Criminology BA (Hons) (with Foundation Year)
 Criminology.jpg)
UCAS Code: M991|Duration: 4 years|Full Time|Hope Park
UCAS Campus Code: L46
Work placement opportunities|International students can apply|Study Abroad opportunities
About the course
Crime and how to deal with it are amongst the most significant and contentious issues of our time, so it is vital that we understand this subject. Criminology is the study of crime, its causes and effects, and what we do about it. At Liverpool Hope University, you will study how crime is defined and who defines it, why some people commit offences, and what happens to those who commit crimes if they are caught.
Criminology also studies the impact of the various agencies and organisations that deal with crime: the police, the courts, the probation and prison services, as well as the role of the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office. Studying Criminology enables you to focus on questions such as ‘is criminal behaviour learned or inherited?’ and ‘why are some actions defined as criminal and not others?’; ‘what is the purpose of punishment and to what extent does it deter criminal behaviour?’
Criminology is a well-established degree at Liverpool Hope and is taught by staff with considerable experience at national and international level. Several key criminological textbooks are written by members of the School. The Criminology team is enthusiastic and dedicated and will help you to get the most out of your degree. Criminology is heavily focused on justice - how it is delivered, to whom, by whom and whether or not it is effective. This reflects Liverpool Hope’s commitment to social justice both nationally and internationally.
Course structure
Teaching on this degree is structured into lectures where all students are taught together, seminars of smaller groups of around 15-20 students, and tutorials which typically have no more than 10 students. Lectures will map the discipline of Criminology, providing you with a general framework. Seminar activities and discussions help to develop basic understandings of the background and historical development of criminal justice and social policy. Tutorials in groups of around 10 help you to develop skills of analysis of how the justice system works. You will also have the opportunity to have a one-to-one meeting with your tutor each week.
If you are studying Criminology as a single honours degree, in your first year there will be approximately 12 teaching hours each week, which reduces to approximately 10 teaching hours in your second and third years. If you are studying Criminology as a combined honours degree, in your first year there are approximately 6 teaching hours each week, which reduces to approximately 5 teaching hours in your second and third years.
On top of teaching hours, you are also expected to spend a number of hours studying independently each week, as well as group study to prepare for any group assessments you may have.
Assessment and feedback
Exams at the end of each year offer an opportunity to assess your knowledge and understanding of the subject. Seminar topics are typically assessed via an essay. Reports and portfolios, which are linked to tutorial sessions, enable you to reflect on your learning. In the final year, all students are also required to undertake a criminology-based dissertation/research project, which provides you with the chance to demonstrate in-depth knowledge of a topic.
Feedback is given to you in a variety of ways. Where essays are submitted via Turnitin, then there is electronic feedback; for exams, there is a mark sheet that is available with comments on your answers; and there is always personal and group feedback.
Foundation Year
The Foundation Year is a great opportunity if you have the ability and enthusiasm to study for a degree, but do not yet have the qualifications required to enter directly onto our degree programmes. A significant part of the Foundation Year focuses upon core skills such as academic writing at HE level, becoming an independent learner, structuring academic work, critical thinking, time management and note taking.
Successful completion of the Foundation Year will enable you to progress into the first year (Level C) of your chosen honours degree. Further details can be found here.
Year One
Introduction to Criminology
Your first year will provide you with the core foundational knowledge in criminology. You will be introduced to key ideas, concepts, theories and agencies that underpin criminology and criminal justice. You will study:
Criminological Theory
In this block of study you will explore the reasons behind crime and deviance. The block introduces you to a wide range of core criminological perspectives that have influenced the way criminologists explain criminal behaviour. You will study both traditional and contemporary criminological theory and consider how these ideas can be applied to the real world.
Institutions and Process
This block will introduce you to the inner-working of the criminal justice system. You will study the key institutions including police, courts, prisons and probation, and think critically about how they operate.
Politics, Philosophy and History of Crime
In this block you will examine the politics, philosophy and history which underpin law, criminal justice and politics within the UK. You will learn about the creation and purpose of law, political actors, parties and ideologies, and the mechanics of the UK government.
Criminology Core 2
In addition to the introductory criminology course, single honours students will also explore broader issues across the social sciences. This includes classes on key concepts such as globalisation, social class, and gender. We will also look at interdisciplinary perspectives that have relevance for criminologists. This includes focussing on economics, law, and environmental sciences to bring a wider range of important ideas to the course at this level of study.
Year Two
Explorations in Criminology (Core)
Your core second year course will draw on the threshold concepts and knowledge developed in the first year to explore significant areas of contemporary criminological interest including: Crime and the Media, Victimology, Human Rights, the Politics of Crime and Criminal Justice Policy, Critical Criminology, Psychological Criminology, and research methods.
These will support student explorations of the three principal themes of the second year curriculum: public debates around crime and criminality (Politics of Crime and Criminal Justice Policy, Crime and the Media) and ways of understanding victims (human rights, victimology) and offenders (Critical Criminology, Psychological Criminology).
