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Security, Intelligence and Investigative Practice

Entry requirements


A level

B,C,C-B,B,C

Access to HE Diploma

D:15,M:30

Must pass all 60 credits, 45 at level 3

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DMM

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,C-B,B,B,B

T Level

Pass (C and above)

UCAS Tariff

104-112

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Policing

The concept of security stretches from keeping assets safe to analysing how global events impact upon our lives then designing measures to address these needs.

Our course provides the opportunity to gain knowledge and experience of practices previously only available within a few public sector professions.

**Course Overview**
Traditionally associated with law enforcement and the military the contemporary intelligence field merges skill sets gained in these environments with all aspects of the commercial world.

Perceptions of investigation range from Sherlock Holmes to Line of Duty. The ‘real world’ viewpoint on this course is provided by practitioners and academics, providing a more accurate picture.

The ability to identify and fill gaps of knowledge is a fundamental investigative requirement from crime to any other discipline requiring questions to be answered.

Whether you are engaged in analysis, protective services, any part of the public sector or private business the elements of this course will feature in your professional and private life.

This course provides the opportunity to gain knowledge and experience of practices previously only available within a few public sector professions. Investigative practice skills are widely sought by a wide range of employers.

**On this course you will:**
- Gain a professional and ethical understanding of how to recognise security risks in a variety of environments.

- Learn to recognise intelligence gathering opportunities, access material and data in a legal and ethical manner.

- Learn to analyse threat and design solutions needed to minimise them.

- Explore investigative techniques and develop a detective skill set.

**What you will learn**
You will identify the three threads (security, intelligence and investigative practice) this programme is built on. These three threads are interrelated and will help to further develop your understanding of the bigger picture of security, intelligence and investigative practice.

You will learn to use these threads to solve problems in a multivariable environment.

The modules build from introductory, enabling you to have a firm understanding through to a strategic international perspective in line with contemporary security, intelligence and investigative demands.

**Year One**

- Intelligence, Structures and Products

- Managing Criminal Enquiries

- Crime Scene Investigation

- Operational Security

- Cyber Security

- Evolution of Threat

**Year Two**

- Investigative Interviewing

- Serious Organised Crime Investigations

- Covert Operations

- Security Risk Management

- Digital Intelligence

- Practical Action Research (optional module)

- Forecasting Future Challenges (optional module)

**Year Three**

- Global Threats and Risk Principles

- Safeguarding Society

- Freedoms and Protections

- Extremism

- Dissertation/ Work Based Project

Modules

Year one - Compulsory modules:

Intelligence, Structures and Products,
Managing Criminal Enquiries,
Crime Scene Investigation,
Operational Security,
Cyber Security,
Evolution of threat.
Year two - Compulsory modules:

Investigative Interviewing,
Serious Organised Crime Investigations,
Covert Operations,
Security Risk Management,
Digital Intelligence.
Optional modules:

Practical Action Research,
Forecasting Future Challenges.
Year three - Compulsory modules:

Global Threats & Risk Principles,
Safeguarding Society,
Freedoms and Protections,
Extremism,
Dissertation/ Work based Project.

Assessment methods

Coursework - may include written tasks and assignments, reports, dissertations, portfolios, project work - Year 1= 50% Year 2 = 60% Year 3 = 80%.

Practical Exams - may include practical assessments, oral assessments or presentations - Year 1= 40% Year 2 = 30% Year 3 = 20%.

Written Exams - formal exams only - Year 1= 100% Year 2 = 10% Year 3 = 0%.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

England
£9,250
per year
EU
£9,250
per year
International
£10,500
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Carlisle - Fusehill Street

Department:

Business, Law, Policing and Social Sciences

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

81%
Policing

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Law

Teaching and learning

91%
Staff make the subject interesting
97%
Staff are good at explaining things
81%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
77%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

91%
Library resources
94%
IT resources
94%
Course specific equipment and facilities
84%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

100%
UK students
0%
International students
45%
Male students
55%
Female students
66%
2:1 or above
21%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
E
B

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Law

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

100%
high
Employed or in further education
54%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

29%
Legal associate professionals
17%
Secretarial and related occupations
6%
Welfare and housing associate professionals

Law graduates tend to go into the legal industry, and they usually take similar routes. Jobs are competitive — often very competitive - but starting salaries are good and high fliers can earn serious money - starting on over £24k in London on average. Be aware though - some careers, especially as barristers, can take a while to get into, and the industry is changing as the Internet, automation and economic change all have an effect, If you want to qualify to practise law, you need to take a professional qualification — many law graduates then go on to law school. If you want to go into work, then a lot of law graduates take trainee or paralegal roles and some do leave the law altogether, often for jobs in management, finance and the police force. A small proportion of law graduates also move into another field for further study. Management, accountancy and teaching are all popular for these career changers, so if you do take a law degree and decide it’s not for you, there are options.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Law

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£18k

£18k

£26k

£26k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here