BA (Hons) Criminology and Psychology course preparation

Suggested reading

You’ll be given lots of information about which textbooks to read and introduced to the University Library, as well as the many ebooks we have for you to access, when you begin your studies in September.

In the meantime, there are a few textbooks you might like to read before starting your degree if you can. We don’t recommend rushing out to buy texts before you arrive. But if you can pick these up second hand, borrow from a library or access online, we suggest the following:

• Croall H (2011) Crime and Society in Britain, 2nd Ed, Pearson
• Muncie J & McLaughlin E (2013) Sage Dictionary of Criminology, 3rd Ed, Sage
• Newburn T, (2017) Criminology, 3rd Ed, Willan Publishing
• Carlson, Buskist, & Martin (any year from 4th edition onwards) Psychology: The Science of Behavior: Pearson Education
• Eysenck, M.W., & Keane, M.T. (2015). Cognitive psychology: A students’ handbook (7th ed). London: Lawrence Erlbaum
• Pinel, J.P.J. (2017) Biopsychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon

During your first week, you’ll be provided with electronic copies of the academic programme handbook and an administrative rules and procedures handbook. The contents of each will be explained during your first formal introductory sessions. You’ll also be required to attend a range of introductory sessions where tutors and other staff members will provide you with guidance on how to access and use our virtual learning platform, Blackboard, our library, and the roles of various colleagues in the School and Departments, such as your personal tutor.

You’ll also be provided with a handbook for each individual module that will include details of the aims and outcomes for each module. These will include details of the teaching and learning methods, assessment methods and weightings, assessment criteria, details on coursework submission and feedback dates and procedures, extension procedures, module attendance requirements and details of the title and contents of your weekly module lectures and weekly seminar/workshop tasks and the supporting reading for each topic comprehensive reading list of key texts.

Useful websites

Things to do over summer

There are several things which you can do to start to prepare for your studies over the summer:

Join our community

Follow our School and our student societies on social media so that you can start connecting with your colleagues and chat to current students about their experiences.

Connect with us on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is the largest professional networking site with over 610 million members worldwide. It is very useful for networking and securing opportunities.

Find advice on creating a LinkedIn profile.

Once you have created your profile, join our School group and connect with your lecturers and your colleagues, along with employers as you progress through your degree so that you gradually build your network.

Get prepared for your academic studies

• Reading is at the core of doing a degree programme, however, this does not mean exclusively academic reading. Creative writing, biographies etc. can also provide useful insights to supplement your academic reading.
• Film and documentaries can also be a rich source of information, however, be critical in your viewing, just because it appears on a channel purporting to focus on the ‘facts’ regarding crime doesn’t mean it does. Much of it should be seen for what it is, entertainment. See some of the resources above.