Professional Policing
University of Northampton
UCAS Code: N478 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
University of Northampton
UCAS Code: N478 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
AQA Level 3 Technical Level (1080 glh)
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted on its own at Distinction Distinction or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Access to HE Diploma
Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted on its own at Distinction Distinction or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted on its own at Distinction Distinction or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications
Pearson BTEC Extended Diploma (QCF)
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted on its own at Distinction Distinction or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Accepted towards tariff requirements
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
Scottish Advanced Higher
Individual Advanced Highers can be accepted with Scottish Highers towards tariff requirements
Scottish Higher
T Level
Pass (C and above)
UCAS Tariff
Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements
About this course
If you are interested in entering the police force, preparing for a non-operational role or even posts in the military or security services then this may be the course for you. Taught by serving and retired police officers and other industry professionals this degree will give you an insight into legislation, conducting investigations and the criminal justice system in the United Kingdom.
Working with colleagues from across the University you will have the chance to apply what you learn in ‘real-world’ scenarios in our purpose built facilities. This results in a highly effective and complete qualification that is valued and recognised by all the forces across the East Midlands and beyond. We have extremely close professional links with Northants Police and this means that you are exposed to a wide range of guest speakers from detectives to child protection officers.
**By studying at the University of Northampton, you can be sure that:**
- You will experience student life at the University’s £330 million Waterside Campus. Come along to an Open Day and find out more.
- Students enrolling on this course at Northampton will be provided with their own brand new laptop* to keep at no additional cost. All sports clubs and societies are free to join at Northampton and every essential course text book is available via the library, meaning you won’t have to purchase copies. For more information on this visit our website (northampton.ac.uk/benefits).
- - At UON we guarantee a room in our Halls of Residence for all new full-time, first year students who apply and accept their room offer by June 2025 - and we won't ask for a deposit for September 2025**.
- Our expert academics teach in small groups supported with one to one assistance. Our academics and students form a tight bond, providing individualised support and guidance whilst challenging students academically.
- Whatever your ambitions, we’re here to help you to achieve them. We’ll support you to identify the skills you’re learning during your course, find your strengths and secure practical experience so that when it comes to applying for jobs or further study you’ll feel confident in standing out from the crowd.
**The Northampton Employment Promise**
- In fact, we’re so confident in our careers and employability support that if you achieve at least a 2:2 degree and complete either our Employability Plus Gold programme or achieve a Changemaker Gold Certificate during your time studying with us, but still haven’t secured full-time employment 12 months after graduating, we will secure a three – six month paid internship for you or support you into postgraduate study.
✱ eligibility criteria and terms and conditions apply. See northampton.ac.uk/benefits for more information
✱✱ eligibility criteria apply. See northampton.ac.uk/student-life/accommodation/ for more information
Modules
**STAGE 1:**
• Legislation for Policing (Compulsory)
• Equality and Diversity in the Criminal Justice System (Compulsory)
• Crime Scene Management and Evidence Recovery (Compulsory)
• Introduction to Academic Methods and Research (Compulsory)
• Theory and Practice of Professional Policing (Compulsory)
• Crime and Criminality (Compulsory)
• Professional Development (Compulsory)
**STAGE 2:**
• Crime and Criminal Investigation (Compulsory)
• Road Policing Law (Compulsory)
• Research Skills for Investigation (Compulsory)
• Open Source Intelligence for Investigations (Compulsory)
• Community Policing (Compulsory)
• Enhanced Professional Development (Compulsory)
• Investigating Serious and Organised Crime and the Politics of Global Policing (Compulsory)
**STAGE 3:**
• Independent Study for Police Students (Compulsory)
• Evidence Based Policing (Compulsory)
• Cybercrime (Compulsory)
• Vulnerability and Risk and Public Protection (Compulsory)
• Miscarriages of Justice (Compulsory)
Module information is quoted for 24/25 entry. Please note that modules run subject to student numbers and staff availability, any changes will be communicated to applicants accordingly. 25/26 entry modules will be released in June 2025.
Assessment methods
The course is assessed in a number of ways:
• Presentations
• Essays
• Assignments
• Skills labs
• Practical exercises
• Reports
• Reflective accounts and video presentations
• Exams and multiple choice tests
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Waterside Campus
Faculty of Business and Law
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score 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.
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.
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.
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.
£23k
£25k
£25k
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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Lower entry requirements
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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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