Criminology with Placement

Studying criminology at Brunel means you are taught by academic staff who are actively engaged in criminological research further enriching the substantial and supportive learning resources on offer to you.

The criminology department at Brunel recognises and emphasises the importance of theory that is based on evidence and encourages you to engage in critical evaluation of concepts of crime and deviance. This critical approach nurtures lively debate, and we encourage you to develop independent opinions based on a wide range of theoretical and methodological perspectives, employing both quantitative and qualitative data in considering the processes of criminalisation and victimisation over space and time.

As critical criminologists, you will be encouraged to engage in debates about race, gender, migration, social harms, green criminology and a wide variety of other current topics. Whilst being furnished with the necessary research training in both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis to engage with and challenge debates as they evolve.

The programme sets out from a broad multi-disciplinary Social Sciences content at FHEQ Level 4 where you will be studying alongside sociology students in some modules as well as on criminology specific modules and then to a more focussed disciplinary content at FHEQ Level 5, and more specific thematic content at FHEQ Level 6, where students are encouraged to personalize their studies through their choice of a range of advanced optional modular blocks.

Criminology combined with Sociology is ranked 4th in the country for average positivity and 1st in London. Our Criminology students gave an average 96% positivity rating (National Student Survey 2025)

Course Modules

Sample modules:
Crime, Media & Society,
War and Humanitarianism, Captialism and Sex,
Digital Cultures.

To view the full list of modules for this course and further information on degree content, please visit the Brunel website: brunel.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/criminology-bsc

https://www.brunel.ac.uk/study/courses/criminology-bsc#content

Assessments will be varied but always relevant to the nature of the activity/enquiry being carried out and to the expected outcome – which may involve presentation of research, written essay, portfolio work and group participation. Assessment will be through a variety of means to evaluate different skill sets:

Coursework essays
Examinations (seen and unseen)
Individual and Group projects
Portfolios
Learning Contract
Work diaries
Reports
Case Studies
Critical Reviews
Online assessment
Students’ knowledge and understanding of learning outcomes will be studied via a range of assessment practices. This mix simultaneously will enforce a broad and comprehensive coverage of the Programme themes and the more selective, creative and skills-oriented form of understanding that will come from particular blocks. Knowledge and understanding of practice-based, research-oriented outcome will be assessed by means of reports of skill-oriented work (as with research methods) at FHEQ Level 4 and 5, and the final year dissertation at FHEQ Level.