Experiential Learning and Research

Students in the Department of Religion & Philosophy are eligible to participate in a number of internship and other experiential learning opportunities, which take full advantage of the college’s New York CIty location to broaden your exposure to fields as expansive as law, journalism, nonprofit leadership and interfaith activism. Explore internship opportunities close to home, in partnership with one of the public-facing centers housed in this department, or venture further out into the broader New York Metro area. Majors in Peace and Justice Studies take advantage of a number of partnerships to develop internships and creative fieldwork research assignments. Recent examples include: Carmelite NGO at the United Nations , Catholic Charities of New York, Fordham Bedford Housing, Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), The International Movement of Catholic Students, Latinas on the Verge Excellence, The Dorothy Day Guild, New York City Council Members, Rose F. Kennedy Children’s Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center, United Nations Staff 1% for Development Fund, various New York City Council Members, judges and more.

Interdisciplinary Centers Staffed by the Department of Religion and Philosophy  

The Dorothy Day Center

The Dorothy Day Center aims to help students with internships and research projects. Past projects include:

• 2020: “Bridging Science with Social Justice: What Public Health Can Learn from Dorothy Day”: Aimen Khurram
• 2019: Dorothy Day: A Twentieth Century Take on Twenty–First Century Environmental Injustices on Low Income American Communities (Shannon Colford) 
• 2018: Dorothy Day’s Feminism and Peace (Shannon Raczynski)
• 2017: Challenging The Social Order: Worker Cooperatives Live Out the Vision of Dorothy Day (Emily Center)
• 2016: Dorothy Day’s Witness and Manhattan College (Alannah Boyle)

The Holocaust Genocide and Interfaith Education Center 

HGI frequently employs students as interns who work on museum curation, tours of the archive, survivor testimonies, and other aspects of HGI’s mission. 

Preparation for Law School

Students planning to go to law school do well to focus on critical thinking, logic, and ethics: all disciplines which are housed in the Department of Religion & Philosophy.  See here for more information on pre-law pathways.

Ethics Bowl Debate Team

Students can participate in the Ethics Bowl Debate Team for course credit or as an extracurricular activity. Ethics Bowl Debate is a unique, collaborative experience that builds skills in critical thinking and oral communication while exploring current moral issues. Team members have the opportunity to participate in an intercollegiate tournament sponsored by the Association for Professional and Practical Ethics. For more information contact Dr. Eoin O’Connell at eoin.oconnell@manhattan.edu.