Criminology and Sociology at Aberystwyth University

BSc Criminology and Sociology at Aberystwyth University will enable you to critically evaluate ideas, concepts and approaches across the disciplines of both Criminology and Sociology.

This degree scheme will provide you with an in-depth understanding of society and criminality and will introduce you to new perspectives on social inequality and social change that are taking place both locally and internationally. Providing insight on criminology from a sociological perspective, our degree will give you the sophisticated knowledge and analytical skillset needed for breaking into the public and social sectors, as well as the criminal justice system, or alternatively is a great starting block for further study.

Why should you study Criminology and Sociology at Aberystwyth University? 

The course is taught in both the Department of Law and Criminology and the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences. The teaching teams comprise of staff with expertise in the both of the main disciplines giving students a broad understanding of criminology and sociology and opportunities to engage with subjects such as law, human geography and criminal psychology.

Choosing this course will enable you to delve deeper into the key concepts and theoretical approaches that have been and are developing within Criminology and Sociology. It will, moreover, allow you to examine the important connections between the two disciplines. The distinctive field-based approach to Sociology that we provide at Aberystwyth will help to highlight the significance of space and place for the study of crime. At the same time, the discipline of Criminology offers distinctive insights into the nature of social non-conformity, and as such can provide new ways of approaching key sociological concepts including stratification, integration, conflict and inequality.

The Criminology component of this course provides a balanced coverage of theory, policy and practice issues in criminology and criminal justice studies. The Sociology component of the course theoretically-driven, macro focus on social structures, institutions and group actors provides an effective way of contextualising more applied criminological topics.

A degree in Criminology and Sociology will not only help you to develop a range of key transferable skills that are important for employment in general but will also provide specialist skills and knowledge relevant to a professional career in a criminal justice setting (e.g. police, probation or prison service).

Your future is important to us and our degrees will equip you with the following:

• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely in both written and oral forms;
• Enhance your problem-solving and creative thinking skills;
• Ability to work independently and as a team member;
• Time management and organisation skills;
• Encourage self-motivation and self-reliance;
• Transferable skills, such as computer literacy and key research skills relating to both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analysis.

What opportunities are there as a student at the Department of Law and Criminology?

The fact that the scheme is part-taught by staff from the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences will allow students to benefit from the distinctive field-based approach to Sociology that we provide at Aberystwyth.