Criminology (Professional Placement Year)

Investigate, scrutinise and understand the causes and consequences of crime with our Criminology degree.

• An interdisciplinary programme of study and a broad range of staff expertise.

• Examines crime, justice and punishment at local, national and transnational levels of society.

• A theoretical, empirical and applied education in Criminology to develop your knowledge and skills.

We're fascinated by crime. Turn on the television or search for something online and you'll soon encounter images, reports and programmes about crime, justice and punishment. Crime saturates media and popular culture, suggesting both our enduring fascination with wrongdoing and its consequences, and crime's status as an ongoing social problem.

But, what's the story behind these representations of crime? Criminology explores the causes, motivations and patterns of criminal conduct. In addition to improving our knowledge and understanding of crime, criminology also informs policies and practices in policing, law, criminal justice and punishment.

With our Criminology degree, you'll study crime from a variety of approaches, gain practical and relevant experience, and develop a range of transferable skills that you can take into a range of careers and employment sectors.

More about the Professional Placement Year
A Professional Placement Year (PPY), traditionally known as a sandwich year, is where you undertake a period of work with an external organisation for between 9-13 months. The placement occurs between your second and final years of undergraduate study. You can engage in multiple placements to make up the total time and are required to source the placement(s) yourself, with support from the Careers team.

In year one, you’ll learn about the research traditions of criminology and be introduced to key concepts, theories and issues. You’ll investigate different types of crime such as property crime, sexual and violent crime, homicide, corporate crime, anti-social behaviour and drug use. You’ll also learn about criminal law and criminal justice agencies and institutions.

Optional modules will increase your understanding of psychological and social dimensions of crime. You’ll study models of individual personality and behaviour, and visualise and analyse key sources of social science data. You’ll also study a complementary subject.

In year two, you’ll study contemporary debates in criminology, criminal justice, and the psychology of crime, and train in research methods and crime mapping techniques.

You can choose from a number of optional modules to create a programme tailored to your personal interests. You can investigate the ecology of crime, delve more deeply into the social divisions associated with crime, study justice and punishment, or explore crime in the media and popular culture.

Your third year is a Professional Placement Year.

In your final year, you’ll undertake an original piece of criminological research in an area that interests you, along with comparative study of criminal justice and penality in a global context.

Again, you can select from a range of modules, a number of which highlight the global dimensions of crime and justice. There will be opportunities to undertake a voluntary placement in an organisation relevant to the criminal justice sector.

We use a range of assessments to gain a comprehensive measure of your performance. Assignments may include essays, book reviews, examinations, portfolios, creative work, contributions to online resources, presentations, reports, in-class tests, reflective writing and individual and group projects.