Alongside this, students will take seminar classes in both quantitative and qualitative research methods.
Explorations in Criminology (Additional)
In addition to the topics above, single honours students will study an additional six topics, including: Drugs and Substance Misuse, Hate Crime, Sex and Crime, Criminology of the Global South, Transnational Crime, and Corporate Crime. These will address the three key themes of the additional second year course: crime in the global village (Transnational Crime, Criminology of the Global South) emergent criminological risks (hate crime, corporate crime), and serious crime in a domestic context (Sex and Crime, Drugs and Substance Misuse).
Alongside this, students will also study an additional programme of advanced qualitative and quantitative research methods training.
Year Three
Term one
Crime and Society in England and Wales, 1750-1900
In this course, we explore various topics in the study of crime and society in England and Wales between 1750 and 1900. We will explore such questions as: how did social and economic factors affect patterns of recorded crime, were women treated more or less harshly by the courts, how did the press represent crime in this period.
Evidence Based Policing
This course considers the ways in which good police practice is, or should be, informed by evidence and research. Students will explore the concepts and techniques of evidence-based policing and apply these to different approaches in policing and investigation. Students will debate what ‘good’ evidence looks like, and how this can be used by policing agencies to develop effective techniques of investigation, enforcement, and prevention.
Term two
Organised Crime
This course introduces students to the study of organised crime. Focussing on the experiences of the most active criminal organizations around the world (such as the Italian ‘ndrangheta, the Chinese Triads, or the Mexican drug cartels), the course critically explores their relationship with nation-states, markets, and society in a globalized context.
Exploring the 'Manosphere': Online Misogyny in the 21st Century
This course introduces students to contemporary academic research on the growth of extreme misogyny in online spaces. It outlines the development of the men’s rights movement and the manner in which these ideas began to spread online, before moving on to explore the development of online misogyny in the form of ‘pick-up artists’ and ‘men going on their own way’. It covers the development of the Incel community in lightly regulated online spaces, and interrogates investigations into outbursts of violent extremism that have been associated with the Incel community.
Term three
Advanced Studies in Criminology (Core 1)
The final term provides students with an introduction to two of the most vital and engaging topics in contemporary criminology: extremism, terrorism, and security, and cybercrime. Across an eight week lecture programme it will give students the opportunity to explore the context, theories, manifestations, and policy response characterising these two important fields, building an advanced, comparative, and critical understanding.
Advanced Studies in Criminology (Core 2)
Single honours students will undertake an additional programme of lectures exploring race, crime, and identity, and green criminology. Across an eight-week lecture programme students will have the opportunity to explore the context, theories, manifestations of, and policy response to these two important fields, building an advanced, comparative, and critical understanding.
Entry requirements
There may be some flexibility for mature students offering non-tariff qualifications and students meeting particular widening participation criteria.
Careers
As a graduate in Criminology, you will have a firm grounding for entry to a range of criminal justice and related careers. Past graduates have gone on to have a career as a Drug and Rehabilitation Officer, Prison Officer, Safeguarding Officer and Hate Crime Caseworker. While the police, prison and probation services are the most obvious career paths, the knowledge, awareness and experience of studying Criminology are valuable in a range of services. In addition, some graduates have used their degree as a stepping-stone to pursue more formal legal training.
As well as detailed knowledge about crime and justice, you will also learn skills that are vital for employment in a wide range of careers. You will learn critical thinking, analysis and synthesis; problem solving and decision-making; effective written and oral communication; effective use of information technology; numeracy skills; time management; and the ability to work in a team and independently.
Enhancement opportunities
SALA
The Service and Leadership Award (SALA) is offered as an extra-curricular programme involving service-based experiences, development of leadership potential and equipping you for a career in a rapidly changing world. It enhances your degree, it is something which is complimentary but different and which has a distinct ‘value-added’ component. Find out more on our Service and Leadership Award page.
Study Abroad
As part of your degree, you can choose to spend either a semester or a full year of study at one of our partner universities as part of our Study Abroad programme. Find out more on our Study Abroad page.
Tuition fees
The tuition fees for the 2025/26 academic year are £9,535* for full-time undergraduate courses.
If you are a student from the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands, your tuition fees will also be £9,535*.
The University reserves the right to increase Home and EU Undergraduate and PGCE tuition fees in line with any inflationary or other increase authorised by the Secretary of State for future years of study.
*subject to Council approval.
Additional costs
We advise you to consider the cost of the books that will be suggested as key reading/reference books. All books will be available in the library, but in limited numbers. We suggest setting aside around £100 for purchases, but remember that costs of books vary depending on where you buy them.
You will also need to consider the cost of your accommodation whilst you study at university. Visit our accommodation pages for further details about our Halls of Residence.
Scholarships
We have a range of scholarships to help with the cost of your studies. Visit our scholarships page to find out more.
International tuition fees
The International Tuition fees for 2025/26 are £14,500.
Visit our International fees page for more information.
Course combinations
This course is also available with Foundation Year as a Combined Honours degree with the following subjects: