Criminology

Crime is one of the most urgent and debated issues shaping contemporary society, and criminology has never been more vital. To study criminology is to ask some of society's most important questions: how do we prevent crime, but also, who gets to decide what crime is in the first place? Criminology examines these questions through the lenses of sociology, law, psychology, history, and political science, asking how societies define, respond to, and sometimes produce the behaviour they call criminal.

It is a discipline that challenges comfortable assumptions and develops the capacity for critical analysis and independent thought.

At the University of Westminster, this three-year full-time BA Criminology is designed to challenge, inspire, and empower you with the knowledge, critical insight, and professional skills needed to thrive in today's competitive graduate landscape. You will engage with theories of crime and deviance, criminal justice policy, policing, the prison system, victimology, restorative justice, and the social structural factors that shape patterns of crime and punishment in Britain and internationally. The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and work placements, giving you direct professional experience in criminal justice, social research, or related settings, and an international perspective on how different societies approach crime and justice.

With a typical entry tariff of 88 UCAS points, this degree is accessible to students with a genuine commitment to understanding crime and its social context. Graduates pursue careers in probation, youth justice, victim support organisations, police services, community safety, social research, policy analysis, the voluntary sector, journalism, and the civil service. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in criminology, criminal justice, social work, or law, and some proceed to professional training in policing, probation, or related fields.