For the second consecutive year, the University of Notre Dame has been ranked as the best in the world in theology, divinity and religious studies by the influential QS World University Rankings.
The No. 1 ranking is based on academic reputation, employer reputation and research impact. With an overall score of 92.8, the Department of Theology placed ahead of Harvard University, the University of Oxford, Duke University and Durham University.
“This recognition is a tribute to the strength and breadth of our faculty's expertise and research, as well as the rich learning community that is created by the talented graduate students who come to study with us, combining probing intellectual curiosity with deep pastoral concern for church and world,” said J. Matthew Ashley, associate professor and acting chair of the department.
Guided by the ideal of “faith seeking understanding,” the department has six principal areas of research — moral theology, history of Christianity, liturgy, biblical studies, systematic theology and world religions and world church.
In addition to offering a doctorate and four master's programs, Notre Dame’s theology department maintains a strong commitment to undergraduate education through the more than 500 students who major or minor in theology and in the courses all Notre Dame students take as part of the University’s core curriculum.
“Our graduate students and undergraduates remind us every day of the importance of what we do,” Ashley said. “I couldn’t be prouder of my colleagues for the way they rise to the challenge.”
Originally published by at al.nd.edu on March 11.