Wanda Alberts

Wanda Alberts (born 1975) is Professor of Religious Studies at Leibniz University Hannover, where she has served since August 2013. She currently holds the position of managing director of the Institute for Religious Studies and is actively involved in multiple administrative roles including Chair of the Audit Committee, Examination Board for Religion in the Public Sphere, and representation on the Faculty Council of the Faculty of Philosophy. She also represents professors on the Center for Atlantic and Global Studies and serves on the Selection Committee for the Master's Program in Religion in the Public Sphere.

• Philipps University Marburg: Doctorate in Religious Studies (2006)
• University of Marburg: State examination for teaching at grammar schools (2002)
• University of Marburg: Master of Arts (2001)
• Universities of Mainz, Swansea (Wales) and Marburg: Religious Studies, English and Protestant Theology

Professor Alberts' research focuses on critical approaches to religious studies, particularly examining religion in public spaces and secular educational contexts across international settings. Her work consistently challenges conventional paradigms in religious studies, with special emphasis on critiquing the world religions paradigm and developing innovative approaches to religious studies didactics. She has made significant contributions to understanding how religion functions in diverse educational environments, especially in European contexts where secular approaches to religious education must navigate complex cultural landscapes.

Her extensive publication record demonstrates consistent scholarly engagement with the intersection of academic religious studies and practical educational applications. Over the past fifteen years, her work has increasingly focused on the challenges of implementing critical, secular approaches to religious studies within educational systems, particularly examining how different European countries handle religious diversity in public schools. A notable trend in her recent scholarship is the critical examination of how religious education can avoid subtle forms of indoctrination ('small-i indoctrination') while maintaining academic rigor and neutrality.

• Doctoral Prize of the Philipps University of Marburg (Philosophy and Cultural Studies section, 2007)
• Doctoral Prize 'Religion and Ethics' from the Interdisciplinary Forum for Religion at the University of Erfurt (2007)
• Postdoctoral scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for research at University of Edinburgh (2007)
• Doctoral scholarship from the German Academic Scholarship Foundation (2002-2005) with research stays in Oxford and Gothenburg
• European Union 'Socrates' scholarship for study at University of Wales in Swansea (1997-1998)

Professor Alberts has held significant leadership roles in academic organizations, including membership on the executive committee of the European Association for the Study of Religions (EASR) since 2008, where she co-founded and leads the EASR Working Group on Religion in Secular Education. She has served on the Joint Implementation Group of the Council of Europe and the European Wergeland Centre, and was organizer of the XXXIII Annual Conference of the German Association for Religious Studies in 2019. Her administrative responsibilities at Leibniz University Hannover include managing the Institute for Religious Studies and serving on multiple examination boards and committees related to religious studies education.

As managing director of the Institute for Religious Studies, Professor Alberts oversees research initiatives including the 'Religious studies from a religious studies perspective' project and the 'Handbook Religious Studies in Germany' (co-edited with Horst Junginger, Katharina Neef and Christina Wöstemeyer). She is also involved with the Center for Atlantic and Global Studies, where she participates in interdisciplinary research examining global religious trends, particularly regarding migration and religious diversity. Her work frequently bridges academic religious studies with practical educational applications through collaborations with European educational institutions and policy organizations.