MA Buddhist Studies

SOAS University of London

The MA Buddhist Studies is an interdisciplinary programme that engages with Buddhism as a field of inquiry from a historical, philosophical, anthropological and material culture perspectives though a selection of modules together covering most of Buddhist Asia. The programme follows a non-confessional, contextual approach, which highlights the diversity of Buddhism in its historical and geographical developments and appreciates it as a living religion. Attention is given to how scholarship, both in the West and in Asia, has shaped our understanding of Buddhism. The programme benefits from teaching on Buddhist languages and regional cultures across the School. It caters to students who wish to broaden their knowledge of Buddhism as a whole or of specific Buddhist traditions as well as to students intending to embark on further research or fieldwork among Buddhist communities. It is supported by an active Research Centre which offers extraordinary opportunities of further engagement with the study of Buddhism.