Have your understanding of crime, deviance and the criminal justice process challenged as you develop an in-depth knowledge of the issues involved in policing. Our Criminology degrees are ranked top 10 in the UK for course satisfaction (The Guardian Guide 2022).
Programme Overview
Our BA (Hons) Criminology and Policing degree gives you an in-depth knowledge of modern policing. You’ll learn from both academics and real-world experiences, getting a genuine feel for real police work.
Our BA (Hons) Criminology and Policing degree gives you an in-depth knowledge of contemporary policing and criminal justice. You’ll learn from both academics and invited speakers with real-world policing experience, getting a genuine feel for key issues related to police work.
Criminal justice and policing
In the first two years you concentrate on foundations of criminology and sociology. In years three and four you study the specific areas related to criminal justice and policing, such as:
- Criminal investigation and policing in practice.
- Cybercrime and policing technology.
- Drugs, addiction and society.
- Gender, crime and victimology.
- The sociology of race and ethnicity.
If you are keen to work for the police, you have the opportunity to apply to be a special constable. This experience puts you in a great position to pursue a career in the police force or to work in the police service after graduation.
We place a strong emphasis on developing your research skills, which are highly valued in the workplace. Whether it's collaboration, assessing evidence, writing reports, researching or completing project work, your criminology studies will make you extremely employable.
After the first two years of study, you can choose to specialise in other areas or carry on studying this pathway. See more in the 'How the Course Works' section below
How the Course Works
This degree is part of a larger portfolio of three courses covering Criminology, Policing and Sociology.
The first two years of each course follow the same curriculum. This initial two-year curriculum covers the fundamentals of criminology and sociology, recognising the deep interplay between the two.
Our two-year foundation approach means you can keep your options open until you’ve learnt more about what really interests you. Having gained two years of knowledge, at the end of year two you choose from one of these pathways:
- Carry on studying BA (Hons) Criminology and Policing
- BA (Hons) Criminology
- BA (Hons) Criminology and Sociology
Your chosen course will be reflected in your degree title e.g. BSc (Hons) Criminology and Sociology. And, of course, we’re here to help if you need help deciding which path to take.
Remember, you only need to apply for ONE course, as the first two years are the same for everyone.
The pathways are new for 2022, so are for students applying for year one only. Anyone applying for years two or three should email [email protected] for full details.
Teaching and Assessment
You’ll learn through a blend of lectures, tutorials, seminars, workshops, online discussion forums, video screenings, guest speaker presentations, directed and private study, and student-focussed group work.
Other assessment methods include supervised examinations, essays, reports, portfolios, presentations, project work, class and online tests, and reflective analyses. In your final year, you’ll design and produce a research project under the dedicated supervision of a member of academic staff.
Around one third of the course is assessed through examination, although the exact proportion depends on your module choices.
Put simply, we aim to give you all the skills you need to move straight into a job or further study when you graduate.

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