Program Overview
The Criminology and Criminal Justice at The University of Edinburgh is a MSc programme in Humanities over 12 months, delivered On-campus. This programme equips graduates with advanced knowledge and practical skills for professional and academic careers in the field.
Students gain a rigorous grounding in both the theoretical foundations and applied dimensions of humanities. The programme combines coursework, research components, and practical projects that develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and specialist expertise relevant to industry and research needs.
Graduates of the Criminology and Criminal Justice programme are well-prepared for careers in academia, industry, government, and the private sector across United Kingdom and internationally. The programme provides an internationally recognised qualification within the Bologna higher education framework.
Key Program Features
- Duration: 12 months
- Language of instruction: English
- Study mode: On-campus
- English requirement: IELTS 7
- Tuition: GBP 19,300 (Tuition (Year)) — International students; GBP 9,500 (Tuition (Year)) — EU/EEA students
- Location: Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Career Opportunities
Graduates of the Criminology and Criminal Justice programme are prepared for diverse careers in humanities:
- Researcher / Academic
- Cultural Programme Manager
- Editor / Writer
- Translator / Interpreter
- Museum Curator
- Communications Specialist
Program Curriculum
You will complete 180 credits of study. 120 credits will be taken in compulsory and optional taught courses. The remaining 60 credits are taken in the form of a compulsory dissertation. You will be taught by, and study with, members of the Law School academic community.
For the dissertation you will be allocated an academic supervisor from Law School staff. They will provide structure, guidance, and support for the process, but the purpose of the dissertation is to allow you to independently design and conduct a piece of research and analysis. The dissertation topic must connect to one of the taught courses that you have completed.
Compulsory courses
You must take these courses:
- Theoretical Criminology (20 credits, must be taken in Semester 1)
- Criminological Research Methods (20 credits, must be taken in Semester 1)
Core courses
You must take 20 credits of the following courses:
- Criminal Justice and Penal Process (20 credits)
- Global Crime and Insecurity (20 credits)
Option courses
You must take 60 credits of the following courses:
- Citizenship in Europe (20 credits)
- Current Issues in Criminal Law (20 credits)
- Cybercrime and Cyber Security (20 credits)
- Police and Policing (20 credits)
- Responding to Global Crime and Insecurity (20 credits)
- Sexual Offending and the Law (20 credits)
- Applied Criminological Research Methods (20 credits)
- Surveillance and Security (20 credits)
- Sentencing: International Perspectives (20 credits)
- Visual Criminology (20 credits)
Full details of the programme structure and course options are available on the Law School's website.
Disclaimer
Courses shown above are scheduled to run in the 2025-26 academic year and are subject to change in future academic years. Courses for the 2026-27 academic year will be confirmed by May 2026.
Due to unforeseen circumstances or lack of demand for particular courses, we may not be able to run all courses as advertised come the start of the academic year.
Admission Requirements
Academic Requirements
You need the following GPA score:
Applicants for graduate programs must have the equivalent of a bachelor\xe2\x80\x99s degree with a minimum GPA equivalent to Upper Second Class on the UK Honour scale. Admitted applicants typically have an undergraduate GPA of or better on the UK Honour scale. No exam grade should be lower than 4.5 (European grade scale) or D (American grade scale).
Your GPA (Grade Point Average) is calculated using the grades that you received in each course, and is determined by the points assigned to each grade (e.g. for the US grading scale from A-F).
Entry Requirements
The minimum basic admission requirement for taught postgraduate degrees is a UK Upper Second Class (2:1) honours degree or its international equivalent, in Law or Social Sciences.
If you have a non-UK degree, please check whether your degree qualification is equivalent to the minimum standard before applying.
English Language RequirementsIf your first language is not English, you will be required to show that you have obtained one of the following:
- Grade 7 in the British Council\'s IELTS test - with at least 6.5 in each section.
- 100 in the TOEFL internet based test - no score lower than 23 in each section.
- 67 in the Pearson Test of English (PTE) - no score lower than 61 in each of the \xc2\x93Communicative Skills\xc2\x94 sections \xc2\x96 \xc2\x93Enabling Skills\xc2\x94 section scores are not considered.
- Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE)\xc2\xa0and\xc2\xa0Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE): total 185 - at least 176 in each module.
- Trinity\xc2\xa0ISE:\xc2\xa0ISE\xc2\xa0III with a pass in all four components
All tests must be taken within two years of the proposed start date.\xc2\xa0 Any English language proficiency tests results older than two years will not be considered.
Your application may not be successful if you do not currently satisfy any of these requirements; alternatively, you may be offered a place conditional on your reaching the satisfactory standard by the time you start the degree.
The University runs a series of programmes for English Language Education, including a pre-sessional English Language Programme intended to strengthen your English Language skills before you start your programme of study.
English Proficiency: IELTS 7 or equivalent.
Tuition & Financial Information
Tuition Fee
GBP 19,300 (Tuition (Year)) — International students; GBP 9,500 (Tuition (Year)) — EU/EEA students
Tuition fees: GBP 19,300 (Tuition (Year)) — International students; GBP 9,500 (Tuition (Year)) — EU/EEA students
IELTS requirement: 7
Financial Aid & Scholarships
Contact The University of Edinburgh directly for scholarship, grant, and financial aid information for this programme. Many European universities offer merit-based and need-based funding for international and domestic students.
About The University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
University of Edinburgh (Universitas Academica Edinburgensis) is a historic and globally respected public research university in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, founded in 1583, making it one of the...
University Profile- Application Deadline 2031-07-18
- Start Date 2018-09-01
- Language English
- Duration 12 months