Criminology with Youth Justice
Learn criminology theory and how to apply it in the pursuit and delivery of youth justice.
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We believe in learning by doing. In our Criminology with Youth Justice BSc, you’ll not only learn the theory, but also how to apply it to live cases, cold cases and real-world case studies, so you finish your studies ready for work.
DESIGNED FOR
Our BSc in Criminology with Youth Justice focuses on your future career. You’ll be interested in law and justice and how they apply to young people. From care leavers and young offenders to rehabilitation of young people, you’ll learn how to improve the lives of vulnerable children and young adults.
Career Paths
- Youth services
- Probation services
- Intelligence services
- Government departments
- Victim support
Skills Taught
- Investigation
- Law
- Problem-solving
- Expert witness
- Critical thinking
Course Highlights
Module Overview
Our Criminology degree offers a critical introduction to crime and youth justice, two vital social issues. You’ll learn from experts with over 20 years of teaching and research experience in policing, violence, and homicide.
Year one
Inside the Criminal Justice System
Exploring Crime and Deviance
From Theory to Impact: Essential Research in Criminology
Crime Unmasked: Contemporary Crime and Challenges
Diversity, Crime and Justice
Beyond the Books:Academia, Employment and Professionalism in Criminal Justice
The Real Impact of Crime: Vulnerability and Victims
Year two
Beyond the Headlines: In-depth Understanding of Youth Crime and Juvenile Justice
Public Protection and Safeguarding
Researching Crime, Security and Injustice
Unmasking Violent Crime
Substance Use and Misuse*
Beyond Borders: Serious, Organised and Transnational Crime*
Work Experience*
Year three
Working with Young People and Young Adults in the Justice System
Trauma and Youth Offending
Dissertation (Optional)
Behind Bars and Beyond: Exploring Prisons, Probation and Resettlement
Exploring Homicide: From Corporate Homicide to Serial Killers*
Breaking The Silence: Examining Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence*
Our Criminology and Youth Justice degree starts with a year that introduces you to perspectives in criminology and what’s involved in becoming a criminologist. It will give you an insight into the criminal justice system and explore key themes like diversity and power.
Inside the Criminal Justice System
Explore the legal system in England and Wales, covering criminal law, court procedures, criminal justice and key organisations and crime statistics reporting.
Exploring Crime and Deviance
Explore criminological theory, from evolution to contemporary contexts. Debate and delve into how crime is socially, culturally, and historically constructed and perceived.
From Theory to Impact: Essential Research in Criminology
Cultivate essential research skills. Understand the role of research and research skill development in both academic and professional contexts.
Crime Unmasked: Contemporary Crime and Challenges
Focus on a new form of crime each week. Explore the complexities and challenge your understanding and the common categorisations of crime.
Diversity, Crime and Justice
How do opportunities, advantages and disadvantages shape crime governance? Dive into essential theories and explanations for crime inequalities.
Beyond the Books:Academia, Employment and Professionalism in Criminal Justice
Enhance your academic, personal and professional skills in this wide-ranging core skills module.
The Real Impact of Crime: Vulnerability and Victims
Your introduction to victimology covering key theoretical concepts, the nature and extent of victimisation, and the changing role of victims.
In year two, you’ll learn about prisons and imprisonment, protecting the public and managing risk and the probation service. We’ll explore youth crime and juvenile justice and investigate applied criminological inquiry.
Beyond the Headlines: In-depth Understanding of Youth Crime and Juvenile Justice
What social constructions influence criminal justice and social policy? Assess underlying factors and perceptions.
Public Protection and Safeguarding
Appreciate models and approaches to risk management and best practice for safely dealing with cases relating to society’s most vulnerable.
Researching Crime, Security and Injustice
Build your research and evaluation skills. Explore quantitative and qualitative data preparation, analysis, interpretation, and hone presentation abilities.
Unmasking Violent Crime
Understand violent crime, from UK historical evolution to definitions and typologies of violence, root causes, risk factors, prevention and early intervention strategies.
Substance Use and Misuse*
Examine the historical context of substance misuse, types of substances, causative factors, addiction, societal perceptions, health consequences and media portrayal.
Beyond Borders: Serious, Organised and Transnational Crime*
Study money laundering, fraud, modern slavery, and terrorism plus extremism, radicalisation, the far-right, and the dark web’s role.
