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Criminology

Entry requirements


A level

B,B,B

GCSE/National 4/National 5

We also require three passes at GCSE grade C or above, which must include Mathematics and English Language; or a minimum of Level 2 Key Skills in Communication and Application of Number. If you have studied for a GCSE which has a numerical grade then you will need to achieve a grade 4 or above.

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

DDM

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,C,C

T Level

M

UCAS Tariff

120

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Criminology

**Understand the causes of crime and how society responds to it. Investigate current issues, debates and trends surrounding crime and the criminal justice system. Gain real-world experience volunteering in roles within the criminal justice system and graduate with a qualification in Criminology.**

What makes an act a crime? Who is a criminal? Why do people commit crime? How do they stop offending? What makes someone vulnerable to victimisation?

We recognise a Criminology degree is is a diverse area of study and so we offer you the opportunity to choose from these four specialist course routes:

**BSc (Hons) Criminology (UCAS code M930)**

The generic Criminology route will allow you to explore the key issues and debates around crime and victimisation in society today, covering topical and dynamic content, and reflecting current issues, policy and practice within the criminal justice system. You'll understand the causes and consequences of crime and how we manage and respond to it as a society. We provide extensive opportunities for you to volunteer and gain career-relevant experience to ensure you graduate with the transferable skills, broad knowledge-base, and critical awareness that studying for a Criminology degree provides. You will take part in continuous training to become a social researcher – which is a valuable extra skill to have for future employment. If you want to work with some of the most vulnerable and dangerous people in society, we will help to equip you with the skills to do it.

**BSc (Hons) Criminology: Criminology and Criminal Justice (UCAS code M931)**

The Criminology and Criminal Justice pathway will provide you with a working knowledge of criminological thought and detailed investment in more specific issues, debates, and research regarding the criminal justice system, and processes of justice more generally. You'll develop detailed knowledge and critical awareness of theoretical approaches to and practice-based implementations of criminal justice systems; issues regarding the rights and access/barriers to justice for victims of crime and harm; and processes of offender management, governance, and rehabilitation.

**BSc (Hons) Criminology: Vulnerability and Social Care (UCAS code M932)**

The Vulnerability and Social Care pathway will provide you with a strong working knowledge of theory and research on vulnerable populations and practice-based approaches to counselling and safeguarding policies. It emphasises the development of critical awareness and practitioner approaches to social policies aimed at addressing social inequalities and social care; vulnerable populations and victimisation processes within public, domestic, and institutional contexts; approaches to safeguarding and accountability; and core counselling skills, practices, and help strategies.

**BSc (Hons) Criminology: Inequality and Social Justice (UCAS code M933)**

The Inequality and Social Justice pathway specialises in criminological issues which intersect with social inequalities such as gender, sex, sexuality, race, and ethnicity. A strong emphasis is placed on social justice, such as persecution, exploitation, and discrimination – issues that, more often than not, escape conventional notions of criminal justice. It emphasises the development of detailed knowledge and critical awareness of theoretical and empirical relationships between power, inequalities, and social change, especially in relation to the impact of globalisation; global and local issues regarding diversity, discrimination, and human rights; and theories and practices of exploitation, hatred, and persecution in relation to issues such as homophobia and sex work.

Modules

A list of module descriptors can be found on the University website.

Assessment methods

You will be able to develop specialities in criminology in the areas which most interests you and graduate with the knowledge and skills you need for a fulfilling career. These specialist pathways include: policing, surveillance and crime prevention; inequality, diversity and gender-based violence; psychology, mental health and offending; race, racism and criminal justice; and young people, crime and justice.

The additional pathway of 'applied criminology' allows you to undertake a placement in criminology. From this, you will gain valuable work experience. Furthermore, as part of the 'applied' pathway, you will have the opportunity to visit a criminal court or prison, as well as hear from practitioners. Finally, you are able to take advantage of ample volunteering opportunities offered to you, in relevant work organisations.

This course is taught via lectures, seminars, group work, computer-based learning, and independent study.

Your progress will be assessed with written coursework, research projects, presentations, and exams. Throughout the degree you'll have one-to-one support from academic staff.

Tuition fees

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

England
£9,250
per year
EU
£16,000
per year
International
£16,000
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Sir Tom Cowie Campus

Department:

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.

72%
Criminology

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.

Sociology

Teaching and learning

70%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
95%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
65%
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

65%
Library resources
81%
IT resources
75%
Course specific equipment and facilities
62%
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?

93%
UK students
7%
International students
26%
Male students
74%
Female students
38%
2:1 or above
7%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
D
D

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.

Sociology

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.

£15,000
low
Average annual salary
92%
low
Employed or in further education
24%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

23%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
15%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
11%
Administrative occupations: finance

We have quite a lot of sociology graduates, although numbers fell last year. But graduates still do pretty well. Most sociology graduates go straight into work when they complete their degrees, and a lot of graduates go into jobs in social professions such as recruitment, education, community and youth work, and housing. An important option for a sociology graduate is social work - and we're short of people willing to take this challenging but rewarding career. Sociology is a flexible degree and you can find graduates from the subject in pretty much every reasonable job — obviously, you don't find many doctors or engineers, but you do find them in finance, the media, healthcare, marketing and even IT. Sociology graduates taking further study often branch out into other qualifications, like teaching, law, psychology, HR and even maths, so don’t think a sociology degree restricts you to just one set of options.

What about your long term prospects?

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

Sociology

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

£20k

£20k

£22k

£22k

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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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the 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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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