BA Criminology and Sociology
About this course
BA (Hons) Criminology and Sociology, a joint honours degree exploring the intersection of crime, society, justice systems and social structures. Core topics include Research Methods. Students can choose to undertake an optional placement year, study abroad for a year, or complete a foundation year. The first year covers core disciplinary foundations through modules such as 21st Century Sociology, Critical Reading and Writing for Criminologists, Themes and Perspectives in Sociology I, and Understanding the Criminal Justice System. The second year introduces research design through Designing Social Research, alongside optional studies covering digital societies, policing, gender, and social change. The final year offers independent study options through the Criminology Project and Sociology Project, with further optional modules exploring carceral technologies, terrorism, human rights, and the death penalty.
Written by AI from the university's course page and module list. It can get details wrong, so check the official course page before you rely on it.
Entry requirements
A level: ABB or BBB IB: 30 points
What students say
Based on about 13 final-year students who answered (a small group: a rough guide only)
- Teaching on my course: 85%
- Learning opportunities: 85%
- Assessment and feedback: 80%
- Academic support: 92%
- Organisation and management: 92%
- Learning resources: 94%
- Student voice: 74%
Do students stay on the course?
Based on about 15 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- Continued on course: 100%
Where graduates work (5 years on)
Based on about 110 graduates, across similar courses at this university
- East Midlands: 2%
- East of England: 10%
- London: 44%
- South East: 38%
- South West: 5%
Who gets in
Based on about 25 students who started (a small group: a rough guide only)
- A levels: 90%
- Other qualifications: 10%
Accreditation & quality ratings
TEF 2023 (whole university): Silver overall, Bronze for student experience, Silver for student outcomes.
Modules
- 21st Century Sociology
- Critical Reading and Writing for Criminologists
- Themes and Perspectives in Sociology I
- Thinking Like a Criminologist
- Criminology in Theory and Perspective
- Making the Familiar Strange
- Themes and Perspectives in Sociology II
- Understanding the Criminal Justice System
- Designing Social Research
- A Sociology of Generations and Social Change? From Passive to Active Generations
- Citizenship, Activism and Resistance
- Crime and the Media (Aut)
- Digital Societies
- Drugs, Crime and Deviant Leisure
- Gender, Crime and Justice
- Identity, Violence and Transgression
- Into the Lions Den: An Exploration (A)
- Migration and Integration (Aut)
- Police and Policing
- Sociology of Emotions and Mental Health
- The Climate Crisis, Criminology & the Justice System
- The Politics of Criminalisation (Autumn)
- Class, Culture & Conflict: A View from The Inside
- Classical Sociological Theory
- Doing Social Research: working with qualitative data
- Education and Inequality
- Precarity and the Politics of Work (Spr)
- Punishment and Penology (Spr)
- Real World Consultancy - Sociology and Criminology in the Workplace
- Social Research Methods: Analysing Quantitative Data
- The Alchemy of Race and Racism (Spring)
- The Sociology of Human Rights
- Victimology and Emotion
- Criminology Project
- Sociology Project
- (Im)mobilities and the Criminal Justice System
- Carceral Technologies
- Class, Power and the State (Aut)
- Coloniality, Racism and Inequality
- Crimes against Humanity (Aut)
- Critical Perspectives on Terrorism
- Digital Activism and Citizenship in Datafied Societies
- Migration, Identity, and Home
- Sexualities / Intimacies / Intersections (Aut)
- Sociology of Family, Reproduction & Care (Aut)
- Technology and the Human
- The Death Penalty
- Capitalism, Growth, and Ecological Crisis
- Criminology of Violence and Death
- Inequalities Across the Divides
- Neurocriminology
- Riots, Strikes, Revolts
- Temporalities - Histories - Hauntologies (Spr)
- The Body (Spr)
- Transcendence, Devotion and Desire
- Understanding Gangs (Spr)
- Visual Criminology (Spr)
Questions about this course
How much do graduates of BA Criminology and Sociology at University of Sussex earn?
The median salary is £24,000 after 3 years, £33,000 after 5 years. After five years the middle half of graduates earn between £26,000 and £39,500. The £33,000 median after five years is £6,500 more than the UK median for Sociology.
Are students happy with the teaching on BA Criminology and Sociology at University of Sussex?
85% of final-year students were positive about the teaching in the National Student Survey 2025-26.
What grades do I need for BA Criminology and Sociology at University of Sussex?
The typical offer is ABB at A level, or 30 points in the IB. The average entrant had 115 UCAS points.
Does BA Criminology and Sociology at University of Sussex include a placement year or year abroad?
The course has an optional placement year and an optional year abroad.
How many students continue on BA Criminology and Sociology at University of Sussex?
100% of students continued into their second year, and 0% left higher education.