Work Experience*
Put your theory into practice and develop your critical thinking, teamwork, and communication in a 70-hour professional placement.
In your final year, you will build on what you have already learnt and develop knowledge in rehabilitation and working with young people. A selection of optional modules lets you tailor your learning to suit your future career.
Working with Young People and Young Adults in the Justice System
Assess underlying factors influencing youth offending, including individual, social and environmental factors.
Trauma and Youth Offending
Investigate trauma’s inter-related impacts on offender populations, covering post-traumatic growth and sensory criminology interventions.
Dissertation (Optional)
Pursue your interests with your social science research project, developing competence in research design, data collection, and analysis.
Behind Bars and Beyond: Exploring Prisons, Probation and Resettlement
What are the aims of imprisonment? Dive into theories of punishment and rehabilitation.
Exploring Homicide: From Corporate Homicide to Serial Killers*
Explore homicide’s social and legal aspects, patterns and characteristics, the investigative processes, evidence and potential challenges.
Breaking The Silence: Examining Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence*
Understand theoretical perspectives and policy responses to violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence.
Course Highlights
How you'll learn
Our BSc in Criminology with Youth Justice will give you the knowledge, tools and experience you need for a future career working directly in or alongside the youth justice system. You’ll combine classroom learning with opportunities to put theories to the test in practical settings such as our crime scene house and crime simulation suite. We combine interactive lectures and workshops to develop your understanding of real-world criminological issues. Outside the classroom, you’ll complete reading, research and project work.
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Teaching staff
Your teaching team will bring their broad range of backgrounds to your learning. We prioritise recruiting for difference, not similarity. We call it “Aces in Places”. Our team is highly qualified with professors and assistant professors in the majority. Drawn from the entire criminology field, you’ll most likely find that at least one of your teachers has had a job like the one you want to do and can provide guidance and direction to help you achieve your goals. We’ll also bring in expert practitioner guest speakers and take topic-specific field trips to support your learning.
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Facilities
We’re passionate about giving our students every opportunity to translate their classroom learning to real-world challenges. As well as our expert teaching team, you’ll have access to our crime simulation tools. We have a crime scene house, a crime car and a crime simulation suite. You’ll use these to practice investigating crime. We also provide a moot court so you can put your courtroom skills to the test, as well as writing and defending reports. Throughout your course, you’ll learn using templates used by industry and employers.
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Placements and work experience
Thanks to our extensive network of industry partners, we’re able to bring the real world to your learning. As well as guest lectures and field trips, we do all we can to provide work placement opportunities to help you test your new knowledge and skills in the real world. In the second year, we have an optional work experience module and in year three you can choose a working in industry module. Throughout your course, we’re focused on your future employability and will facilitate networking and work placements to support that.
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ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
96 UCAS Points (or above)
Typical qualification requirements:
- A Level: CCC
- Welsh BACC: Pass the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Diploma with Grade C in the Skills Challenge Certificate and CC at A Level
- BTEC: BTEC Extended Diploma Merit Merit Merit
- Access to HE: Pass the Access to HE Diploma and obtain a minimum of 96 UCAS tariff points
Additional Requirements:
GCSEs: The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSEs including Mathematics and English at Grade C or above, or their equivalent but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
International applications welcomed:
We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence please view our dedicated country pages.
English language requirements
International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 72 overall and a minimum of 18 in reading, 17 in listening, 20 in speaking and 17 in writing or equivalent.
Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.
If you have previously studied through the medium of English IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.
If you do not meet the English entry criteria please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.
USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.
We're here to help
Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch and we'd to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.
Fees and Funding
£9,250
per year*£16,200
per year*Additional Costs
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
*Obligatory
Textbooks will be available in the library, but students may wish to purchase their own copies.
Cost: £0-200
2nd-year students can undertake a period of work placement if they take the Professional Practice module. Students undertaking placement may incur costs associated with travel, and expected workplace attire will vary according to the placement.
Cost: £0-300
For 2nd year students electing to do the Professional Practice module where their placement requires it. The fee covers the cost of the enhanced check, online admin fees and the post office checks.
Cost: £55.42
University Quality Assurance
At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.
If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.
Life at USW
Halls are a big part of your student experience and there’s accommodation at all three of our locations. If you don’t want to live near the campus, there are great transport links to keep you connected.
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