Criminology, MA

This Masters course gives you the opportunity to gain a critical and informed understanding of criminology, by exploring the debates at the forefront of the field; with a particular emphasis upon the practical realities, uncertainties, complexities and solutions available for criminal justice and crime reduction.

This Masters degree draws upon the expertise of staff with established reputations in the field. Tutors have a wide range of research interests and they are actively involved with the Nottingham Crime Research Unit and the Centre for the Study and Reduction of Hate Crimes. These specialist units are located within the division and conduct high quality applied criminological and criminal justice research.

The course offers a distinctive theoretical and policy-orientation of criminology. The policy pathway is specifically designed to offer a more vocationally relevant programme of Masters level study that will be more pertinent to students seeking a policy-orientated career in the Home Office, government office of the regions, local government and crime and disorder reduction partnerships.

The Criminology team regularly invites renowned industry experts and professionals to the University to provide an insight into their specialist knowledge and experiences. Past speakers have included Superintendent Paul Giannasi, Programme Manager of the Cross-Governmental Hate Crime Strategy and Len Jackson, OBE Interim Chair of the Independent Police Complaints Commission. To view Len Jackson, OBE's guest lecture entitled Public Confidence in Policing in the 21st Century please visit our video gallery.

Why choose the MA Criminology?

• Gain a critical and informed analysis of criminology, criminal justice and crime reduction.
• Graduate with an extensive vocationally relevant, and policy-orientated, knowledge of crime and responses to crime, drawing on examples from across the world.
• Hear from invited experts and professionals who provide an insight into their specialist knowledge and experiences.
• Develop a critical awareness of the current philosophical, theoretical and methodological problems, debates, and insights that shape the discipline.
• Enhances life long learning skills and personal development in a manner that enables graduates to adopt an independent and reflective approach to their learning and to contribute to crime reduction and community safety.

Contact us
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Telephone: +44 (0)115 848 4460
School of Social Sciences website

The modules are specifically designed to reflect current development and thinking in the field of Criminology.

Core modules

• Contemporary Explanations of Crime and Criminal Behaviour
• Contemporary Responses to Crime
• Criminal Justice Practice
• Researching Crime and Criminal Justice
• Debates in Contemporary Social Deviance (Generic pathway only)
• Understanding Crime Policy Environments (Policy pathway only)

There will also be a number of optional modules available.

Research opportunities
The dissertation module will enable students to develop and demonstrate empirical research in their chosen field. The various elements of the module include:

• designing and undertaking independent research, while addressing ethical issues, in an area related to criminology under the guidance of an appropriate supervisor
• critically evaluating methodological issues and choosing and applying an appropriate method
• gaining experience through practice in using appropriate statistical and other analyses
• developing skills in writing and structuring research projects in order to demonstrate a critical understanding of research methods, skills and techniques appropriate for this level of study.

Assessment
Assessment will be carried out through a combination of Assessed essays (including reports, reflective reports), Policy papers, presentations, case studies and a dissertation.

Study and support
The teaching and learning for the programme will involve a mixture of lectures, workshops, enquiry based learning and individual dissertation/project. All students will be assigned a personal tutor who will provide both pastoral and academic support throughout their study. This role will switch to their dissertation supervisor during this final module. Students will be encouraged to be proactive in their engagement with these processes and they will be introduced to their tutor (and a range of other teaching staff) during a comprehensive induction event which will be organised for the students before the programme proper begins. A programme handbook will also be provided.