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Criminology, BSc (Hons), University of Portsmouth

the United Kingdom

University of Portsmouth

Study options for this course

The award How you will study Study duration Course start Domestic course fees International course fees
BSc (Hons)Full-time, Sandwich3 - 4 yearsSeptemberGBP 0 per yearGBP 0 per year

About Criminology, BSc (Hons) - at University of Portsmouth

Overview

Why do people commit crimes? And what should we do about it? From offender to victim, punishment to rehabilitation, this BSc (Hons) Criminology degree asks questions about the causes and consequences of crime. The answers may surprise you. They’ll certainly help you choose the right career path.

As you become an expert on criminology and the criminal justice system in England and Wales, you’ll develop skills for a range of careers – from policing and prisons, to probation and rehabilitation, as well as roles fighting fraud in the private sector or influencing Government policy. And because crime doesn’t respect borders, this course also gives you a uniquely international perspective.

Course highlights

  • Explore the latest national and international criminology debates and research in topics as varied as hate crime, state crime, terrorism, gang crime and victimology
  • Get career-ready with an emphasis on skills and employability, including volunteering opportunities with organisations such as Hampshire Constabulary and local charities like Aurora New Dawn (supporting victims of crime) and Read and Grow Society (helping ex-offenders learn to read)
  • Learn from an international criminology team whose experience spans law and criminal justice, policing, probation and more – including a former private detective doing important research into missing persons and an expert in European responses to domestic violence
  • Join lively debates in one of the country’s largest criminology departments and contribute your own ideas on how we should respond to crime as a society
  • Study alongside operational police units and learn directly from operational policing staff
  • Have the opportunity to do a criminology work placement year after your second or third year on this Connected Degree - we're the only UK university to offer flexible sandwich placements for undergraduates
  • Build a professional network by meeting practitioners from criminal justice agencies, businesses and charities
  • Customise your degree to match your ambitions: some modules reduce the amount to time you’d need to train for a policing career or as a probation officer
  • Choose to learn a foreign language for free as part of your degree, from a selection of Arabic, British Sign Language, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin or Spanish. 

Careers and opportunities

Crime is a fact of life, which means there will always be career opportunities around preventing it and dealing with the fallout. As our graduates’ career paths show, you’ll complete this criminology course with a range of different professional routes open to you in the public, private and charitable sectors.

There is good demand for jobs in the criminal justice and penal sector. For example, Her Majesty's Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) has developed a Probation Workforce Strategy to recruit skilled people to probation officer roles and invest in ongoing professional development.

You'll graduate with the skills and knowledge you need to work in the police, probation and prison services in areas such as:

  • community safety
  • crime prevention
  • fraud investigation
  • youth offending teams

You'll also have relevant skills or knowledge to progress into other areas such as:

  • counter fraud roles in banking, the NHS or the DWP
  • economic crime investigation
  • policy analysis and formulation for councils or the Government
  • community rehabilitation
  • postgraduate study and research

Graduate destinations

Our criminology graduates have worked for organisations including:

  • Hampshire Constabulary, Avon and Somerset Constabulary, Metropolitan Police, Thames Valley Police, South Wales Police, Kent Police
  • National Probation Service
  • G4S and other community rehabilitation providers
  • Financial service companies

Roles our previous graduates have gone onto include:

  • investigative data analyst
  • police officer
  • probation service officer
  • youth offending support officer
  • offender case administrator
  • detective
  • personnel security analyst
  • private investigator
  • witness service team leader

Placement year (optional)

After your second or third year of study, you can choose to do a relevant, paid work placement year in the UK or overseas. This lets you put your new skills to work while developing valuable links with employers.

It’s fantastic for your CV and will really help you stand out when applying for jobs.

We’ll help you secure a work placement that fits your aspirations. Mentoring and support throughout your placement will help you to get the most from the experience.

Previous criminology placements have included:

  • Aurora New Dawn – a charity offering support to survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and stalking
  • Hampshire Constabulary
  • HMRC
  • the Office for National Statistics
  • Catch 22 – a social business building resilience and aspiration in communities

You can also spend this year studying overseas at one of our partner universities in Europe, South Asia, Australia or North America. You could also choose to set up your own business, or take a voluntary placement.

Ongoing careers support

Get experience while you study, with support to find part-time jobs, volunteering opportunities, and work experience.

Towards the end of your degree and for up to five years after graduation, you’ll receive one-to-one support from our Graduate Recruitment Consultancy to help you find your perfect role.

Notes about fees for this course

https://www.port.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/undergraduate-fees-and-student-finance

Entry requirements

112-120 points from 3 A levels, or equivalent.

English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.0 with no component score below 5.5.

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Related Information

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