Glen Moran

Glen Moran is a Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Hertfordshire, where he teaches across undergraduate sociology and criminology programmes. His research is situated within the sociology of religion, with a particular focus on Islam in Britain. He is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA). Glen completed his PhD in Theology and Religious Studies at Liverpool Hope University. Prior to this, he studied Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Exeter, completed a Master’s degree in Islam in Contemporary Britain at Cardiff University, and undertook a Diploma in Arabic Language at the University of Damascus. This interdisciplinary training informs his research and teaching, particularly his engagement with British Muslim communities and debates around religion, knowledge, and modernity. Before joining the University of Hertfordshire, Glen held academic and research posts at Cardiff University, the University of Birmingham and Birmingham Newman University. Alongside his research, he has extensive experience in teaching and curriculum development across sociology, criminology, and British Muslim studies, with a strong emphasis on research-led and inclusive pedagogical approaches.

Glen’s research centres on the sociology of religion, with a particular focus on Islam in Britain. His work explores how religious beliefs, identities, and forms of authority are produced and negotiated in contemporary social contexts, paying close attention to lived experience, public discourse, and institutional settings. A core strand of his research examines how British Muslims engage with contested forms of knowledge, including scientific ideas, media representations, and religious interpretation, and how these engagements intersect with questions of belonging, legitimacy, and social identity.

Methodologically, Glen’s research is grounded in qualitative approaches, including interviews, media analysis, and sociological engagement with public debates. He has a particular interest in how new and digital media reshape religious authority and knowledge production, as well as how scientific concepts are interpreted, contested, or accommodated within religious communities. These themes are explored both independently and in relation to one another, allowing for analysis of religion as a dynamic social practice shaped by wider cultural, political, and communicative environments.

Glen teaches undergraduate modules in sociology and criminology that focus on crime, culture, inequality, and social power. His teaching emphasises critical sociological analysis, the use of contemporary case studies, and research-led, inclusive approaches to learning.

At the University of Hertfordshire, he teaches the following modules:

Crime and Culture
Crime, Control and the City
Sociology at Work
Everyday Violence
Race and Racism