can be pursued by interested candidates at the undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral level and some of the popular courses offered by different colleges and universities in Islamic Studies are as follows:

• Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies
• Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Theology
• Bachelor of Islamic Studies
• Bachelor of Islamic Sciences (Hons)
• Bachelor of Arabic Language and Literature
• Bachelor’s Degree in Islamic Law and Theology
• Master of Arts in Islamic Studies
• Master of Arts in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies
• Master of Arts in Arabic and Islamic Studies
• Master’s Degree in Islamic Texts
• MPhil in Islamic Studies
• Ph.D. in Islamic Studies

Specialisations:

Islamic Studies researches Islam as a field of research through its history, literature and art in the Middle East and Western studies which include academic programmes and study topics such as the historical study of Islam, Islam civilisation, Islamic Law, Islamic Theology, Islamic philosophy and much more. There are also various fields of specialisations that are offered and these include:

• Qur’anic Studies
• Sufi Literature
• Islamic Philosophy
• Islamic law and theology
• Biblical Studies
• Classical Philosophy to Modern History
• The Science of Hadith
• Late Antique, Islamic and Byzantine Studies
• Reform Movements of Islam
• Muslim Historiography
• Analytical Study of the Quran
• Communicative Skills in Arabic
• Islam in Europe
• Contemporary Islamic Studies
• Quranic Science
• Iranian Studies
• Family Laws of Islam
• The Globalised Muslim world
• Political Thought in Islam

Employability:

With the study of Islamic Studies being a broad field, it can enhance career opportunities and help graduates in tackling all the arduous everyday changes of modern life. Individuals who study this subject area can engage in job professions as historians, or work as teachers in several global educational institutions that offer this course. Individuals can also engage in employment opportunities as media personalities or work as civil servants. Their knowledge of this subject also enables them to work as religious instructors at Mosques across the globe, aiding in providing religious guidance.

Job profiles include:

• Translator/Interpreter
• Middle East Specialised Journalist
• Researcher
• Islamic Studies Teacher
• Business Consultant
• Arabic Language Instructor
• Chaplain