BA (Hons) Crime and Criminal Justice

• 112 UCAS points. We accept a full range of qualifications that carry UCAS points, including A-levels, BTECs and T-levels. Please see our guide to the UCAS Tariff for examples of how to achieve these points. For most courses, we are also able to consider non-tariffable qualifications.
• Any subjects are acceptable at Level 3. Social science and public service-related subjects are preferred.
• You should also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent), including English and Mathematics.
• If you don’t have the above qualifications but possess relevant vocational experience in the criminal justice sector, we’ll be delighted to consider your application.
• To successfully complete the course, you'll be required to undertake voluntary work with relevant organisations. The timing and amount of voluntary activity is flexible, but as a guideline, we'd expect you to undertake 4-10 hours per week, in addition to the employability module elements of the course. These voluntary activities will involve regular unsupervised access to children, vulnerable adults and/or sensitive data, also known as regulated activity. The organisations will therefore require an Enhanced Disclosure certificate from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Charges are payable to cover the cost of the DBS Enhanced Disclosure application and annual registration with the online Update Service. You don't need to apply for DBS Enhanced Disclosure before starting the course.
• You may be required to attend an interview and/or provide a portfolio of work.
• If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.
• Please note that this course is subject to the University of Bolton's Fitness to Practise procedure.

Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.

Whether you are new to the field or have many years’ experience of working in the criminal justice sector, this fascinating degree offers you a wide ranging, yet detailed, view of crime and criminal justice in preparation for a career in this demanding yet rewarding sector.

On successful completion of this course you’ll have an in-depth theoretical and applied knowledge and understanding of crime and its consequences, an extensive knowledge of the criminal justice system, and a keen understanding of contemporary social issues and problems. You’ll also have a valuable range of skills and competencies specific to practice in the criminal justice sector, along with transferable skills that are attractive to employers in any sector. These include the ability to present and develop a cohesive argument, IT skills, research and problem-solving skills, communication skills and team-working skills.

We’ll encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. Professional development planning is an essential part of the course, and we’ll help you to explore potential career paths through discussion and one-to-one meetings with staff. We’ll also organise presentations from a host of different crime and criminal justice organisations, who will explain the services they provide, the careers available in their sector, and how you may be able to help them and gain valuable experience and knowledge by volunteering with their organisation.

Exploring the workings of criminal justice agencies, like the police, courts, prisons and probation service, as well as the wider roles in offender management and crime prevention being taken over by private companies and voluntary groups, will likely help you identify and focus on potential career paths. Undertaking relevant practical voluntary experience can help confirm your career choice, build your skills and enhance your employability.

What can I do with this qualification?

Alternative career options

Graduates can also use the qualification as a stepping stone to enter a range of other careers, and for some of these roles, both relevant experience and/or postgraduate study may be required. Some of these roles include:

• Magistrate
• Social work
• Public health and safeguarding
• Teaching and education
• International aid/development
• Mentoring
• Health promotion
• Behaviour management
• Work with refugee and asylum seekers
• Advice work
• Community safety
• Family support
• Political research
• Charity and advice work
• Human Resources

Home/EU Fees

No fee information is currently available, please contact the University of Bolton’s Academic Fees team by emailing AcademicFees@bolton.ac.uk for more information.

International Fees

No fee information is currently available, please contact the University of Bolton’s Academic Fees team by emailing AcademicFees@bolton.ac.uk for more information.

Bursaries

Click here for more information about the scholarships and bursaries available to University of Bolton students.

Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2025-26 academic year: EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status. If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement. Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.

The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.

The School of Law at the University of Bolton is led by professionally qualified and specialist staff with a wide range of experience in practice, teaching and research. Teaching and learning on our BA (Hons) Crime and Criminal Justice course is supported by a variety of methods. You can expect lectures, seminars, workshops, practical role play and direct study.

In the majority of modules, formal lectures are used to introduce a topic, with follow-up small group seminars where you’re encouraged to explore this knowledge in greater depth. We’ll offer additional tutorials, ensuring you have space to ask questions or seek individual help. Independent learning is essential for the course and you should spend much of your time reading around and researching the topics covered in your modules.

We’ll also offer you chances to hear guest speakers from local criminal institutions and visit criminal justice agencies. Moreover, you’ll be strongly encouraged to undertake voluntary activities that support your studies and give you opportunities to gain first-hand experience and practical skills in criminal justice environments.

In terms of assessment, we aim to provide creative ways for you to demonstrate your theoretical and practical knowledge. You can expect assessments to involve exams, report writing, essays, demonstrations, and presenting evidence and practical forensic crime scene role play using appropriate technology and environments (including police crime scenes and specialist court mock-ups). Some assessments will contribute to your final module mark and allow you to demonstrate that you’ve met the learning outcomes, while others are designed to help you identify areas that need extra attention on your part, or where you need extra support from your tutors.

Modules

The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.

• Historical Perspectives of Criminal Justice and Academic Development
• Introduction to Criminology and Social Policy
• Ethics and Diversity in the Justice System
• Group Dynamics and Team Working
• Criminal Investigation Process: Suspect to Sentence
• Using Research: Evidence Based Practice
• Perspectives on Criminal Justice
• Mental Health and Criminal Justice
• Youth Crime and Juvenile Justice System
• Crime and Criminal Behaviours
• Employability and Career Development
• Researching Criminal Justice: Project Propsal
• Rehabilitation: Philosophies and Approaches
• Criminal Justice: Safeguarding People at Risk
• Honours Project
• Practices within the Penal System
• Gender Violence and Society

Assessment methods

Learning Activities

The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.