The Centre for the Study of Islam at the University of Glasgow, in collaboration with the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Office, has announced a unique university accredited course in Islamic Studies.

The Department of Theology and Religious Studies, of which the Centre for the Study of Islam is part, has been accepted as a registered CPD provider for the General Teaching Council of Scotland (GTCS). This means that the new Islamic Studies course is the only one available to teachers in Scotland that is endorsed by the GTCS. This registration will allow the Department to further develop CPD in other areas related to Religious Studies and Theology.

The part-time evening course is designed for anyone who has an interest in Islam or religion in general. It is ideal for those who wish to pursue a critical approach to the academic study of Islam. The course will cover a variety of themes and areas that would interest anyone involved in teaching religion in Scotland.

Course Director and Research Fellow, Amanullah De Sondy, said: 'This is a great coup for the Centre for the Study of Islam, and the Department as a whole. I am one of the few registered Scottish Muslim Religious Education teachers on the General Teaching Council. There has been a renewed interest in the study of Islam in institutes of higher education and such a course, hosted at the internationally renowned Centre for the Study of Islam, would benefit the wider community enormously.'

Dr Vivian Shelley, CPD Development Officer, has welcomed this initiative, and hopes that this will instigate other departments within the university to follow suit and establish other courses and programmes.

The course is scheduled to begin in January 2003 and run for a period of twenty weeks, for two hours per week.

Media Relations Office (media@gla.ac.uk)

Further information may be had from: Amanullah De Sondy (ads@arts.gla.ac.uk) or Dr Vivian Shelley (v.shelley@admin.gla.ac.uk).

For more information please contact the University Press Officer, Mike Findlay, on 0141 330-8593. Or email: m.findlay@admin.gla.ac.uk.

First published: 12 January 2004