Criminology BA(Hons)

Why choose this course?

What is criminal behaviour? Why do individuals commit crime? How should society deal with criminal activity? This course applies the study of sociology, psychology, politics and economics to an understanding of the major questions in law making, law breaking and law enforcement.

You can also choose to study Criminology as a joint honours degree alongside another subject. See the course combinations section for more information.

Watch a video to find out why you should study Criminology at Kingston University:

What will you study?

You will study the structure and design of criminal justice systems and policy making, and will look at current developments in criminology theories. You will undertake and evaluate research on offending behaviour, learn about different penal policies and offender management programmes, and study how to conduct crime audits. Fieldwork-based research and exposure to practitioner experience are important aspects of this course.

Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list. Those listed here may also be a mixture of core and optional modules.

Year 1

• Avenues to Justice
• Core Concepts and General Principles in Criminal Law
• Ethnography
• Evidence and Issues
• Heroes and Villains
• Introduction to Criminology
• Social Inequality and Social Justice

Year 2

• Control in the Community
• Policy Issues in the Criminal Justice System
• The Sociology of Crime, Deviance and Social Control
• Diversity and Discrimination in Criminal Justice
• Human Rights in the Contemporary World 2
• Perspectives on Interpersonal Violence
• Terrorism in the Modern World
• The Holocaust
• Theories of Justice
• Visions of Crime and Deviance
• Youth, Conformity and Transgression

Year 3

• Contemporary Issues in Crime Control and Punishment
• Security, Policing and the State
• Capstone Project
• Dissertation
• Crimes of the Powerful
• Frontiers of Criminological Theory
• Gangsters, G-Men and Gangstaz
• The Politics of Mass Murder
• Urban Divisions and Social Disorder
• Special Topic: Cyber Crime and Society
• Special Topic: Mentally Disordered Offenders
• Special Topic: Women and Violent Crime