This course allows you to specialise in the study of criminology within a social policy degree. It explores the nature, extent and causes of crime, justice, social harm and deviance in national and international contexts, as well as examining the policy responses to them within a broader conceptual and theoretical framework of social policy and related social science subjects.

The course seeks to address key questions such as: what are the serious crimes and other social harms that people experience? Why do they occur? How effective are criminal justice systems, policymakers and governments in tackling and responding to crimes and social harms? 

You will take compulsory first-year units that introduce you to the theoretical and conceptual debates about the meaning and existence of crime, harm and deviance in contemporary society, the way that crime is understood and represented and the range of responses to various crimes. In the second and third years you will learn about key thinkers in criminology and the policy responses to harm then select from optional units, which may include: Criminology Placement; Youth, Sexualities and Gendered Violence; Youth Justice; Punishment in Society; Globalisation, Crime Harm and Justice; Climate Emergency; Harms of the Powerful; Violence, Conflict and Forced Migration; Drugs and Society; and Understanding 'Terrorism'.

In your third year you will also complete a dissertation in a particular area of social policy or criminology that interests you.

Find out more about the course structure and units available for Social Policy with Criminology

A-level Standard offer	AAB
A-level Contextual offer What is a contextual offer?	BBB
International Baccalaureate Diploma Standard offer	34 points overall with 17 at Higher Level
International Baccalaureate Diploma Contextual offer What is a contextual offer?	31 points overall with 15 at Higher Level
Cambridge Pre-U offer	Requirements for principal subjects are as for A-level, where D1/ D2 is A*, D3 is A, M1/ M2 is B, and M3 is C.
Access to HE Diploma offer	Access to HE Diploma in Humanities, Social Sciences, Law or History (or similar titles). The 45 graded Level 3 credits must include at least 21 credits at Distinction and 24 at Merit or above. Mature students can contact mature-students@bristol.ac.uk to check the suitability of their Access course.
BTEC offer	DDD in any Applied General BTEC National Level 3 Extended Diploma
Scottish Qualifications Authority offer	Advanced Higher: AB, and Standard Higher: AAABB
Welsh Baccalaureate offer	Requirements are as for A-levels, where you can substitute a non-subject specific grade for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate at that grade.
European Baccalaureate offer	80% overall
UK qualifications	Further information about UK qualifications
International qualifications	Accepted international qualifications

Applicants must also meet these requirements

GCSE profile requirements	Profile: No specific subjects required. Further information about GCSE requirements and profile levels.
English language requirements	If English is not your first language, you need to meet this profile level: Profile C Further information about English language requirements and profile levels.