BSc (Hons) in Criminology and Law
England, United Kingdom
BSc
DURATION
4 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
23 Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 17,310 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* International full time | UK part time: £4,895 | UK full time: £9,790 | professional placement year full time for UK: £1,955 international: £3,462
Fast-track counseling
By contacting the school, you'll get access to free priority counselling for any study and application questions.
Key Summary
On this combined Criminology and Law degree, you’ll explore the connections between crime, the legal system, and criminal justice.
In your Criminology studies, you'll explore the criminal justice system, analyze the causes of criminal behavior, look at how crime impacts society, and learn how this can inform policing, law, and punishment.
You’ll gain a broad understanding of the law and legal systems. You’ll learn the law, and also gain valuable practical skills that could be used by a lawyer in practice and a range of related careers.
If you decide not to pursue a career in law or criminal justice, this course will ensure you’re well prepared for a variety of roles that require a similar skill set, such as in governance, public policy, and finance.
Why study Law and Criminology?
Criminology and Law are naturally overlapping subject areas, and by studying them together you’ll get to explore the causes, motivations, and patterns of criminal conduct while gaining a deep understanding of the justice system and the law.
Your studies will also cover other legal areas such as business, property, media, and employment, giving you a wide range of skills and knowledge that will enhance and broaden your employability prospects.
Professional placement year
Overview
This optional placement year provides you with the opportunity to identify, apply for, and secure professional experience, normally comprising one to three placements over a minimum of nine months. Successful completion of this module will demonstrate your ability to secure and sustain graduate-level employment.
By completing the module, you'll be entitled to the addition of 'with Professional Placement Year' to your degree title.
Criminology
Year one (Level 4) modules
- Crime and Disorder in Everyday Life
- Crime, Violence, and Harm
- Crime: Representation and Reality
- Sociology of Deviance and Social Control
- Questioning Society
- Power / Resistance
Year two (Level 5) modules
- Policing, Crime Control and Prevention
- Criminal Justice: Theory, Policy and Practice
- Social Science Research Methods
- Crime, Law and Society
- The Criminological Mind
- Exploring Violence
- Forensic and Investigative Psychology
- Geotechnologies for Society and Environment
- Migration: Identity, Belonging, Citizenship and Security
- Youth in Society: Power, Politics, and Participation
- Crime Fiction
- The Life Course: Ageing and Generation
- Social Problems, Social Divisions, Social Justice
- Law for Business Enterprise
- Work Placement
- Professional Placement Year
Year three (Level 6) modules
- Dissertation in Criminology
- Media, Sociality, and Everyday Life
- Victims and Victimisation
- Terrorism Studies
- Punishment and Penology in Global Context
- Young People, Identities and Subcultures
- Gender in Society: Critical Perspectives
- Community Engagement
- Narratives of Crime
- Unlocking Criminology
- Exploring Law in Business
- Culture, Risk, and Environmental Justice
- Ethnicity and Society
- Cyber Security
Law
Year one (Level 4) modules
- The English Legal SystemwithLegal Method
- Criminal LawwithCase and Matter Analysis
- The Professional Lawyer: Part 1
Year two (Level 5) modules
- ContractwithNegotiation and ADR
- European Law with Practical Legal Research
- Human Rights and International Law
- Settlements, Succession Fair PlaywithDrafting
- The Professional Lawyer: Part 2
- Employment Law
- Family and the Law - Relationships Children
- Creativity for Business
- Innovation Management
- Financial Accounting
- Work Placement
- Social Science Research Methods
- Social Problems, Social Divisions, Social Justice
- Crime, Law Society
- Forensic Investigative Psychology
- Youth in Society - Power, Politics Participation
- Professional Placement Year
Year three (Level 6) modules
- Property LawwithInterviewing
- Obligations to otherswithWritten Advice
- Civil Litigation and Case ManagementwithAdvocacy and Mooting
- Cyberlaw
- Entertainment, Media, and IP Law
- Management Accounting
- Successful Freelancing
- Leadership and Management
- Ethnicity and Society
- Punishment and Penology in Global Context
- Cyber Security
What you'll learn
Overview
In your Criminology studies, you’ll look at crime from a variety of angles and perspectives. Core modules focus on the main theories, debates, issues, and research problems in criminology and criminal justice, while optional modules enable you to develop your particular interests.
Our Law modules will introduce practical skills such as case analysis, negotiation, and alternative dispute resolution, drafting, interviewing, and mooting. You'll have the opportunity to choose from a range of additional, interdisciplinary topics including business and sociology.
We’ll support and encourage you to gain practical experience in relevant fields through voluntary work and placements.
Course structure
Year one
You’ll be introduced to the key concepts, theories, and issues of criminology, criminal law, and criminal justice agencies and institutions. In your Law studies, you’ll gain a broad understanding of English legal systems and the British Constitution. You’ll develop skills in case analysis and legal research methods.
Year two
You’ll study contemporary debates in criminology and criminal justice, including a specific focus on policing. You’ll further develop your legal understanding to include subjects such as contract law and EU and international law, and you’ll develop skills in negotiation, advocacy, and drafting.
You can choose from several optional modules to create a program tailored to your interests. You can delve more deeply into the social divisions associated with crime, and explore areas such as employment law, marketing, and entrepreneurship. You'll also be supported and encouraged to take a work placement.
You can choose to take a Professional Placement Year between the second and third years.
Year three
You’ll undertake an original piece of criminological research in an area that interests you, along with the comparative study of criminal justice and punishment in a global context.
You’ll have the chance to hone your practice skills with our range of law co-curricular activities or undertake a law project. You’ll be able to select from a range of modules, several of which highlight the global dimensions of crime and justice.
How will I be assessed?
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.
Your Law studies will include a range of practice-based assessments such as drafting, negotiating, and mooting.
A combined qualification in Criminology and Law will prepare you for a wide variety of careers in law and criminal justice, as well as closely related fields such as social work, policing, crime prevention and security, probation and offender management, and community development.
If you choose not to follow a career in law or criminal justice, the course gives you a range of transferable skills that you can use in several other sectors such as health and social care, charities, marketing, HR, teaching, and the media.
You may also choose to go on to further study. We offer postgraduate courses in Law through our LLM Law and Business or LLM Legal Foundations, should you wish to practice as a solicitor or a barrister. We also offer an MSc in Criminology, which you can complete on-campus or online.
How will I be taught?
You’ll learn through a wide variety of activities including lectures, seminars, workshops, one-to-one tutorials, and sessions with visiting speakers. You’ll participate in practical exercises and there may be fieldwork opportunities, such as court visits. Your learning will be supported by our VLE (Virtual Learning Environment).
Course length
Three years full-time, or four years full-time with a professional placement year. Part-time available.