Modules
Here is a guide to the subjects studied on this course.
Courses are continually reviewed to take advantage of new teaching approaches and developments in research, industry and the professions. Please be aware that modules may change for your year of entry. The exact modules available and their order may vary depending on course updates, staff availability, timetabling and student demand. Please contact the course team for the most up to date module list.
Year one
Introduction to Crime and Deviance
Year: 1
Status: C
Crime and deviance are rarely out of the news with frequent media warnings, for example of rises in `anti-social behaviour'. This module encourages students to look beneath the headlines and examine social constructions of crime. Ideas about `crime' and `deviance' vary over time and place and the module explores popular discourses on these themes. Methods of measuring crime are critically assessed and the fear of crime is explored. The module introduces students to criminology as a discipline and to key theoretical traditions. Students are supported in developing the critical skills needed to evaluate competing perspectives. The module provides a foundation of knowledge and skills for the criminology and criminal justice, and criminology minor degree programmes.
Year two
Law for Criminologists
Year: 2
Status: C
The overall aim of this module is to introduce criminology students to basic legal skills and how to use those effectively. Specifically, the objectives of this module are to teach the sources of law; how to find the law and to use legal materials to present reasoned arguments orally or in writing and to instil an ability to communicate effectively in a variety of forms. The skills and knowledge learnt in this module will be fundamental to all modules studied on the degree programme. Further this module will assist with one of the goals of developing students as independent learners.
From Crime Scene to Court
Year: 2
Status: C
Crime is an ever-pervasive social problem in contemporary society and forensic science has a role to play in the fight against crime. This module provides students with a basic introduction to forensic science starting with an understanding of what forensic science is, how it has developed over the years, how crime scene and forensic examination are carried out, the principles behind these investigations, the potential value such investigations may have in criminal investigations, courtroom procedures in relation to forensic evidence and the role of the expert witness. The module will also foster the cultivation of the criminal skills needed to evaluate the contribution of forensic science to the criminal justice system and will provide an important foundation of knowledge and skills for the criminology and criminal justice degree.
Study Skills for Criminologists
Year: 2
Status: C
The module provides students with an opportunity to consider, reflect on and develop key skills that will provide the basis from successful study on the course. It provides an opportunity to consider personal strengths and learning styles, and to develop strategies to obtain maximum benefit from these.
Crime and Criminal Justice
Year: 2
Status: C
This module will explore crime and its control through an analysis of specific crime problems and the response of the criminal justice system to these problems, drawing upon an array of national and international research evidence, and current developments. Students will be introduced to major offending patterns in Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom. Consideration will also be given to the agencies, and policy frameworks, around which crime control is organised.
Theories of Crime and Criminalisation
Year: 2
Status: C
This module provides an overview of recent developments in criminological explanations of crime and criminalisation. These developments are explored and critically evaluated via contemporary issues such as gender & crime, cyber psychology, community safety & social control, and race that face today's society.
Year three
Policing & the Law
Status: O
Year: 3
This module is optional
This module is designed to explore the law and institutions involved in policing and to set policing in a legal context. Thus it will consider the role and powers of the office of constable and the legal framework within which a policing service is delivered including the constraints and obligations on police officers and a police service. It will allow for discussion and challenge in regard to ideas about how policing is and ought to be conducted.
Year four
State Crime
Year: 4
Status: C
This module seeks to explore the definition and nature of state crime in criminological and political discourse. It aims to develop a critical understanding of the nature of the state and the scale and type of crimes committed by state agents and agencies. A range of state crimes will be explored in both the domestic and international spheres. The module will explore forms of state crime as techniques of 'coercive governance' and will use examples from both democratic and authoritarian regimes.
Research Methods for Criminologists
Year: 4
Status: C
The research methods module has a direct link to the students' preparation for their undergraduate dissertations. The module considers the key research strategies and designs in the field of criminology and criminal justice and then examines various quantitative and qualitative research methods. Central to the module is practical skills acquisition using data analysis software packages to interrogate primary and secondary data in the social sciences. The module concludes with an examination of ethical issues which must be considered in advance of embarking on primary research in the dissertation.
Policing and Society
Year: 4
Status: C
This module explores the characteristics, dynamics and underpinning factors that exist between policing and society. Historically, policing has been the subject of much debate both nationally and internationally, with the delivery of policing services, and, how they are perceived by the community focal points for discussion. Through the policing institutions in Northern Ireland and England and Wales this module will examine how various social, cultural and political forces impact upon the police and the community they serve. It is also important to consider the role of the community in the context of `policing' and examine the various techniques employed by civil society to address issues pertaining to community safety and the fear of crime. The module will also consider the emergence of new crimes in the form of `internet and organised crime' and determine the implications on the relationship between society and the police.
