Criminology and Psychology 2018/2019

Hello again!!

What made me go for this course was my love for Sociology and Psychology A-Level combined with my interest in criminal behaviour. I have always wanted to analyse the development and influence of personality disorders on later adult behavior factoring in individual differences, societal structure, criminological explanations and neurological studies in assessing why people develop in differing ways. I feel the course encompasses all that I wish to study. The notion of becoming a Forensic Psychologist or researcher was of keen interest. That's why, in summary, I picked the course!

There are people out there who will try and say a joint psychology degree is less valued. Let me dispel those myths. It firstly depends on which area of psychology you wish to pursue and the subject combination. Criminology and Psychology are actually very complimentary. The course at the University of Southampton is accredited by the British Psychological Society. We study all core and compulsory modules necessary to gain equal recognition. In my case, I am acutely interested in forensic, sociological as well as psychological underpinnings to human comportment so the course is more than ideal!

With straight Psychology you get to pick extra modules that are outside your field of study such as modules in Biology, Languages, History etc... you get the gist. With the joint degree option, unfortunately in first year you do not get to pick any subjects outside of your curriculum which would be made up of Psychology, Criminology and Sociology. Yes your weekly timetable will have Sociology, Psychology and Criminology lectures. That is probably the only con I can think of for my particular course. This only applies to first year however.

In my opinion I believe joint degrees to be slightly more challenging in regards to work load, deadlines, assignment and exam load. Time management is essential! I imagine them to be equally respected and have never heard of any employer looking down on joint honor students who study complimentary subjects within the joint framework that gives them a sound and reasoned understanding of their main subject (Psychology) in further depth by analyzing alternative perspectives. If you enjoy humanities as well as psychological reasoning then the course is perfect for you!

I know the entry requirements are lower than straight Psychology so some people would be inclined to "think" it is a lesser respected option, however let me explain why it has a lower entry requirement. The BSc Criminology and Psychology degree falls under the "Social Sciences" department as the main department shared with the Psychology department meaning the subject Criminology informs the main entry standard. Hence why the BSc Criminology and Psychology course has the same entry requirement of AAB or ABB as the straight BSc Criminology degree. If you look at the other joint Psychology degrees offered at the University of Southampton such as Education and Psychology or Psychology with Law they have the same entry requirements as straight Psychology which is of AAA or AAB. Thats because they fall under the "Psychology" department. Thats not to say Criminology is more dominant than Psychology. Within the joint degree you will be studying both subjects at a ratio of 50:50. It just happens that the course BSc Criminology and Psychology falls under the Social Sciences and Policy department. I hope that makes sense.... So no, they are both respected.

What matters the most is gaining relevant experience through volunteering, getting a 2:1 or first class honours degree as opposed to worrying about straight Psychology vs Joint Psychology.

I would be inclined to say that in regards to career options studying Criminology and Psychology broadens your options a tad bit more than straight Psychology, but that is not to say that straight Psychology is inferior. Again, they are equal in measure.

In relation to grades, for BSc Criminology and Psychology standard entry requirements are as listed below:

1) No specific subjects are required (Although would personally recommend a mix between Science and Humanities. For example; I initially did Psychology, Sociology, Government & Politics and French (AS). Yes Psychology is listed as a scientific subject!!)

2) GCSE Maths and English at minimum grade C or 4

3) AAB across 3 A Levels in any subject

4) Alternative offer of ABB with an A in the Extended Project Qualification

5) Contextual offer is ABB from three A levels or an equivalent standard in other qualifications (Approved by University)

I hope all of this information has helped. In summary, now you understand why the entry requirements are different for straight vs joint Psychology!

Best of luck to you btw!!!!! What are you studying currently?

Thank you SOOOO much! I'm taking psychology, sociology and biology at A-Level right now (as well as an EPQ).

My dream job right now is to become a forensic psychologist, so we're quite similar!

Haha no worries! Glad it helped and good luck with which ever option you choose to go for! You could even apply for both, see which one you get!!!

I don’t think you’ll have a problem getting in achieving ABB with A in EPQ... always good to over achieve though!

Good luck with pursuing forensic psychology!

