The mission of the Divinity School is the education of students in the critical study of religion as a category and the religions of the world, their history, beliefs, and practices. Ours is a community of learning in which reasoned inquiry about religion informs various kinds of professional formation, including careers in the academy, religious leadership, non-profits, government, museums, research institutes, and a wide variety of other venues. The graduate degree programs of the Divinity School train students for specialized knowledge in a range of religious traditions and in diverse methodological approaches to the study of religion itself. This set of programs represents a unique collaboration in University higher education, since at other institutions PhD/MA programs and MDiv programs are institutionally separated. The Divinity School also provides undergraduate instruction in a wide array of topics concerning religion. Across all its programs, the values of critical engagement and research guide the entire educational enterprise of the School.

The Divinity School advances the study of religion with the conviction that doing so not only enriches various publics but is of critical importance to our understanding of human societies both past and present. Recognized as one of the world’s leading institutions in the academic study of religion, the Divinity School brings together – and indeed has pioneered – multiple perspectives on and varied theoretical approaches to religion. Through community partnerships, student internships, conferences and other forms of public engagement, including the work of the Martin Marty Center for the Public Understanding of Religion, the Divinity School enacts the motto of the University of Chicago: Crescat scientia; vita excolatur -- Let knowledge grow from more to more; and so be human life enriched.