Applied Criminology
Year: 4
Status: C
The field of criminal justice is a dynamic, evolving and expanding landscape. It is therefore extremely important for students who are to become future policy experts and practitioners to engage with this landscape reflectively and critically. To do this, future criminal justice experts must be equipped with a range of technical skills and tools of critical analysis that are used to evaluate the functioning and effectiveness of criminal justice systems, and the diversity of services they deliver. This means that in addition to learning about the relationship between a theory and policy and practice, students must be able to offer an informed critique of it. It is through these processes that practitioners can develop practice models and improve the services they provide. This module aims to support students' employability through applied criminology learning based on enquiry. They will learn how to apply the knowledge of criminological theory and policy to evaluate real world problems relating to crime and criminal justice; produce informed critiques of practice and policy; and develop solutions informed by theory. On this module, participants will development technical and critical analysis skills essential to the endeavour of applied criminology.
The Comparative Politics of Democracy and Dictatorship
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This course is about how, and why, a regime becomes either a democracy or a dictatorship. Can democracy survive in an agrarian society or a 'divided' society? Was Barrington-Moore correct when he made the observation 'no bourgeois, no democracy'? Is oil inevitably a curse (for democrats) and a blessing (for dictators)? How can a democratic government manage its 'praetorian problem': the risk of military coup? This course examines theories of regimes origin and survival in a range of case studies from across world regions.
Sentencing and Punishment
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module examines the relationship between sentencing theory, principle, policy, and practice. Consideration is given to how sentences are constructed, and the range of sentencing technologies available to the courts. Additionally, a variety of theoretical approaches are utilised to explore the broader social impact sentencing and punishment has on communities at a regional, national, and international level.
Restorative Justice
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module provides students, who are new to restorative justice with an understanding of key theories. The module addresses principles of restorative practice. It also considers the community, policy and legal frameworks in which restorative justice may be located.
Victims of Crime
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module further develops analytical skills in criminology and criminal justice. It evaluates, in the national and international context, the experiences, and the actual and potential role of victims of crime within the criminal justice system and explores whether they should be afforded a greater role.
Young People, Crime & Justice
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module provides an overview of the history and development of the modern youth justice system in GB and NI. It explores sociological and criminological concepts relating to 'childhood' 'adolescence' and 'juvenile delinquency'. The module explores crime committed by young people, its causes, consequences and treatment and the victimisation of young people. It critically analyses current debates and issues regarding youth crime and youth justice within a children's rights framework.
Exploring Crime and the Media
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
Crime and media explores the nature of media influence on crime, the criminal justice
system and the role that the media plays in influencing the public's perception of crime and
criminality. Specifically this module develops analytical and critical skills in exploring and
understanding the conflicting and at times ambiguous relationship between crime and the
media in the twenty first century.
Environmental Crime
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module is intended:
• To introduce students to the principles of environmental protection and governance.
• To engage students with critical debates from green criminology that challenge the conventional notions of crime, deviance and justice.
• To promote student awareness and understanding of issues relating to environmental harm and justice.
• To foster the development of applied knowledge of environmental protection, regulation and governance.
Terrorism and Political Violence
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
Since the late 1960s, acts of terrorism have become more numerous and wide-ranging. The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in September 2001 and the following incidents elsewhere, notably in Madrid and London, have given impetus to the study of terrorism and political violence, not in only in academic circles but also amongst policymakers. Furthermore, there is a more heightened awareness in the general public about the 'war against terrorism'. The module involves consideration of the debate over the definition of terrorism and political violence; psychological, sociological and other social science theories of terrorism and political violence; the symbiotic relationship between terrorists, terrorism and the mass media; the character of state terrorism; trans-national and international terrorism including past trends and future prospects and single-issue terrorism. The module also examines and assesses counter-terrorism (police, intelligence and legal) measures/responses by the state, both for their effectiveness and for their implications for civil liberty in liberal-democracies.
Policy for Children and Families
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module covers major debates, perspectives and challenges associated with children and families. It will consider policy and services for children's well-being and recent reviews of children's services including child protection services and key areas of provision. Students will examine perspectives on policy, child poverty, mixed economy of care, partnership and inter-agency work and children's participation and rights.
Year five
Crime, Social Order and Social Control
Year: 5
Status: C
The state has traditionally been viewed as being responsible for managing crime and policing in society. However, this is much more complex and varied than would initially seem obvious. This module will explore and evaluate public and community security from a number of perspectives, providing students with a wider appreciation of how policing is undertaken outside that of traditional state and police perspectives. This will involve an examination of the many configurations which contribute to broader conceptions of policing and security within modern society. Furthermore, the module will provide an understanding of the fact that the state police are but one of many auspices and agencies who contribute to the governance of security as part of common and diverse public demands for policing provision.
