Policing

Explore the criminal justice system, crime scene investigation, cyber crime and the treatment of offenders on our Professional Policing and Criminal Justice programmes.  

Are you interested in: modern policing, applied criminology, social psychology, and the law? Do you want to learn about the Criminal Justice System, why people offend, how to run an investigation, preserve a crime scene, protect vulnerable adults and children, and use criminal intelligence? Our Professional Policing and Criminal Justice programmes provide all this and more.  

Our BSc (Hons) degree in Professional Policing is accredited by the College of Policing and is a pre-join route for entry into the police force. Both our Policing and Criminal Justice programmes are taught by a mix of academics, pracademics and practitioners with a wealth of experience in policing, law enforcement and academic research in the criminal justice system and the management of offender behaviour.  

As a Policing or Criminal Justice student, depending on your programme, you can study core modules on areas such as the Criminal Justice Process, Mental Health and Offending, Youth Justice, The Politics of Policing, Public Protection, Vulnerability and Risk, Policing Communities, Criminal Investigation and Investigative Interviewing, Counter Terrorism and Digital Policing and Cybercrime. As a Criminal Justice student, you can also select from a broad range of optional modules, including Cyber Risk and Incident Management, Violence and Society, and Cyber Crime and Criminal Justice.  

At our School, we pride ourselves on providing not only an excellent academic experience but also a supportive environment where you can thrive. We offer a broad range of extra-curricular activities to enhance your university experience, which includes our student-led Criminal Justice Society and Policing Society, wellbeing weeks, work placement modules, insight days at Police Force Headquarters (e.g. Merseyside, Cumbria and Greater Manchester), educational visits to, for example, prisons and Liverpool Football Club – to learn about policing crowds – and specialist workshops.

Real World Experience  

Joining our Policing and Criminal Justice programmes means you’re embarking on an immersive learning experience, with opportunities to put your learning into practice in our on-campus Moot Court Room and our Police Training and Simulation Facility (‘Crime House’). In our crime house, Policing students can undertake crime scene work, investigative interviewing, arrest, custody, and suspect welfare work. For Criminal Justice students, you will have the opportunity to undertake practice-focused modules, including in cybercrime, and will be required to complete the work experience module, gaining valuable insights into the criminal justice field.  

You will also benefit from being taught by our expert team of internationally recognised academics and former Chief Superintendents, Detective Chief Superintendents, Directors of Intelligence, Criminal Intelligence Analysts and Cyber Crime specialists, and can take advantage of our extensive industry links. 

We organise regular events where you can network with employers and former students to build your connections and gain valuable insights into your future career. 

Your Future Career 

Whether you are planning a career in the criminal justice system, policing or a career in another field of expertise, our BSc Professional Policing and BSc Criminal Justice programmes will develop your transferable skills and inspire you to reach your career goals. 

Recent Edge Hill Criminal Justice and Professional Policing students have gone on to have a wide variety of successful careers including: police officers in Forces across England and Wales; positions with the British Transport Police and the Civil Nuclear Constabulary; Policing and Law Enforcement Analysts; roles in Public Protection and Child and Youth Services and criminal and youth justice charities; for HM Prisons and Probation Service; and graduate training schemes in companies like Enterprise Cars.  

As a School, we are committed to enhancing your employability and helping you to find the right career path for you. Professional development opportunities are embedded into your programme or offered through extra-curricular activities, such as:  

• Practice-focused modules – develop your practical skills through our practice focused modules and state-of-the art Police Training and Simulation Facility (‘Crime House’), learning how to conduct interviews and investigate crime scenes.  

• Work Placement opportunities – whether taken as part of our work placement modules or as an extra-curricular activity, there are numerous opportunities to undertake work experience. 

• Careers Fairs, Alumni Panels, Site Visits – benefit from our extensive networks with the Probation Service, Home Office and Police Forces in England and Wales, grow your network and build connections with our specialist School Careers Fair and Alumni Panel events.

Get involved

Policing society

Facilities

A dedicated Police Training and Simulation Facility (Crime House), part of which is furbished as a police station, is used to simulate a wide range of crime scenes, providing students with an immersive learning experience. The ‘Crime House’ includes a mock custody suite, mock living areas, interview rooms, a control room, and a state-of-the-art simulation suite.   

This enables Policing, Criminal Justice and Law students to work together on practical exercises, developed by our expert staff and based on real-life scenarios, in areas such as gathering and analysing evidence, (including forensic evidence at crime scenes), practicing interview techniques and supporting mock clients during a police interview.