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What makes Criminology and Sociology at Worcester special?

Combining Criminology and Sociology allows you to explore how these subjects inform each other and how they can support your development of an interdisciplinary perspective. You’ll have the opportunity to discover how crime is influenced by social and economic factors, as well as investigating how various political approaches have impacted general society and its crime rates.

The joint honours course utilises lectures and seminars taught by academic experts, alongside work placement opportunities, to deliver a well-rounded educational experience. Students graduate with the skills necessary to enter employment across a range of related fields.

Overview

Overview

Key Features

  • Develop an understanding of the legal framework and criminal justice responses to crime
  • Acquire knowledge and critical understanding of crime, its causes and impact on the victims and wider society
  • Through the lens of sociological and criminal theory, you will learn about the social causes and consequences of common human experiences and issues
  • Study a diverse and dynamic curriculum driven by contemporary sociological concerns
  • Emphasis on transferable skills, digital citizenship, graduate employability, and work-based learning opportunities
  • Personal and academic tutoring based as much on your career prospects as your studies 
  • Tailor your course to your individual needs with a joint honours degree    
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Entry requirements

Entry requirements

112
UCAS tariff points

Entry requirements

112 UCAS tariff points

The normal minimum entry requirement for undergraduate degree courses is the possession of 4 GCSEs (Grade C/4 or above) and a minimum of 2 A Levels (or equivalent Level 3 qualifications).

Other information

If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the Admissions Office on 01905 855111 or email admissions@worc.ac.uk for advice.

Further information about the UCAS Tariff can be obtained from UCAS.

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Study Abroad

Our Criminology courses have an option to study abroad in your third year. This is an excellent way to expand your experience and skill set. 

Find out more about studying abroad
Course content

Course content

Our courses are informed by research and current developments in the discipline and feedback from students, external examiners and employers. Modules do therefore change periodically in the interests of keeping the course relevant and reflecting best practice. The most up-to-date information will be available to you once you have accepted a place and registered for the course. If there are insufficient numbers of students interested in an optional module, this might not be offered, but we will advise you as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative. 

Year 1

Mandatory

  • Sociology: Approaching the Crisis
  • Visual Sociology
  • Sociology in Practice
  • Introduction to Criminology and Criminal Justice
  • Professional Skills, Practice and Research in Criminology 

Year 2

Mandatory

  • Sociology: from Origins to Present

Optional

  • Practical Research in Sociology
  • Sociology of Crime
  • Work Project
  • Sociology of ‘Race’: Global Perspectives
  • Digital Sociology
  • Development and Change in the Global South
  • Environmental Sociology
  • Building on Theory and Research in Criminology
  • Probation, Penology and Rehabilitation
  • Contemporary and Global Issues in Criminology
  • Constructing Crime - Criminology and Media
  • Victimology
  • Policing in England and Wales

Year 3

Optional

  • Criminology OR Sociology Dissertation
  • Youth Justice and Crime
  • Intimate Partner Abuse: Impact and Response
  • Organised Crime, Terrorism and Gangs
  • Mental Health and Substance Use in the Context of the Criminal Justice System
  • Cybercrime
  • Work Based Learning
  • Criminal Profiling
  • Sociology Extension Module
  • Pornography and Modern Culture
  • History of Sexuality
  • Education and the Sociological Imagination
  • Constructing Emotions
  • Global Power: Sociological Perspectives
  • Sociology of Religion
  • Sociology of the Body
2 female students and 1 male student working at table

Joint Honours

Discover our full range of joint degrees and read about how your degree will be structured.

Find out more about studying a joint honours course
Teaching and assessment

Teaching and assessment

For more information about teaching, learning and assessment on this course, please see the single honours course pages for Criminology BA (Hons) and Sociology BA (Hons).

Study options

Full-time or part-time study available

Programme specification

For comprehensive details on the aims and intended learning outcomes of the course, and the means by which these are achieved through learning, teaching and assessment, please download the latest Criminology programme specification and Sociology programme specification documents.

Meet the team

You will be taught by a teaching team whose expertise and knowledge are closely matched to the content of the modules on the course

Amy Johnson

Amy Johnson

Amy has been a lecturer at the University of Worcester for four years. Amy enjoys bringing real-world challenges and issues into her classroom and draws upon her experience of working with various client groups (homelessness, addictions, offending and domestic abuse) to demonstrate application. Specifically, Amy enjoys listening to her student’s ambitions and supporting them throughout their degree to reach their potential. Amy has been working with organisations across Worcestershire to ensure students have the best volunteer and work placement opportunities.

