Criminology
Why does crime happen, who is affected, and what does justice mean? Explore the causes and consequences of crime, challenge assumptions about punishment and inequality, and develop the knowledge and skills to make a difference to people and communities.
How to apply Apply through UCAS Book an Open Day Chat to us/filters:format(webp)/prod01/channel_2/media/university-of-south-wales/site-assets/images/03-courses/criminology/bsc-criminology-and-criminal-justice.jpg)
UCAS Code
M930
Start Date
September 2027
Location
Pontypridd
Campus Code
A
UCAS Points
96
Course overview
Study people, institutions and social conditions that shape crime and justice. Explore violence, punishment and emerging harms through real cases, research and debate. Connect your learning with opportunities such as USW’s Cold Case Unit, where unresolved cases bring questions of evidence, accountability and justice for victims and families into focus.
The Criminology course connects academic study with real-world issues, using applied learning, case-based teaching and specialist facilities to help you understand how crime, harm and justice are experienced in practice.
Why study this course?
What you'll study
Build your understanding of crime, justice and victimisation, exploring real cases and contemporary harms while developing the critical thinking skills to question why crime happens and how society responds.
Explore how the criminal justice system works in practice, from investigation and prosecution to sentencing and rehabilitation, while developing your understanding of criminal law, rights, fairness and justice.
Examine why people offend and why some people are more vulnerable to victimisation, considering criminological and victimological perspectives alongside social, psychological and structural influences on crime and harm.
Investigate the causes, patterns and impact of violence through real cases, developing your ability to assess evidence, understand risk and evaluate prevention, safeguarding and criminal justice responses.
Examine how crime and harm are evolving through technology and globalisation, exploring digital and environmental offending while developing skills to analyse emerging threats, victimisation and criminal justice responses.
Take your criminological thinking further, examining serious crime, punishment, substance use and offender behaviour while developing your ability to analyse evidence, challenge assumptions and evaluate responses to crime and harm.
Question the purpose of prison and punishment, examining how custody, rehabilitation and community supervision shape experiences of justice while considering inequality, human rights and the realities of offender management.
Investigate how serious and organised crime networks operate across physical and digital environments, analysing complex threats and developing skills to assess risks and plan proportionate responses.
Understand substance use and misuse through real cases and evidence, examining its links to health, crime and society while developing skills to assess harm and evaluate effective, ethical responses.
Investigate what offender behaviour can reveal about crime, developing your ability to interpret behavioural and investigative evidence while critically evaluating offender profiling, its applications, limitations and scientific credibility.
Bring your knowledge together to tackle complex and unresolved crimes, exploring homicide, terrorism and cold cases while gaining professional experience and developing the confidence to make evidence informed judgements.
Examine homicide through real cases and applied learning, developing your understanding of patterns, causes and investigations while considering violence, accountability, prevention and the wider impact of lethal crime.
Investigate how terrorism, radicalisation and extremism develop and evolve, analysing the factors behind contemporary threats and critically evaluating policing, intelligence and multi-agency responses.
Revisit unresolved major crimes, applying advanced investigative techniques to realistic cold case material as you assess missed opportunities, test new lines of enquiry and make defensible decisions.
Gain hands on experience through at least 70 hours in a relevant workplace, applying your learning while developing your professional confidence, employability and understanding of future career opportunities.
Tackle a real-world challenge in policing, criminal justice or public services, using evidence, creativity and critical thinking to develop practical, ethical solutions with professional impact.
We regularly review our courses to keep pace with changing skills and employer needs. If a review leads to significant changes, we’ll contact you to explain what’s changing for the coming year.
Teaching and Assessment
Explore crime and justice through research, debate and applied learning. You’ll question assumptions, consider different perspectives and use evidence to support your ideas. Case studies and realistic scenarios help you connect theory with the experiences of victims, people who offend and communities, developing skills for work across criminal justice and related fields.
