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→Religion and atheism in academia
''See also:'' [[Christian apologetics and education]] and [[Atheism and academia]]
''See also:'' [[Christian apologetics and education]] and [[Atheism and academia]]
The abstract for the 2009 academic journal article ''The Religiosity of American College and University Professors'' which was published in the journal ''Sociology of Religion'' (which is published by the Oxford University Press) indicates:
{{Cquote|For more than a century most U.S. colleges and universities have functioned as secular institutions. But how religious are American college and university faculty in their personal lives? We answer this question by analyzing data from a new, nationally representative survey of the American professoriate. Contrary to the view that religious skepticism predominates in the academy, we find that the majority of professors, even at elite research institutions, are religious believers. We go on to examine the distribution of faculty religiosity across institutions, fields, and other variables, and identify a number of issues that future research—sensitive to the fact that religious faith and academic life, at least in the American context, are by no means mutually exclusive—should take up.<ref>[http://socrel.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2009/01/01/socrel.srp026 The Religiosity of American College and University Professors, ''Sociology of Religion'', Oxford University Press, 2009</ref>}}
Harvard Magazine indicated in 2007:
{{Cquote|Though comparatively low, the percentage of nonbelievers in academia is still much higher than the percentage of self-described nonbelievers found among the general public. That figure is only about 7 percent, according to the nationwide General Social Survey, issued by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago...
Just as surprising to the researchers was the range of belief across institutions and fields of research. Although nearly 37 percent of professors at elite research schools like Harvard are atheist or agnostic, about 20 percent of their colleagues have “no doubt that God exists.” At community colleges, in contrast, 15 percent of professors are atheist or agnostic, and 40 percent believe in God. These differences exist because of professors’ backgrounds and inclinations, says Gross. Professors who come from higher socioeconomic classes and are drawn to research over teaching or service—characteristics more common among academics at elite institutions—tend to be less religious.
A professor’s field of research or discipline is also predictive, he adds: psychologists and biologists are most likely to be nonbelievers (61 percent are atheist or agnostic), followed by mechanical engineers, economists, and political scientists. The most likely believers are professors of accounting (63 percent have no doubt that God exists), followed by professors of elementary education, finance, art, criminal justice, and nursing.<ref>[http://harvardmagazine.com/2007/07/faculty-faith.html Faculty Faith], Harvard Magazine, 2007</ref>}}
[[File:Alister McGrath.jpg|right|thumb|175px|[[Alister McGrath]] ]]
[[File:Alister McGrath.jpg|right|thumb|175px|[[Alister McGrath]] ]]