Amy enjoys researching offending behaviour and exploring how the criminal justice system is set up to support individuals with behavioural challenges and those who have a lower intellectual ability. Amy has an interest in the development of behaviour change interventions and evidence-based practice, particularly within the community and healthcare settings. Most recently, Amy is working on a large scale research project relating to the development of an integrated intervention targeting men in substance use treatment who perpetrate intimate partner abuse. Over the past twelve months, Amy has been delivering intimate partner violence and ADVANCE training all over the UK to practitioners at substance use services.

Dr Luke Devine

Luke is currently Course Leader for Sociology

Dr Simon Hardy

Dr Simon Hardy

Simon has lectured at Worcester in Sociology and Media & Cultural Studies since 1995, with specialisms in the history of sexuality, the sociology of pornography and contemporary media coverage of warfare.

Dr Jenny Lewin-Jones

Dr Jenny Lewin-Jones

Jenny teaches in Sociology, with particular interests in environmental and digital sociology, education, and emotions. Her research focuses on the role of language in social change. 

Jenny runs our Sociology Course Twitter account @sociologyworc.

Sarah Lloyd

Sarah is a lecturer in Psychology, co-lead of Undergraduate Psychology Courses, and Personal Academic Tutor (PAT) Co-ordinator in the School of Psychology. She is predominantly interested in Forensic Psychology but teaches across the Psychology curriculum, leading the Professional Skills and Practice, Evidence Based Practice, Psychology in the Real World, and Psychology and Law undergraduate modules.

Sarah completed her MSc in Forensic Psychology at Birmingham City University and is currently in the final year of her PhD which explores the group decision-making processes of juries. Before joining the team at Worcester in 2021, she was an Assistant Lecturer in the Forensic Psychology MSc at Birmingham City University. 

Careers

Careers

Graduates will gain a wide range of skills and knowledge that will attract employment from a variety of agencies and organisations in the criminal justice sector, whether public, private or 3rd sector. Our graduates have taken up a variety of careers, including careers in housing, the probation service, youth work, caring professions, social services, the police, business and personnel management, public relations, media, marketing, and teaching. The course also prepares you for jobs that involve managing and communicating with people, thinking out solutions to problems, and understanding the diverse society in which we live.

Two students are walking next to each other and smiling

Careers and Employability

Our Graduates pursue exciting and diverse careers in a wide variety of employment sectors.

Find out how we can support you to achieve your potential
Costs

Fees and funding

Full-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

The Government has announced that it will increase tuition fees and maintenance loans by 3.1% from the 2025/26 academic cycle. Subject to approval, the University intends to increase our tuition fees in line with this and as per our terms and conditions. This means that from September 2025 the standard fee for full-time home and EU undergraduate students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees will be £9,535 per year.

For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.

International students

The standard tuition fee for full-time international students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees in the 2025/26 academic year is £16,700 per year.

For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.

Part-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

The Government has announced that it will increase tuition fees and maintenance loans by 3.1% from the 2025/26 academic cycle. Subject to approval, the University intends to increase our tuition fees in line with this and as per our terms and conditions. This means that from September 2025 the tuition fees for part-time UK and EU students on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees will be £1,190.83 per 15-credit module, £1,587.77 per 20-credit module, £2,381.66 per 30-credit module, £3,175.55 per 40-credit module, £3,572.50 per 45-credit module and £4,763.32 per 60 credit module.

For more details on course pages, please visit our course fees page.

Additional costs

Every course has day-to-day costs for basic books, stationery, printing and photocopying. The amounts vary between courses.

If your course offers a placement opportunity, you may need to pay for an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

Accommodation

Finding the right accommodation is paramount to your university experience. Our halls of residence are home to friendly student communities, making them great places to live and study.

We have over 1,000 rooms across our range of student halls. With rooms to suit every budget and need, from our 'Traditional Halls' at £131 per week to 'Ensuite Premium Halls' at £228 per week (2025/26 prices).

For full details visit our accommodation page.
How to apply

How to apply

Apply through UCAS

Criminology and Sociology BA (Hons) - L301

UCAS is the central organisation through which applications are processed for entry onto full-time undergraduate courses in Higher Education in the UK.

Read our How to apply pages for more information on applying and to find out what happens to your application.

UCAS Code

L301

Apply Via UCAS

Get in touch

Dr Jenny Lewin-Jones

Sociology Admissions Tutor, Jenny Lewin-Jones
j.lewin-jones@worc.ac.uk

Admissions Office

admissions@worc.ac.uk
01905 855111

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