Program Overview

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Criminology (with Foundation Year)

Overview

Are you fascinated by the world of criminology? Would you like to learn about how crime impacts the world today? At Oxford Brookes you'll experience an exciting blend of theoretical and practical study as you explore criminology in real world situations. You'll investigate who commits crime, why they commit it and how to prevent it.

Criminology with a Foundation Year is a unique integrated degree programme, enabling you to develop academic skills crucial to university study, such as critical analysis, academic writing and collaboration. We'll support you as you grow your confidence, get to know your strengths and build your knowledge.

In your first year, you'll undertake our Foundation in Humanities course, and you'll then progress to the three year undergraduate programme in Criminology, with an opportunity to do an optional study abroad as an additional year. With the diverse experience and skills you'll gain, you'll be fully prepared for a career in a variety of sectors.

Why Oxford Brookes University?

• Perfect preparation: Build essential study skills with an integrated foundation year. Gain academic confidence, improve critical thinking, and strengthen subject knowledge for your degree journey.
• A stepping stone to a rewarding career: Whether you want to work with the police or campaign for the environment, criminology gives you the tools to succeed.
• Leading lecturers: The unique social angle of the department also attracts renowned researchers in areas like immigration or drugs who teach on the course.
• Links with top organisations: Thanks to our partnerships with organisations like Thames Valley Police and the Tap Social Movement, you’ll have great options for work placement or real-life projects.
• Make the degree yours: Optional modules let you study topics that interest you, while the dissertation is your chance to focus on an area you care about.
• Learn a language: Our university-wide language programme is available to full-time undergraduate and postgraduate students on many of our courses, and can be taken as a credit on some courses.

Course Details

Course Structure

In your foundation year, you’ll study a foundation in humanities, building confidence and developing essential academic skills to prepare you for your degree.

In your first year of the degree, you’ll begin exploring a wide range of topics, from petty crime to the crimes of the powerful. We’ll also ask big questions, like what is crime? Why do some people commit crimes, but not others?

By Year 2, you’ll have a solid understanding of the subject and can start to look into advanced ideas. For example, Researching Crime explores the ethical and practical applications of the subject, where you’ll learn to conduct interviews or analyse true crime podcasts. Optional modules help you tailor the course to your own interests. Core modules help you learn to challenge the status quo - how might capitalism encourage crime? Where and why are there inequalities in the criminal justice system?

Year 3 is your chance to specialise and complete your own research project. Optional modules can include topics like the pleasures of crime, visual criminology, queer criminology, drugs, or policing.

Learning and Teaching

During your foundation year, you’ll have a dedicated academic advisor, for support and guidance when you need it. You’ll also have a 1-1 academic supervisor for your second-semester research project, providing support and guidance as you need it.

You will learn through a variety of teaching and learning methods including seminars, workshops and tutorials.

The programme is flexible enough to encourage you to study your own areas of interest. This may include green criminology, or you may choose to examine medieval crime and punishment.

You’ll also have the opportunity to gain practical skills through a work placement. This could include a work-based activity with Thames Valley Police.

Typical contact time is 24 hours per module. You will be expected to undertake 126 hours of independent study per module.

Assessment

Various assessment methods are used, including:

• Exams
• Essays
• Individual and group presentations
• Critical reviews
• Portfolios

This variety gives you the opportunity to show your abilities across a number of different skill sets.

You will have access to:

• Essay clinics
• Assessment workshops
• Preparatory classroom based activities, for example exam workshops

Study Modules

Teaching for this course takes place face to face and you can expect around ten hours of contact time per week in your foundation year, and around seven hours of contact time per week during your degree. In addition to this, you should also anticipate a workload of 1,200 hours per year. Teaching usually takes place Monday to Friday, between 9.00am and 6.00pm.

Contact hours involve activities such as lectures, seminars, practicals, assessments, and academic advising sessions. These hours differ by year of study and typically increase significantly during placements or other types of work-based learning.