Prisons, Punishment and Power
Year: 5
Status: C
This module includes an overview of the history of imprisonment as a form of punishment; the development of the prison system in the UK; discussion of key debates and current issues regarding imprisonment nationally and internationally. The module also covers the history, development of and current issues regarding imprisonment in Northern Ireland.
Preparing for your Criminology Dissertation
Year: 5
Status: C
Teaching is based on a mixture of short lectures, groupwork, and one-to-one advice from the teaching team. Former students will give presentations based on their experience of doing the dissertation at Ulster.
Research Methods
Status: O
Year: 5
This module is optional
The research methods module has a direct link to the students' preparation for their level 6 dissertations. The module considers the key research strategies and designs in the field of criminology and criminal justice and then examines various quantitative and qualitative research methods. Central to the module is practical skills acquisition using data analysis software packages to interrogate primary and secondary data in the social sciences. The module concludes with an examination of ethical issues which must be considered in advance of embarking on primary research in the dissertation.
Dissertation
Status: O
Year: 5
This module is optional
This module is designed to allow students to conduct an effective critical investigation of an area of concern or interest in the field of criminology and criminal justice, and to write a report on that investigation. Students will draw upon skills and knowledge acquired from previous learning and in the workplace, and demonstrate their research skills acquired in the research methods module.
Problem Solving Policing
Status: O
Year: 5
This module is optional
This module provides students with a detailed understanding of key theories and practice associated with problem solving policing. It also considers the community, policy and legal frameworks in which problem solving policing can be placed.
Restorative Justice
Status: O
Year: 5
This module is optional
This module provides students, who are new to restorative justice with an understanding of key theories. The module addresses principles of restorative practice .It also considers the community, policy and legal frameworks in which restorative justice may be located.
Year six
Dissertation
Year: 6
Status: C
This module is designed to allow students to conduct an effective critical investigation of an area of concern or interest in the field of criminology and criminal justice, and to write a report on that investigation. Students will draw upon skills and knowledge acquired from taught modules and demonstrate their research skills acquired in the research methods module.
Surveillance and the Law
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module explores and evaluates the legal framework within which surveillance operates in the United Kingdom. Considering the role of surveillance in society, the relationship between surveillance, privacy rights and fair trial rights is evaluated with specific reference to data protection, interception of communications, directed and intrusive surveillance, official secrecy, the security and intelligence services and recent developments in relation to identity and identity theft. Plus the role and impact of social media and the digital footprint we all leave behind.
Transforming Violence
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module focuses on how conflicts develop and escalate into violence, with a emphasis on deeply divided societies, post-colonial contexts and/or where there is political violence. The module will explore dynamics of conflict at the individual, inter and intra-group level. The module will critically reflect on types of conflict interventions applying these to real world examples such as combating violent extremism,and preventing reoccurrence through truth commissions.
Crime and the Media
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Crime and media explores the nature of media influence on crime, the criminal justice system and the role that the media plays in influencing the public's perception of crime and criminality. Specifically this module develops analytical and critical skills in exploring and understanding the conflicting and at times ambiguous relationship between crime and the media in the twenty first century.
Terrorism and Political Violence
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Since the late 1960s, acts of terrorism have become more numerous and wide-ranging. The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in September 2001 and the following incidents elsewhere, notably in Madrid and London, have given impetus to the study of terrorism and political violence, not in only in academic circles but also amongst policy-makers. Furthermore, there is a more heightened awareness in the general public about the `war against terrorism'. The module involves consideration of the debate over the definition of terrorism and political violence; psychological, sociological and other social science theories of terrorism and political violence; the symbiotic relationship between terrorists, terrorism and the mass media; the character of state terrorism; trans-national and international terrorism including past trends and future prospects and single-issue terrorism. The module also examines and assesses counter-terrorism (police, intelligence and legal) measures/responses by the state, both for their effectiveness and for their implications for civil liberty in liberal-democracies.
Psychology and Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Crime and criminal justice as well as issues of law and order remain topical in contemporary society. This module will provide students a unique opportunity to investigate the workings of the criminal mind and what motivates an individual to commit crime. This module aims to introduce students to the principal theories and applications of psychology within the field of criminology. It enables students to develop a critical understanding of how psychological theory is applied to various criminological settings, which include youth crime; weapon carrying; arson and sexual crimes; psychopaths and serial killers, and criminal profiling.
Green Criminology and Environmental Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module offers students the opportunity to study contemporary issues in criminology, with particular reference to green criminology, environmental crime and justice. It provides the opportunity to understand the nature of how crime is defined and considered outside of academia. It looks at real world issues and discusses the various, and at times, conflicting approaches undertaken by criminologists. Students are encouraged to critically evaluate criminological evidence and to make links with criminological theory and issues raised.