You’ll learn by exploring real world issues around crime, harm and justice through case studies, debates, workshops and practical activities. You’ll look at evidence, question different ideas and consider different points of view as you explore complex issues affecting people and communities. You’ll work with research, data, real cases and insights from professionals to develop your critical thinking, communication and decision making skills. As you progress, you’ll become more independent, building the confidence to apply what you learn to real challenges in criminal justice and related areas.
You’ll be assessed through a range of tasks that help you apply what you’ve learned to real world issues around crime and justice. This could include case analysis, written work, problem solving, policy briefings, presentations and practical activities using realistic scenarios. As you progress, assessments become more challenging, giving you greater freedom to explore issues, evaluate evidence and develop your own informed responses. You’ll receive regular feedback to help you improve and build confidence in your work. By your final year, you’ll bring your knowledge together through more independent assessments that develop the skills needed for further study and a range of careers.
Boost your CV and enhance your employability on placement through our wide range of partner institutions. You might get to work on real-life missing people investigations with USW’s Cold Case Unit, discover potential miscarriages of justice with the Innocence Project or spend your placement alongside local agencies solving crime in South Wales.
Work experience in Criminology allows you to familiarise yourself with professional environments, explore your different areas of interest and network with potential future employers. Your tutors and the USW Careers team will support you in finding work placements while you study.
Our specialist learning facilities give you hands-on experience in realistic professional environments. Rather than simply learning about crime and justice in the classroom, you will have opportunities to engage with applied activities that develop your analytical, communication and problem-solving skills.
From investigating simulated crime scenes and analysing live case evidence in the Cipher Room, to testing decision-making in the Hydra Simulation Centre and presenting cases in our immersive Moot Court, you’ll develop practical skills alongside academic knowledge.
Designed to mirror real-world policing, criminology and legal settings, these facilities help build the confidence, communication and critical thinking skills needed for careers across the criminal justice sector.
Course Leader
Daniel Welch
Daniel Welch is Head of Subject for Policing, Criminology and Public Services, and Course Leader for the undergraduate Criminology courses at the University of South Wales. His academic interests focus on the police service response to domestic abuse, particularly victim experience, Coercive Control and related police policies. Daniel is passionate about applied, scenario-based learning and helped develop CIPHER, USW’s interactive learning space for crime, justice and public service education.
“The strong networking opportunities at USW were invaluable - securing a job as a prison officer straight from a lecture was an unexpected but welcome start to my career.”
Euan Thomas, Criminology graduate
Entry Requirements
Additional
GCSEs: The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSEs including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
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.
How to applyContextual admissions policyAsk us a question96 UCAS points or above
Typical qualification requirements
A Level:
CCC
Welsh BACC:
Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales Grade C and CC at A Level
BTEC:
BTEC Extended Diploma Merit Merit Merit
Access to HE:
Pass an Access to HE Diploma and obtain a minimum of 96 UCAS tariff points
T Level:
P
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.
International studentsPre-Sessional EnglishEnglish 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 4 overall and a minimum of 4 in each component 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.
Fees and Funding
Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).
*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.
Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.
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.
Text books
Textbooks will be available in the library, but students may wish to purchase their own copies. Up to £200
Work Placement
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. Up to £300
DBS
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. £55.42
Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).
*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.
Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.
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.
Text books
Textbooks will be available in the library, but students may wish to purchase their own copies. Up to £200
Work Placement
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. Up to £300
DBS
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. £55.42
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Explore our facilities
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How to apply
All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS
You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time).
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Apply direct
Criminology
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Full-time, 3 years
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September
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Pontypridd
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If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.
Applicants accepted through advanced entry may study a different combination of modules to those advertised, as they will be joining a course already in progress. You will be contacted and advised about these modules once your application has been processed and an offer made.
International applicants can apply to us directly. If the University has an in-country team in your region, your application will be assigned to them for assistance.
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