Foundation Year

Compulsory Modules

• Being Human: Love, Sex and Death
• Cultural Moments
• Language, Vision and Representation
• The Reflective Learner
• Research Project
• Nation and Identity

Optional Modules

• Modern British Art
• French beginners 2
• Spanish beginners 2
• Development Studies
• Global Issues
• Political Philosophy
• Young Children's Outdoor Learning
• Customs, Icons and Symbols
• Origins of the Climate Crisis: A Global History of the Environment
• Creating Criminology

Year 1

Compulsory Modules

• Crime and Criminology in Context
• Criminal Justice in Action
• Criminology Skills
• Creating Criminology 1
• Media and Crime
• Understanding Crime and Society

Optional Modules

• Introduction to Ethics
• Creating Criminology 2
• Contemporary Societies: Structure and Change
• Politics in Comparative Perspective

Year 2

Compulsory Modules

• Crime and Intersectionality
• Gender and Society
• Globalisation and Crime
• Public Criminology
• Researching Crime: Methods, Approaches and Ethics

Optional Modules

• Contemporary Security Studies
• Criminology Work Based Learning
• Ethics for the 21st Century
• Green Criminology
• Independent Study in Criminology
• Nations and Nationalism
• Organised Crime
• Sports Criminology
• Uncivil Society: Constituting Global Order

Optional Year Abroad

• Year Abroad

Final Year

Compulsory Modules

• Dissertation in Criminology

Optional Modules

• Advanced Study in the History of Crime
• Border Criminology
• Crimes of the State and Resistance
• Dealing with Drugs: Control and Intoxication
• Forensic Anthropology
• Independent Study in Criminology
• Interdisciplinary Dissertation in Criminology
• Picturing the Criminal: From Mugshot to Fine Art
• Policing, Security and Society
• Sex That Offends
• The Carnival and Pleasures of Crime
• The Prison and Imprisonment

Careers

Criminology graduates often choose to work in law enforcement or the criminal justice system. But those aren’t your only options. Your skills will be ideal for a wide range of career destinations including:

• NGOs
• charities
• local authorities
• crime consultation
• community support
• security firms
• research

We offer work placement options such as Citizens Advice, Shannon Trust (who work in prisons to promote literacy), Thames Valley Police, charities like ‘SAFE’, Support for Young People Affected by Crime, and Children Heard and Seen (CHAS). There is even a local brewery, Tap Social, who sell beer to support social justice movements, so you’ll have a great opportunity to get experience.

Entry Requirements

Wherever possible we make our conditional offers using the UCAS Tariff. The combination of A-level grades listed here would be just one way of achieving the UCAS Tariff points for this course.

Standard Offer

• UCAS Tariff Points: 48
• A Level: DD
• IB Points: 24
• BTEC: PPP or MP

Further Offer Details

Applications are welcomed from candidates with alternative qualifications, and from mature students.

Specific Entry Requirements

Please also see the University's general entry requirements.

English Language Requirements

Applicants whose main language is not English should have IELTS 6.0.

Please also see the University's standard English language requirements.

English Requirements for Visas

If you need a student visa to enter the UK you will need to meet the UK Visas and Immigration minimum language requirements as well as the University's requirements. Find out more about English language requirements.

Credit Transfer

Many of our courses consider applications for entry part-way through the course for students who have credit from previous learning or relevant professional experience.

Find out more about transferring to Brookes. If you'd like to talk through your options, please contact our Admissions team.

Tuition Fees

2025 / 26

• Home (UK) full time: £5,760 (Foundation); £9,535 (Degree)
• Home (UK) part time: £720 per single module (Foundation); £1,190 per single module (Degree)
• International full time: £16,750

2026 / 27

• Home (UK) full time: £5,760 (Foundation); £9,535 (Degree)
• Home (UK) part time: £720 per single module (Foundation); £1,190 per single module (Degree)

Funding Your Studies

Financial Support and Scholarships

Featured funding opportunities available for this course.

• Oxford Brookes Bursary for Continuing Students
• Undergraduate maintenance loans for part-time UK students
• Undergraduate maintenance loans for full-time UK students
• Undergraduate tuition fee loans for UK students
• Oxford Brookes Bursary for New Students

All Financial Support and Scholarships

View all funding opportunities for this course

Programme Changes

On rare occasions we may need to make changes to our course programmes after they have been published on the website. For more information, please visit our changes to programmes page.