Gender, Sexuality, Crime and Justice
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module will assist students to develop skills in understanding how different theories, concepts, methodological tools and data influence the ways in which we respond to gender and crime. The establishment of a more victim centred approach, and changes to offender management, will form the key elements of the module. Case studies will show how practitioners and policy makers are responding to the extensive reforms within the criminal justice and prison system.
Cybercrime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Increasing connectivity to the Internet has resulted in a growing amount of crime and deviance taking place in cyberspace. This cybercrime module examines a series of cyber enabled and cyber dependent crimes, the motivations of online offenders and how such crimes may be investigated and subsequently prevented. It examines the complex nature of cyber legislation in Europe and explores the difficulties of policing cyber activity on the surface and dark web. By the end of the module students will be able to evaluate the uncertainties, ambiguities and limits currently encountered in trying to regulate the Internet and digital technology.
Global Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module examines the various criminal dimensions of contemporary globalisation, their
global extent and significance and the roles they play in shaping the socio-economic
conditions and development trajectories of key global regions. It also considers various responses to global crime and evaluates their success as well as exploring the relationship between global crime and
popular culture. Students will understand issues relating to a) Spatial and temporal patterns of global crime; b) the link between different forms of organised crime and globalisation; and c) the key critiques of crime control measures.
Drugs and Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module offers students the opportunity to study contemporary issues in criminology, with particular reference to drugs use; its consumption, regulation and criminalisation. It provides the opportunity to understand the nature of how drug use and crime are defined and considered inside and outside of academia. It looks at real world issues and discusses the various, and at times, conflicting approaches undertaken by criminologists. Students are encouraged to critically evaluate criminological evidence and to make links with criminological theory and issues raised.
Rehabilitation and Desistance from Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Rehabilitation and Desistance from Crime will introduce students to some of the key concepts and debates in the field of desistance studies. The module will encourage an appraisal of the relationships between rehabilitation, risk and resettlement in penal philosophy, policy and practice. Students will engage with debates on 'what works' in rehabilitative practice, and examine how desistance from crime can be supported, or stymied, by criminal justice processes.
Corporate Crime
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
Corporate crime is a multi-trillion dollar global racket that represents a significant threat to markets, democracy, development, human rights and the environment. Crimes committed by corporations have been identified by the UK and US governments as one of the most pressing challenges for law makers today. This module will critically explore the drivers of corporate crime in a number of thematic areas including serious fraud, financial crime, corruption, environment, and human rights. Students will take a hands-on approach, investigating some of the most significant corporate crimes of the last two decades, using specially curated real-world materials such as indictments and deferred prosecution agreements. This case driven approach will open-up the inner workings of corporate crime and help students theorise some of the key drivers of illicit corporate activity. The module's applied focus will help prepare students for a potential career in the control of corporate crime, which is a fast growing and dynamic industry for criminology graduates.
Migration, 'Race' and Ethnicity
Status: O
Year: 6
This module is optional
This module introduces students to the sociology of migration, 'race' and ethnicity, with particular focus on the UK experience. It explores how international population movements and the global forces behind them continue to create the societies we have in the UK, Ireland and the EU today. The module examines the origins and development of racism, incorporating human rights perspectives to explore how it has shaped, and continues to shape the nature of society. We look at the role 'race thinking' has played in the production of inequalities and exclusions, as well as engage with contemporary debates and theoretical advances, particularly in relation to antiracism, whiteness, antisemitism, Islamophobia, citizenship and multiculturalism. The module specifically examines the debates in the local Northern Ireland context with reference to specific groups: ethnic minorities, Travellers, immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.
Standard entry conditions
We recognise a range of qualifications for admission to our courses. In addition to the specific entry conditions for this course you must also meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements.
A level
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
Applied General Qualifications
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
Irish Leaving Certificate
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
Irish Leaving Certificate UCAS Equivalency
Tariff point chart
Scottish Highers
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
Scottish Advanced Highers
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
International Baccalaureate
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
Access to Higher Education (HE)
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
GCSE
The Subject Committee will consider a range of qualifications, experience and other evidence of ability to complete the course satisfactorily when considering applications for part-time study.
English Language Requirements
English language requirements for international applicants
The minimum requirement for this course is Academic IELTS 6.0 with no band score less than 5.5. Trinity ISE: Pass at level III also meets this requirement for Tier 4 visa purposes.
Ulster recognises a number of other English language tests and comparable IELTS equivalent scores.
Exemptions and transferability
You will enter Year 1. However, if you can provide evidence of previous relevant study, you may, in exceptional circumstances, be permitted exemption from a restricted number of modules in Year 1.