Criminology and Psychology
UCAS Code: 5S26
Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
For applicants offering at least one of the following subjects at A level: Psychology, Biology, Chemistry, Maths or Physics, the typical offer will be BBB. Please note: Whilst it is not essential to have studied any particular subjects at A-level, desirable A-Level subjects include: Psychology, Biology, Chemistry, Maths, English Language or Literature, History, Law, Sociology, Psychology, Geography or Philosophy. We do not accept General Studies.
Access to HE Diploma
We recognise the EPQ as an excellent indicator of success. If you are predicted a Grade B or above in the EPQ, you will receive an offer with a one grade reduction, to include your EPQ with a grade B.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
360-375 points.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
In a related subject (e.g., Law, Uniformed Public Services)
Welsh Baccalaureate requirements are as for A-Levels where you can substitute the same non-subject specific grade for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Level Core Grade
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
Psychology is the scientific study of the relationship between the mind, brain and behaviour. Students will study the psychological and neuro-scientific processes that underpin activities such as thinking, reasoning, memory and language, learn the consequences of brain injury and explore ways to improve health-related behaviour.
Criminology offers the opportunity to acquire detailed knowledge and understanding of the most important explanatory theories of crime and deviance and their relevance to contemporary criminal justice policy, research and practice. Reflecting a developing and ever-changing area of policy and thought, new topics are introduced through regular review of course content (e.g. Serious Crime and Social Harm, including terrorism and trafficking).
As a BSc (Hons) Criminology and Psychology graduate, you will tend to be highly numerate and possess high-quality essay writing and critical analysis skills. You will develop effective team working and problem-solving skills, good ICT abilities, the skills needed for independent research and excellent oral communication skills. With these transferable and valuable attributes, you will have much to offer to a variety of employers.
As more businesses recruit from a global pool of talent, we are finding new ways to help our students stand out from the crowd. We support and encourage you to take advantage of opportunities for studying and working abroad which could:
- Reward you with an international outlook and cultural awareness.
- Help you gain confidence and become more self-reliant.
- Give you independence and initiative for the best possible start to your career.
Students commencing the three-year BSc (Hons) Criminology & Psychology undergraduate degree have the option to apply to transfer to the Criminology and Psychology with a Year abroad Undergraduate Programme. Popular destinations include: Hong Kong, Germany, The Netherlands, North America, Australia, Poland, and Ireland.
- The Department of Psychology is ranked 5th in the UK for Graduate Prospects by 2018 The Times and Sunday Times University League Tables.
- Criminology is ranked 7th in the UK (Times Good University Guide 2020)
- ACCREDITATION: The Psychology Degree is validated by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and (providing that a minimum of a Second Class Honours Degree, Division Two is achieved) confers eligibility for Graduate Membership of the BPS and for the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC). The first step to becoming a Chartered Psychologist.
Visit our employability pages to read our graduate success stories: http://www.swansea.ac.uk/humanandhealthsciences/employability/
**We guarantee that you will be made a conditional offer for a course at Swansea University. Subject requirements will apply. Please come along to our next Open Day or get in touch for further information.**
Modules
Year 1 compulsory:
Study Skills in Criminology
Cognition I: Basic Processes
Social & Developmental Psychology
Biological Psychology
Individual and Abnormal Psychology
Statistics and Research Methods for Joint Honours
Year 2 compulsory:
Cognition II: Higher Level Processes
Brain and Behaviour
Research and Experimental Methods I
Year 2 optional:
Penology and Punishment
Criminological Theory: Content and Application
Crime, Drugs and Alcohol
Understanding Policing
Media, Crime & Criminal Justice
Year 3 compulsory:
Development Across the Lifespan
From Individuals to Society
Independent Research Project - Joint Honours
Year 3 optional:
Applied Behaviour Analysis
Cognitive Neuropsychology
Cognitive Neuroscience Approaches to Vision, Memory and Consciousness
Contemporary Issues in Eating Behaviour Research
Drugs and Behaviour
Evolution and Human Behaviour
Forensic Developmental Psychopathology
Investigative Psychology
Nutrition and Behaviour
Personality and Sexual Disorders
Philosophy of Psychology
Behaviour Change: Health, Organisations and Advertising
Psychopathology: Anxiety Disorders
Sleep and Dreaming
Psychology of Sport and Exercise
Understanding and Managing Criminal Behaviour
Work Psychology
Modules are subject to change and departments reserve the right to change the details.
Assessment methods
In each year students are assessed through a combination of coursework and exams. Methods include written examinations (MCQ, short- and long-questions), essays, research reports, blog posts, case formulations, and presentations (oral and poster).
The Uni
Singleton Park Campus
Psychology
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.
Psychology (non-specific)
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)
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)
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.
Psychology
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
20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.
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.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Psychology
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
£22k
£24k
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.
Sociology, social policy and anthropology
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£17k
£22k
£24k
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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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).
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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