Complete 30 hours of courses approved for graduate credit at Rice University

At least 24 hours of coursework (including RELI 610) must be in the Department of Religion (RELI)

At least 12 hours of the RELI coursework must be seminars where research papers are required

Earn an overall GPA of at least 3.0

Pass one secondary language reading exam (French or German)

Pass a comprehensive exam on Method and Theory in the study of religion - the final exam in RELI 610 meets this requirement

Submit a Master’s thesis developed from a paper in a course

Pass an oral defense of thesis with three faculty members in the Department of Religion

Candidacy, defense, and thesis submission will follow the guidelines described in the Rice General Announcements