print version

Criminology - Faculty of Arts

Offered by the School of Political and Social Inquiry

Campus availability: Caulfield, Clayton, South Africa

* NOTE: A minor only is offered on the South Africa campus.

Relevant courses

• 3780 Diploma in Arts (Criminology)
• 0002 Bachelor of Arts (and associated double degrees)
• 3910 Bachelor of Arts (Global)
• 0202 Bachelor of Letters

Crime is an issue that all citizens and governments confront on a daily basis. The causes of crime, the crime problem and how it should be dealt with, are the subject of intense debate. The criminology major, which is offered on the Caulfield and Clayton campuses, provides students with the skills to understand the complexities of crime, to learn about the various stages of the criminal justice system, to critically analyse its workings and tensions, and to explore alternative strategies. Criminology students can combine an interest in areas such as policing, courts, punishment and prisons, transnational crime and international justice, criminological theory, crime and the media, crime and politics, crime prevention and victims of crime in order to broaden their career options in criminal justice and allied areas.

Students learn to critically analyse issues of crime at the local, state, national, and global level. The two first-year units introduce students to various facets of crime and how it is dealt with by the criminal justice system. Second and third-year units build on the knowledge gained in first year and offer students the opportunity to critically analyse and evaluate crime-related issues in greater depth.

Graduates with a major or minor in criminology may find employment in a wide range of fields, including police, courts, corrections, human services, attorney-general departments, departments of justice, law reform commissions, ombudsman offices, anti-corruption commissions, local government and the private sector.

Sequences

First year sequence

A first year sequence in criminology consists of CRI1001 and CRI1002.

Minor sequence

A minor sequence consists of a first-year sequence totalling 12 points, plus second-year level studies to the value of 12 points chosen from the units listed below.

Major sequence

Students complete a standard major chosen from the units listed below.

Units

First-year level

• CRI1001 Understanding crime
• CRI1002 Criminal justice in action: Police, courts and corrections

Second/Third-year level

Criminology units

• CRI2005/CRI3005 Crime and politics: Myths and realities
• CRI2008/CRI3008 Crime and the media
• CRI2010/CRI3010 Legal studies: Law and society
• CRI2015/CRI3015 Police and society
• CRI2020/CRI3020 Punishment, power and justice
• CRI2030/CRI3030 Drugs, crime and society
• CRI2050/CRI3050 International crime and justice
• CRI2140/CRI3140 Sex and crime
• CRI2270/CRI3270 Victimology

• AIS2060/AIS3060 Indigenous legal issues
• ANY2160/ANY3160 Understanding prejudice and discrimination
• BHS2340/BHS3240 The criminal mind
• HSY2050/HSY3050 Fears and fantasies: Deviance in history
• HSY2055/HSY3055 Murder and mayhem: The London underworld from the eighteenth to the twentieth century
• PLT2650/PLT3650 Terrorism and political violence
• SCY2261/SCY3261 Social research methods

NOTE: Students who commenced prior to 2006 may also include the following units as electives:

• AIS2040/AIS3040 Aborigines and the law
• SCY2150/SCY3150 Sociological research techniques for public policy

Contact details

Enquiries (Clayton): room W1017, West Wing, Menzies building; telephone +61 3 9905 2443

Enquiries (Caulfield): room H5.31, building H; telephone +61 3 9903 2378

Email psi@arts.monash.edu.au

Visit http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/psi