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Criminology and Sociology at University of Plymouth - UCAS

Course options

2024 - 20252025 - 2026
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There are other course options available which may have a different vacancy status or entry requirements – view the full list of options

University of Plymouth has participated in the Teaching Excellence Framework. These ratings were awarded in 2023, for four years.

Open days

26Apr
University of Plymouth - Open Day
Undergraduate
18Jun
University of Plymouth - Open Day
Undergraduate

Course summary

Explore the nature of crime and the criminal justice system in modern society with our leading academics and through our links with partners like HMP Exeter and Landworks. Develop key skills for your future, whether it’s in probation, policing or youth justice so you’re ready to navigate the challenges society is facing. Look within and beyond the city of Plymouth itself, with walking tours to understand the local community and hands-on projects with local rehabilitation and victim charities.

  • Get involved – Boost your chances of finding that perfect first job and gain hands-on experience. A dedicated criminology employability officer provides students with a range of opportunities to build their portfolio of experience with local and national criminal and social justice related agencies. Additionally each year, our students work with the Devon and Cornwall Police to create a real campaign to tackle issues impacting the student community, like online scams.
  • Innovative teaching – Our teaching is informed by innovative teaching methods and use of contemporary technologies including VR, AI and exploration of forensic techniques and analysis. We actively encourage students to interrogate the boundaries of criminological ideas. Experience our pioneering module with HMP Exeter, where students learn about rehabilitation inside prison walls.
  • Contemporary focus – The course identifies and focuses on emergent issues in criminology and criminal justice throughout all stages of study. The programme learns from the past, considers the present and looks to the future of criminological enquiry.
  • Research led – As leading scholars in their fields of research, the criminology team have strong national and international research profiles. Criminology students benefit from the close ties criminology staff have with criminal and wider social justice agencies. These ties provide students with excellent research opportunities and an embedded approach to employability within their modules, as well as an optional placement year.
  • In demand – Open doors to a career in the private, public or third sector – highly transferable skills mean you will find career opportunities in a diverse range of settings. Our graduates are highly sought after by a range of criminal justice agencies, including the police, probation, prison and youth justice services.
  • Create change – Draw on our inter-disciplinary approach to study, with a focus on contemporary issues, to gain real insight into the nature of crime, the workings of the criminal justice system and the society around you and equip yourself with the skills to bring about real change and make a difference.

Modules

In your first year you’ll explore various perspectives on criminology and examine theories on the causes of crime and deviance. You’ll develop an understanding of the criminal justice process in England and Wales, and examine crime in the context of economic, political and social frameworks. You’ll also study key sociological concepts and theories, with topics including poverty and social exclusion, work, community, religion, media, crime, education, globalisation, and consumer culture. In your second year you’ll advance your awareness of criminological theory to understand social process that underpin crime and criminal justice. Your understanding of criminology will take you to consider beyond crime to include broader social harms. You’ll also extend your critical reasoning skills as you examine processes of social change and explore consumer culture, ethnicity, globalisation and politics and the State, in historical and contemporary perspective. Gain valuable on-the-job experience through our optional placement year. We will support you in your second year in deciding whether to take this opportunity, and assist you in finding a placement and being prepared for it. In your final year, you’ll design and implement your own research project to produce your dissertation, working independently with the support of a member of our academic team. You will also study modules that reflect new, emerging trends in criminology that utilise current local, national and world issues. This includes green criminology, leisure and deviancy, violence and harm, justice in practice, social change and global issues such as state crime, war and terrorism. Or you can explore sociology in greater depth through modules including the mass media, drugs in society, health and the body. The modules shown for this course or programme are those being studied by current students, or expected new modules. Modules are subject to change depending on year of entry and up to date information can be found on our website

Assessment method

For up to date details, please refer to our website or contact the institution directly.

Qualified teacher status (QTS)

To work as a teacher at a state school in England or Wales, you will need to achieve qualified teacher status (QTS). This is offered on this course for the following level:

  • Course does not award QTS

How to apply

31Jan

This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.

Application codes

Please select a course option – you will then see the application code you need to use to apply for the course.

Points of entry

The following entry points are available for this course:

  • Year 1
  • Year 2
  • Year 3

Entry requirements for advanced entry (i.e. into Year 2 and beyond)

Please contact the institution at [email protected] or 01752 585858.

International applicants

The University of Plymouth has a dedicated International Student Advice (ISA) service who will support you from the day you accept an offer at the University, right through to graduation. They will offer help and advice so you can get the most out of your studies, and your time in the UK, visit www.plymouth.ac.uk/student-life/services/international-students/international-student-advice for more information. Once you have applied through UCAS, your conditional offer letters will also be sent to you by email, so be sure to enter your current email address on your application and to check this email regularly. You'll need your unconditional letter, and the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) that we'll send you, when applying for your student visa to the UK. A tuition fee deposit will be required before we'll send you the CAS. We're a licenced Sponsor under the Points Based System. To comply with our duties as a Sponsor, we're required to check other aspects of your application in addition to your academic achievements, for example any previous studies, financial status and your immigration history in the UK. For course entry requirements (inc. English requirements) please refer to the specific page for the course you are interested in (www.plymouth.ac.uk/study). A recognised English language qualification (e.g. IELTS) would be required or successful completion of one of the University's pre-sessional English Language courses. Check our country pages to find out more about application from your specific home country www.plymouth.ac.uk/international/study/international-students-country-guides. International fees, please visit our fees and funding pages www.plymouth.ac.uk/study/fees. If you have any questions please contact [email protected]

Entry requirements

Qualification requirements

GCSE Maths and English at Grade C/ 4 or above are required for this course. Policing and Security Management pathway Ready to make a difference? The Policing and Security Management pathway is for those interested in a policing-related career and the academic study of policing and security management.

English language requirements

TestGradeAdditional details
IELTS (Academic)6With 5.5 in all elements.

Full details of English Language requirements can be found on our website.

English Language Requirements

https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/international/how-to-apply/english-language-requirements

Student Outcomes

Operated by the Office for Students
65%
Employment after 15 months (Most common jobs)
93%
Go onto work and study

The number of student respondents and response rates can be important in interpreting the data – it is important to note your experience may be different from theirs. This data will be based on the subject area rather than the specific course. Read more about this data on the Discover Uni website.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

No fee information has been provided for this course

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .

Additional fee information

For all information about tuition fees, please visit our fees and funding pages at www.plymouth.ac.uk/study/fees * Fees are correct at the time of publication and may be subject to change.
Criminology and Sociology at University of Plymouth - UCAS