Criminology & Criminal Justice (Taught)

The Masters in Criminology & Criminal Justice will help you to better understand the harms and conflicts that we criminalise and penalise, the harms and conflicts that criminalisation and penalisation cause, and how we might develop responses which could create fairer and safer societies rather than exacerbating social inequalities.

WHY THIS PROGRAMME

• This programme involves research-led teaching on cutting-edge topics within criminology, including media and popular culture, violence and victimisation, wildlife and cultural property crime, surveillance, terrorism, migration, and environment/climate change.

• You will develop analytical and research skills, an interdisciplinary knowledge base, and a critical understanding of the settings in which crime and justice policies are devised and implemented.

• You will be taught by leading scholars from the Scottish Centre for Crime & Justice Research (SCCJR), a centre of excellence for criminology in the UK.

• You will benefit from training opportunities in new, emerging research approaches, such as creative, visual and digital methods.

• We offer a diverse programme of seminars, workshops and working lunches with leading scholars.

• Sociology at Glasgow is ranked 6th in the UK by the Complete University Guide 2026, and 7th in the UK by the Good University Guide 2026.

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

You will take three core and three optional courses, as well as submit a dissertation on a subject of your choice.

Core courses
Criminal Justice and Injustice
Criminological Theory in Context
PGT Research Design in Practice

Optional courses may include
Contemporary Issues in Policing
Crime, Media And Popular Culture
Violence, Victimisation, and Social Harm

CAREER PROSPECTS
Throughout the programme, you will develop academic and research skills and have opportunities to build on your professional development, ensuring you are equipped to enter a diverse range of workplaces. Graduates have gone on to begin careers in:

• the police

• prison service

• social work

• public sector

• law

• the third sector.

Graduates have also gone on to continue down an academic route and begin PhD study. Some students use their knowledge and transferable skills to work within the private sector, with previous examples including fraud prevention within banks and combating the illicit tobacco trade.