This was really helpful to read thank you! I'm also hoping to eventually become a Forensic Psychologist, I'm 25 so I'll be a mature student and I've just sent my application for Criminology/Psychology Bsc, I only managed CC grades at A-level (English Lit and Psychology) mainly due to having scoliosis at the time and missing classes. I know that my grades fall short of the AAB-BBB my course asked for, I've written the best personal statement possible and I did get pretty good grades at GCSE (Mostly A's and B's), I'm applying for a foundation course also as a backup plan, just wondering if there is anyone else on your course with grades that low or is it basically just not going to happen unless I do a foundation? Just trying to give myself SOME hope haha

Hi Parkleton, I'm considering taking BSc Criminology and Psychology and Southampton next year and then going on to a MSc in Forensic Psychology. I have a few (maybe a lot) questions if you wouldn't mind answering?

1. Is there any disadvantage to do a joint degree if you want to advance to a masters? Are there any cons to doing a joint degree?


I found that for progression onto the Forensic Psychology Masters, the fact I did a joint degree was only helpful. It showed I had an interest in the forensic side of things and meant I had something interesting to talk about in interview. In terms of cons, because the course was run by the Social Sciences department but Psychology ran a lot of modules, it meant learning two different referencing systems (Harvard and APA), and my year was the first accredited year so there was a lot of confusion about how the degree worked, but I assume those issues have been ironed out now.

2. Can you get a masters loan?

Simply, yes. It has to cover your tuition fees AND maintenance though to be careful as its only just over £10,000.

3. Does doing a joint degree get confusing at all?

Not particularly - ultimately criminology and psychology are different disciplines so you learn entirely different things. There is some overlap, but that isn't deeply explored unless you choose particular modules or you go on to Masters level. As I said above, the only confusing thing was the referencing style and the fact that it was the first accredited year.

4. From my research, Southampton is *maybe* the best uni that offers a BPS accredited psychology and criminology course - is this why you chose it?

I chose the course because I wanted to do two subjects (because I'm fairly bad at making decisions) and the BPS accreditation kept my options open. The fact that Southampton is a Russell Group was a bonus too.

5. For first year accommodation, what would be close to the psychology facilities as well as shops? I'm asking because I'm quite introverted and rarely go out, so I'd prefer not to go too far to get a basic shop.

At Southampton, none of the halls are on campus, so it makes no difference to be close to facilities for your subject. In fact, the Social Sciences and Psychology buildings are the furthest you can get from any of the accommodation. I lived at Wessex Lane, which I chose because it was a party halls, but I know a lot of people that lived at Glen Eyre. Its green, walking distance from uni and near the road where there's a small Sainsbury's, Tesco's and Co-Op. You also get a free bus pass in your first year, and can walk down to campus and hop on the bus down to Portswood, where there's a big Sainsbury's. I also know that a lot of people at Glen used to get their shopping delivered, which may be an option.

6. Are the societies good?

It depends what you're looking for. I didn't really get that involved in societies, which i regret a little bit, as I was more keen for volunteering etc. There are over 250 societies to cater for pretty much any interest, including Quiddich and Cake Decorating! They have this massive event during Freshers week called the Bunfight, where societies have all of their stalls and you can go to taster days. Would definitely recommend.

7. What kind of GCSEs and A-Levels did you get? I didn't work hard enough for my GCSEs and I'm disappointed with my results.

At GCSE I got 12A's, 1B. At Alevel, I did English Lit (A), Product Design (A), General Studies (A) and Biology (C). My offer was ABB (General Studies wasn't part of the offer), so I actually missed my offer but because I got equivalent I was let in. Although my A2 results were pretty good, at AS I got ACCDE, so it took a lot or hard work to bring it back round. Its definitely achievable if you work hard. A helpful tip: I obviously didn't do any relevant subjects at A-level, so I did an EPQ on the death penalty, and did lots of extra reading so I had something to write about in my personal statement - it makes you look keen!

Thanks in advance.. maybe I'll think of a few more questions later.

Did anybody find out something about the course timtable?

I am a little confused..could you tell me if we are allowed to choose optional modules in the first year?

BSc Criminology and Psychology student do not choose optional modules in the first year. Because we will be sharing lectures with straight Criminology and straight Psychology students I was referring to them.

BSc Criminology and Psychology student do not choose optional modules in the first year. Also, we will be sharing lectures with straight Criminology and straight Psychology students I was referring to them. That's why timetabling will most likely be after the option module choice deadline.

Thank you!!!