MA Yoga Studies
London, United Kingdom
MA
DURATION
1 year
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 12,220 *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* Home | International: £25,320
Course overview
The MA Yoga Studies sets out to introduce the student to the roles of yoga and yoga practice in modern society.
Yoga practice has long ceased to be exclusively a spiritual technique of the religious elite. Today, yoga is often pursued for the physical benefits it confers, for its potential in well-being as well as for personal development. It is practiced in a wide variety of contexts, in different spaces and for different purposes and has thus become prominent in an array of public discourses. In doing so, yoga is no longer exclusively the domain of individual practice. Its practitioners today encounter yoga in settings often connected to wider issues in society, such as social justice, gender, abuse, race and commercial exploitation. The MA Yoga Studies explores these issues in depth. In order to confer a robust understanding of the issues that shape contemporary yoga practice, it maps first the historical roots of yoga and analysis its many links with the Buddhist and Jaina traditions with which is has always been in close conversation. The student is then guided through key themes that have come to define the roles of yoga in modern society, often viewed through a global lens.
Why study MA Yoga Studies at SOAS?
- SOAS is ranked top 30 in the UK for Arts and Humanities (QS World University Rankings 2025)
- SOAS is ranked 6th in the UK for Asian Studies (Complete University Guide 2025)
- Theology and Religious Studies scored above sector in the following categories: research culture, community, progression, research skills, and professional development (2023 Postgraduate Research Experience Survey)
- All of our Theology & Religious Studies impact case-studies were world-leading/internationally excellent (REF 2021)
- 85.4% of our Theology & Religious Studies research outputs were world-leading/internationally excellent – 56.3% of our submitted outputs were deemed world-leading (REF 2021)
- Our Theology & Religious Studies research environment score was 85% world-leading/internationally excellent
Students must complete 120 credits of MA taught modules in addition to the compulsory dissertation (60 credits).
Important notice
The information on the website reflects the intended programme structure against the given academic session. The modules are indicative options of the content students can expect and are/have been previously taught as part of these programmes.
However, this information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change.
Core
- Dissertation in Yoga Studies - 60 credits
Compulsory
- Yoga in the Jaina Tradition - 15 credits
- Buddhist Meditation in Ancient India - 15 credits
- Buddhist Meditation in the Modern World - 15 credits
- History of Yoga in India - 15 credits
- Yoga in the Modern World - 15 credits
Knowledge
- students will learn how to assess data and evidence critically, locate and synthesise source materials, critically evaluate conflicting interpretations and sources, use research resources (library catalogues, journal databases, citation indices) and other traditional sources.
- subject specific skills, for instance, text analysis, comparative investigations, interpretation of art-historical evidence, familiarity with the study of the traditions of yoga and meditation as a field of critical enquiry in its various regional and historical contexts.
- aspects of literature in the study of yoga and meditation with its manifestations in philosophy, religion, iconography and history, as well as the impact of these traditions on religious societies.
Intellectual (thinking) skills
- students should become precise and cautious in their assessment of evidence, and to understand through practice what documents can and cannot tell us.
- students will develop the capacity to discuss theoretical and epistemological issues in an articulate, informed, and intellectual manner.
- students will learn to become precise and critical in their assessment of scholarly arguments and to question interpretations, however authoritative, in order to reassess evidence for themselves.
- students will learn to present complex theoretical arguments clearly and creatively.
- students will acquire both theoretical and regional expertise in order to develop and apply self-reflexive approaches to the issues raised by the cross-cultural study of yoga and meditation traditions.
Subject-based practical skills
The programme aims to help students with the following practical skills:
- Academic writing
- IT-based information retrieval and processing
- Presentational skills
- Independent study skills and research techniques
- Reflexive learning
Transferable skills
The programme will encourage students to:
- Write concisely and with clarity.
- Effectively structure and communicate ideas (oral and written).
- Explore and assess a variety of sources for research purposes.
- Work to deadlines and high academic standards.
- Assess the validity and cogency of arguments.
- Make judgements involving complex factors.
- Develop self-reflexivity.
- Develop an awareness of the ethical complexity of representational practices.
- Question the nature of social and cultural constructs.
In addition to an understanding of global faiths, histories and cultures, graduates from the Department of Religions and Philosophies develop the skills to analyse and communicate ideas in a clear, rational and comprehensive manner. These key proficiencies are valuable in many careers and are transferable to a wide range of sectors and roles.
Recent graduates have been hired by:
- Asia Society
- British Council
- Cabinet Office
- Chatham House
- Edelman
- Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
- HELP USA
- King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Princeton University
- Royal Government of Cambodia
- The Happiness Factory
- The Inter Faith Network for the UK
- The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
- UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency
- United Nations Development Programme