Criminology and Law
Lancaster University
UCAS Code: MM13 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Access to HE Diploma
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
with 16 points from the best 3 Higher Level subjects
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
Choose one of the best Criminology departments in the UK for your degree, and a reputable Law School with a great track record for graduate prospects.
If you are interested in developing practical legal knowledge and an understanding of crime, criminology and criminal justice then this non-qualifying Law degree will appeal to you.
The programme is taught by the world-leading, research-active academics that are based in our prestigious Law School. They will introduce you to core topics in Criminology and Law and you will explore the connections between the two disciplines as you develop both specialist and transferable skills. The multi-disciplinary nature of the degree scheme will encourage you to recognise and reflect on the academic and professional links between Criminology and Law.
You will analyse the social, cultural, political and economic contexts of crime and criminal justice by looking at the social circumstances of offending, policies regulating crime, and the social response to criminal activity. The degree draws on the Department's expertise in criminal law, international human rights, organised crime, youth justice, cybercrime, policing, prisons and punishment, sex work, hate crime, drugs and substance abuse and gender-based violence.
The Lancaster University Law School is ranked 6th in the UK for research impact in the most recent Research Excellence Framework (2021, published May 2022), with 88% of its impact rated ‘outstanding’.
**Programme Overview**
This degree scheme is distinct from our LLB Law with Criminology degree, as the focus of the degree is on Criminology, meaning you do not study all of the core law modules that are required for a qualifying law degree.
Your first year will introduce you to core criminological and legal concepts and perspectives, including criminal law, the English legal system and explanations for crime and offending behaviour. During your second year you will explore a broad range of criminological and legal perspectives, consider how to ‘do’ criminological research and be able to choose a range of optional modules which explore various criminological and legal controversies and issues. If you would like to take a global perspective on Law and Criminology, you may be able to apply for a semester abroad at one of our highly regarded partner institutions. By year three, you will have the choice to study specialist subjects in depth from our range of optional modules.
**Employability Skills**
You will benefit from our strong links to Chambers, Law firms and related professions from across the UK, including magic circle firms from London. We have recently hosted a judicial lecture series, alumni visits and lectures, and a Law Fair, which is an opportunity to meet lawyers (including trainees, associates and partners) and members of their recruitment teams.
The University also has excellent connections with local Criminal Justice Agencies, such as Lancashire Police and HMP Lancashire Farm.
Our student-run Law Society provides you with a wide range of extracurricular activities which over the last year have included mooting and negotiation competitions. Initiatives such as our newly-launched Law Clinic and Miscarriages of Justice Project gives you the chance to work on real life cases, and we have previously been able to offer volunteering opportunities with the Citizens Advice Bureau and Lancashire Constabulary's Special Constables.
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Sociology
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Law
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Sociology
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
We have quite a lot of sociology graduates, although numbers fell last year. But graduates still do pretty well. Most sociology graduates go straight into work when they complete their degrees, and a lot of graduates go into jobs in social professions such as recruitment, education, community and youth work, and housing. An important option for a sociology graduate is social work - and we're short of people willing to take this challenging but rewarding career. Sociology is a flexible degree and you can find graduates from the subject in pretty much every reasonable job — obviously, you don't find many doctors or engineers, but you do find them in finance, the media, healthcare, marketing and even IT. Sociology graduates taking further study often branch out into other qualifications, like teaching, law, psychology, HR and even maths, so don’t think a sociology degree restricts you to just one set of options.
Law
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Law graduates tend to go into the legal industry, and they usually take similar routes. Jobs are competitive — often very competitive - but starting salaries are good and high fliers can earn serious money - starting on over £24k in London on average. Be aware though - some careers, especially as barristers, can take a while to get into, and the industry is changing as the Internet, automation and economic change all have an effect, If you want to qualify to practise law, you need to take a professional qualification — many law graduates then go on to law school. If you want to go into work, then a lot of law graduates take trainee or paralegal roles and some do leave the law altogether, often for jobs in management, finance and the police force. A small proportion of law graduates also move into another field for further study. Management, accountancy and teaching are all popular for these career changers, so if you do take a law degree and decide it’s not for you, there are options.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Sociology
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£18k
£24k
£26k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Law
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£19k
£25k
£32k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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