PG Dip Criminology and Criminal Psychology
Online United Kingdom
Postgraduate Diploma
DURATION
16 months
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
TUITION FEES
GBP 8,572 / per course *
STUDY FORMAT
Distance Learning
* £8,572 UK / £8,952 International (2025-26)
Key Summary
What constitutes a crime and what is a just punishment? You may have some ideas about how to answer these questions, but different countries and communities handle them in very different ways. This 100% online and part-time PG Dip will provide you with a thorough understanding of cutting-edge and important topics within criminology and criminal psychology.
On this online PG Dip Criminology and Criminal Psychology, you will explore offences such as violent crime, sexual crimes and fire setting. You will also examine a range of perspectives on race, gender, sex and class in the criminal justice system. At the end of the course, you will be able to continue your studies and advance onto the full Masters programme.
Teaching methods
We’re a 100% online education provider, so we use a state-of-the-art virtual learning environment (VLE) to deliver our teaching, resources and assessments. Our system tracks and manages the learning process in real-time and provides you with immediate access to your learning materials. The VLE is accessible 24/7 and allows both students and tutors to actively take part in real-time conversations and live Q&As.
We believe you get the most out of your time spent studying when you are kept informed of your performance, and we achieve this by:
- assessing you throughout modules rather than waiting for the end of year assessments
- showing your marks in your grade book which can be viewed whenever you log onto the virtual learning environment (VLE)
- rapid turnaround on work assessed to ensure your grade book is always up to date
- ensuring you have regular contact with your Student Support team
Assessment methods
All assessments are delivered through our virtual learning environment (VLE). There is no requirement to travel to external test centres or to sit exams! Instead, you will submit assignments through the VLE, such as written reports, discussion forum participation or reflective journal entries.
We also have a policy of ensuring that the work submitted by students is authentic – we use a well-established electronic monitoring system to check for plagiarism.
Why Essex Online?
Study online. Graduate on campus.
You will complete your studies and assessments 100% online and your qualification will be awarded by the University of Essex, an award-winning university with a 60-year heritage of teaching and research excellence and one of the top 30 universities in the UK (Complete University Guide 2025). Upon completing your course, you will graduate with the same certificate as campus-based students – your mode of study is only mentioned on your academic transcript.
World-class academic and mentoring support
Our online tutors are leading authorities and specialists in their respective fields. They are passionate about what they teach and combine their knowledge of industry practice with high-quality academic delivery, offering you an unparalleled learning experience.
We also have a dedicated team of Student Advisers and Study Skills Advisers that will support you from your first day to graduation. They will be on hand to help and guide you as you progress through your studies. Whatever the question or issue, they will work with you to find a solution.
We're proud to be rated Gold in the Times Higher Education (THE) Online Rankings 2024. Our achievement, which is based on four pillars - resources, engagement, outcomes and environment - recognises our commitment to excellent online education.
Many of our graduates go on to work in senior roles within criminal justice. This could be as analytical police staff or police officers, or within offender support, prison, probation or victim services. You will also be well equipped for positions within alcohol and drug rehabilitation services, security services, youth support services and legal services, as well as roles in related sectors, such as counselling, education and social work.
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to progress onto our MSc Criminology and Criminal Psychology.
You can study the following modules on the PG Dip Criminology and Criminal Psychology:
- Applied Forensic Psychology
- Crime, Causation and Criminological Theory
- Complex Criminal investigation
- Practical Psychology for Policing
- Advanced Research Methods*
- Criminal Victimisation
- Policing: Leadership, Policy & Partnerships
*These modules are core and must be passed in order to achieve the award.
- Simple monthly payment plan available, enabling you to spread the cost over the duration of your studies.
- Full payment discount of 5% if you pay upfront.
- Regional scholarship available for international students based overseas in eligible countries.
- Alumni discount of 10% of the tuition fee available if you are a previous graduate with the University of Essex or University of Essex Online.
- 10% corporate discount available when three or more of your employees study with us.
Please note, a maximum of two discounts or scholarships can be applied. The corporate discount can only be used in combination with our upfront payment discount, but not in conjunction with any other discount or scholarship. Find out more information about our discounts and scholarships.
A range of scholarships are available subject to applicants meeting certain criteria. To find out whether you're eligible for scholarships, please contact the school.
Teaching methods and style
We’re a 100% online education provider, so we use a state-of-the art virtual learning environment (VLE) to deliver our teaching, resources and assessments. Our system tracks and manages the learning process in real-time and provides you with immediate access to your learning materials. The VLE is accessible 24/7 and allows both students and tutors to actively take part in real-time conversations and live Q&As.
Assessment
All assessments are delivered through our virtual learning environment (VLE). There is no requirement to go to external test centres; instead you will submit written assignments through the VLE. For the few courses where exams are required, we use a virtual system which allows you to take academically rigorous exams from the comfort of your own home.
We believe you get the most out of your time spent studying when you are kept informed of your performance, and we achieve this by:
- assessing you throughout modules rather than waiting for end of year exams
- showing your marks in your grade book which can be viewed whenever you log onto the VLE
- rapid turnaround on work assessed to ensure your grade book is always up to date
- ensuring you have regular contact with your Student Support team
We also have a policy of ensuring that the work submitted by students is authentic – we use a well-established electronic monitoring system to check for plagiarism.