Awards

Target Award

Award Description:Bachelor of Arts with Honours (Fnd) - BAHF

Alternative Exit

Alternative Exit

Alternative Exit

Programme Offerings

Full-Time

F2F-SEP

Educational Aims of the Course

The programme has several closely-linked overall aims and objectives: To provide a rigorous interdisciplinary study of criminal justice drawing on disciplines including, criminology, law, socio-legal studies, sociology, social policy, history and related professional practice; To link theoretical analysis with empirical enquiry and the operation and impact of policies on practice; To identify and understand different value positions in the criminal justice system and processes; To investigate the legal context and principal legal features of the criminal justice system; To provide students with an understanding of policy and experience of practice in the criminal justice system and so improve their employability in criminal justice and allied areas; To encourage students to engage with the development of employability skills by completing a self-awareness statement.

Learning Outcomes

1.
Demonstrate knowledge of the key concepts and theoretical approaches that have developed and are developing in relation to crime, victimisation, and responses to crime and deviance.
2.
Design research appropriately in relation to a specific problem, how to gather, retrieve, and synthesise information, including comparative data; and understand how to evaluate research data, including both quantitative and qualitative data.
3.
Assess the ethical issues arising in particular research situations.
4.
Critically review and evaluate criminological evidence.
5.
Develop critical and reasoned arguments in written and oral form.
6.
Appreciate the nature of criminological questions and their investigation.
7.
Analyse, assess methodologically, and communicate, information and empirical research findings about crime, victimisation, and responses to crime and deviance.
8.
Identify a range of different strategies and methods and use appropriate research tools in relation to criminological problems, including quantitative, qualitative, and evaluative techniques.
9.
Investigate criminological questions in relation to victimisation, crime, responses to crime and deviance, and representations of these.
10.
Identify the ethical issues and the range of ethical problems in research into criminological questions.
11.
Present scholarly work in a professional way.
12.
Appreciate the social construction of crime and victimisation.
13.
Examine the relevance of criminological work on crime, victimisation, and responses to crime and deviance including representations of these in relation to issues of social, public and civic policy at a national, international and global level.
14.
Self-manage learning, utilising time management and effective planning strategies.
15.
Collaborate and work in co-operation with others to investigate a social question or issue.
16.
Prioritise time to work to strict deadlines.
17.
Communicate effectively and professionally in both verbal and written communication.
18.
Display an advanced ability to use IT to access topical sources and information.
19.
Evaluate personal and academic performance, and to recognise strengths and weaknesses in relation to these.
20.
Evaluate the relationship of class, gender, age, race, ethnicity and other social demographic factors to crime, victimisation, and responses to these phenomena.
21.
Demonstrate a critical appreciation of the social and historical development of criminal justice institutions; the changing values governing practice in these institutions, including human rights; the structure and culture of these institutions; and new and emergent issues facing criminal justice institutions in the 21st century.
22.
Appreciate the distinctive character of criminal justice as an academic discipline, and its relationship to other social science disciplines.
23.
Appreciate the relationship between criminological theory and empirical evidence in relation to the investigation of issues relating to crime, victimisation, and responses to crime and deviance.
24.
Investigate and understand complex problems relating to crime and criminal justice, using a range of primary and secondary methods of research to do so.
25.
Appreciate the complexity of crime and victimisation, and an ability to assess the relative merits of different explanations for crime and punishment.
26.
Critically evaluate the range of responses to crime and deviance and interpret the values and practices of the agencies which administer them.

Teaching, Learning and Assessment

The programme provides opportunities for students to develop and demonstrate knowledge and understanding, qualities, skills and other attributes in the following areas, gained through a combination of teaching methods including lectures, tutorials, workshops, work-based learning and private study. IT resources are provided by the Aldham Robarts Library. Assessment methods are specified in each module handbook. There is a range of assessment methods adopted throughout the programme including seen and unseen paper-based examinations, coursework in the form of essays, online examinations, portfolios, reports and presentations. Intellectual skills are developed through lectures, tutorial support and seminar preparation. Students are provided the opportunity for reflection and achievement in developing their own understanding in acquiring skills. Intellectual skills are assessed by means of a variety of assessment methods, as specified in each module's handbook, including examination, essay, projects, portfolios and presentations. Practical skills are prioritised within all level 4 modules, but particularly in the Personal and Academic Development module (4022LAWCJ). At levels 5 and 6 students are encouraged to develop these skills in written submissions and through seminar based tutorials, especially in the Professional Development in Criminal Justice module (5020LAWCJ) which promotes the development of transferrable skills for future employment in the workplace. Practical skills are the central focus of core module assessments across the programme, where information gathering, written and spoken communication, and group work are prioritised. The main focus of these skills is introduced in level 4 through the Personal and Academic Development in Criminal Justice module (4022LAWCJ). Transferable skills are an essential part of the activities throughout the programme, being further developed at level 5 in the Professional Development in Criminal Justice module (5020LAWCJ),and in independent study at level 6, particularly in the Dissertation (6016LAWCJ) module. Transferable skills are assessed in the various assessment processes, exams, coursework, projects and portfolios across the four levels of the programme. Programme outcomes were formulated with reference to the Criminology benchmarking statement.

Opportunities for work related learning

All LJMU undergraduate programmes are required to incorporate into a L4 module, which is the Personal and Academic Development module (4022LAWCJ), an assessment item of the submission of a personal Self Awareness Statement. Students have the opportunity to choose from work-based/related/transferrable skills modules at Level 5 (Professional Development in Criminal Justice - 5020LAWCJ) and Level 6 (Dissertation - 6016LAWCJ), while the programme’s personal tutoring system provides opportunities for students to reflect on and document their achievements inside and outside of university and think about future employability paths. Work Related Learning is included in the Level 5 core module, 5020LAWCJ Professional Development in Criminal Justice. Professional practitioners will deliver information and be involved in the assessment for the module. Also the Level 6 optional module, 6016LAWCJ Dissertation involves independent study for students in relation to or within criminal justice agencies.

Programme Structure

Programme Structure Description

The programme can be studied over four years (480 credits) or five years (600 credits) full time. On the four year model, study is undertaken at four levels, one for each year of study. 120 credits are required for the completion of each level and 480 credits for the completion … For more content click the Read More button below.

Structure

Approved variance from Academic Framework Regulations

A variance to the Academic Framework regulation UG.A3.2 which states that modules comprise 10 or 20 credits except for a research project/dissertation module at Level 6 which may comprise 30 or 40 credits has been approved by the Chair of Education Committee on 01.06.17.

Entry Requirements

A levels

Access awards

Alternative qualifications considered

BTECs

GCSEs and equivalents

IELTS

International Baccalaureate

Interview required

Irish awards

NVQ

Reduced offer scheme

T levels

UCAS points

Welsh awards

Extra Entry Requirements

Can this course be deferred?

Yes

Is a DBS check required?

No

OCR National acceptability

  • National Certificate: Acceptable only when combined with other qualifications
  • National Diploma: Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications
  • National Extended Diploma: Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications

HECoS Code(s)

(CAH15-01) sociology, social policy and anthropology