Criminology MA

Want to study a criminology Master’s in Birmingham? Our MA Criminology degree is open to graduates from all subjects.

Our MA Criminology degree is open to graduates from all subjects. Our course has been designed for both recent graduates and practitioners who wish to develop their understanding of the debates surrounding crime and the criminal justice system. It offers an exciting opportunity to study both theoretical criminology and the more applied aspects of criminology and criminal justice issues.

The course has three formal stages:
• The Certificate stage consist of three taught modules



• The Diploma stage consists of six taught modules



• Those proceeding to the Master's stage will be required to complete an extended research project to be determined individually



• It is possible to complete your studies at any of the Certificate, Diploma or Master's stages. If you study full-time you will complete all these stages in one year.



If you study part-time you would normally complete the diploma and masters stages over two years.

What's covered in this course?
Our postgraduate course offers a contemporary and critical exploration of criminological issues. By studying for an MA in Criminology at Birmingham City University, you will be introduced to a number of contemporary criminological theories and you will be able to relate theory to practice in specialised areas of crime, offending and victimisation.

Throughout your time studying, you will explore criminology from both a theoretical and applied perspective. You will therefore develop key practical skills that have utility in a range of careers within criminal justice. We adopt an international focus within our teaching and learning, touching upon often marginalised issues within Criminology, which often adopts a Western perspective. On completion of the course, you will be able to address complex issues systematically and creatively.

In order to provide an engaging and flexible educational experience to a diverse range of students, the course utilises a wide range of learning and teaching methods and technologies. Given the small size of each group of students recruited, the postgraduate status of the course and the experience which many of its recruits have had of the criminal justice system, the course is highly participative. While sessions will provide periods of structured teaching, they will also provide a forum, within which you will take responsibility for your own learning, and share your knowledge and views with other students and staff.

The precise nature of sessions and delivery will vary with the year, the cohort of students, and the general and specific experience possessed by individual students. The course team also makes increasing use of the University’s virtual learning environment, Moodle, where teaching staff will upload lecture notes, web links, video courses and extracts from academic sources. Moodle is also used for general announcements and communication with a group of students, many of whom are unlikely to be on campus every day.

The academic staff who teach on this course are highly research active, and will help you develop and understand the principles and practice of research, as well as enabling you to form judgements on the relative merits of, and relationships between, different research tools and methods. You will also develop the capability to design, manage and disseminate a research project to a professional standard.

Previous students have gone on to further postgraduate study, with a number of them now employed as academics at a range of universities, teaching and researching in the field of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Other graduates from the course occupy both senior and management positions in statutory and non-statutory criminal justice organisations.