{"id":2340,"date":"2026-03-20T07:13:54","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T12:13:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/?page_id=2340"},"modified":"2026-03-25T14:45:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T19:45:35","slug":"internships-research-and-vocational-opportunities","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/internships-research-and-vocational-opportunities\/","title":{"rendered":"Internships, Research, and Vocational Opportunities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Opportunities in Religion<\/strong>:
Research, Internships, Graduate Schools, Vocation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research Opportunities in Religion<\/strong>
Many religion majors are attracted by the possibility of doing in-depth research in religion as a means of enriching their knowledge, developing their research skills, and preparing a sample of writing for graduate school applications. A number of students have gone on to have their work published in various journals! A range of research possibilities in religion are listed below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Distinction Paper or Project in Religion <\/a>(for seniors; applications in fall, projects completed in spring)
Magnus the Good Collaborative Fellowship<\/a> (specific deadline date varies; typically due in March)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer Research:<\/em>
Junior Research Fellows at Hong Kierkegaard Library<\/a> (open to rising juniors and seniors; paid summer housing included. Deadline varies; typically due in late March)
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CURI: Collaborative Undergraduate Research and Inquiry<\/a>. (deadline date varies; typically due in mid-February) Check out this recent offering: Black Church Archives Project<\/a> with Prof. Tim Rainey (View the full project here!<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steen Fellowship: Independent Summer Research<\/a>: (deadline date varies; typically due in mid-February)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recommended Courses:<\/em>
Religion Seminar<\/a> (typically in the fall semester)
Independent Study\/Independent Research Courses<\/a> (application forms here<\/a>)
REL285: What is Religion?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Internships in Religion<\/strong>
The Piper Center NOTE: <\/strong>most internship application deadlines are in February, so please plan ahead!
has an excellent overview of the internship search process<\/a>, and searching the St. Olaf internship database<\/a> for \u201cReligion\u201d majors can give you a great survey of the range of possibilities! Be sure to also check out the Piper Center\u2019s guide to internships and experiences in Social Impact, Non-profit, and Ministry fields<\/a>. Even better, meet with Zoe Davis <\/a>(davis44@stolaf.edu), a Piper Center coach who supports students who are interested in pursuing opportunities related to ministry, as well as students who are interested in participating in service programs, including those which are faith-based.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First and second year students interested in community service should especially take note of the Phillips Scholars Program<\/a>, which offers a $9,500 scholarship! (deadline date varies; typically due in early February)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Graduate School in Religion<\/strong>
St. Olaf consistently ranks nationally in the top 2-3 undergraduate liberal arts colleges whose graduates go on to earn PhDs, as the major provides excellent preparation for future success at the top programs in the US. The Piper Center has a great resource for exploring graduate school possibilities<\/a>. For a good overview of Christian theology programs, try TheologyDegree.org<\/a>. For spiritual care programs in a variety of settings,\u00a0The Chaplaincy Innovation Lab<\/a>\u00a0has a\u00a0thorough list of chaplaincy programs<\/a>\u00a0spanning the spectrum of orientations to religion. Below is a list of specific institutions where recent St. Olaf graduates have gone to graduate school in religion for a variety of degrees preparing for ministry, chaplaincy, academic careers, and more.\u00a0NOTE: <\/strong>most graduate application deadlines for fall enrollment are in December (especially for the most competitive programs), so please plan ahead!
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

University of Chicago Divinity School<\/a>
Princeton Theological Seminary<\/a>
Yale Divinity School<\/a>
Harvard Divinity School<\/a>
Union Theological Seminary in New York City<\/a>
Duke Divinity School<\/a>
Candler School of Theology (at Emory University)<\/a>
Luther Seminary<\/a>
Lutheran School of Theology-Chicago<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Representatives from many of these schools often visit campus, and these are great opportunities to talk in person with them to discern the best match between your interests and their programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vocational Possibilities after Graduation<\/strong>
Students who major in religion have the skills and durable wisdom that employers of all sorts seek, and thus they enter a wide variety of employment after graduation. Many graduates have been attracted to service year opportunities such as Lutheran Volunteer Corps, L\u2019Arche, Jesuit Volunteer Corps, Young Adults in Global Ministry, Holden Village, and more. These opportunities give a broad range of experiences and often include residential communities where graduates can grow and explore future callings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those interested in employment outside of the corporate world, the Piper Center\u2019s guide to experiences in Social Impact, Non-profit, and Ministry fields<\/a> is a great place to start. You can also find a great list of diverse faith-based service organizations and opportunities<\/a> on this Piper Center webpage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even better, meet with Zoe Davis <\/a>(davis44@stolaf.edu), a Piper Center coach who supports students who are interested in pursuing opportunities related to ministry, as well as students who are interested in participating in service programs, including those which are faith-based.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Opportunities in Religion:Research, Internships, Graduate Schools, Vocation Research Opportunities in ReligionMany religion majors are attracted by the possibility of doing in-depth research in religion as a means of enriching their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":239,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2340","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/239"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2340"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2340\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2587,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2340\/revisions\/2587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/religion\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}