Criminology & Criminal Justice

This course is designed to generate critical thinkers and skilled practitioners who are equipped to improve criminal justice outcomes. You will be immersed in cutting-edge knowledge, techniques, and approaches. This will develop you to effectively challenge harmful crime trends at a regional, national, and international level and tackle complex social issues like marginalisation, inequality, and impunity.

The degree responds to growing industry demand for applied knowledge and practical understandings in areas such as crime prevention, designing-out crime, restorative justice, cybercrime, white-collar crime, digital forensics, victim support, and evidence-based policy and practice. If you want to open new career horizons, the MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice is your professional gateway.

As a dedicated and enthusiastic team of internationally recognised scholars, we are committed to critical criminology, evidence-based policy and practice, and investing in your personal, academic, and professional development.

Work placement / study abroad
The Criminology and Criminal Justice team have strong research and industry links with a range of public, private, voluntary and community organisations and can help to facilitate internships opportunities for students who wish to gain practical work experience during or after the course.

For further course details please see "Course Web Page".

Year one
• Foundations of Social Science Research
• Victims and Restorative Justice
• Global Landscapes of Crime and Justice
• Contemporary Perspectives on Risk and Security
• MSc Criminology Dissertation

Optional Modules
• Social Action for Peace and Justice: A Community Development Approach
• Critical Perspectives on Punishment
• Survey and Quantitative Methods
• Qualitative Research Methods

Standard entry conditions
To apply to our postgraduate taught programmes, you must meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements and any course-specific requirements.

Entry Requirements
Applicants must have a second class honours degree or better in Social Sciences, Humanities, Law or a cognate discipline from a university of the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland, or from a recognised national awarding body, or from an institution of another country which has been recognised as being of an equivalent standard.

Where an applicant has substantial and significant experiential learning, a portfolio of written evidence demonstrating the meeting of graduate qualities (including subject-specific outcomes, as determined by the Course Committee) may be considered as an alternative entrance route.

Your Application
Application is through the University's online application system (see "Application Weblink").

Start Date: September 2024

Career options
Completing the MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice opens up a range of unique career opportunities. Graduates go on to careers in areas such as law enforcement and regulation, victim support, offender rehabilitation, restorative practice, community development, corporate compliance, forensic auditing, criminal justice research, crime prevention (including designing-out crime), cybercrime, advocacy, and policy making. The knowledge, skills and techniques developed by MSc students are transferable across sectors and regions placing them in a strong position within a globalised job market.

Employability is also enhanced through the provision of advanced research methods training, practice, training and opportunities to apply criminological theory to real life policy and practice scenarios. These skills equip students to pursue careers across all sectors in a wide range of areas, including human rights, criminal justice, social justice, compliance, law, education, conflict resolution and psychosocial interventions among others.