At the University of Sunderland, we’ve been offering serving police officers a specialist investigative qualification for over ten years. However, in recent times we’ve focused on expanding our courses to cater both to in-service police officers and those starting out and looking to begin a career in policing.
As part of this expansion, we’re hugely excited to introduce our brand-new BSc Policing Studies (Top-up) course taught by academics with decades of experience in the police service. There’s also still time to enrol as we have places remaining on this course for September 2021 entry.
We also have a range of other undergraduate and postgraduate degrees available that have been deliberately designed to be flexible, with both full-time study and part-time to complement working patterns.
This course has been developed directly from feedback given by regional police units and colleges. The curriculum has been mapped with the National Policing Curriculum to allow students to gain a degree qualification in either 12 or 24 months of study and examines some of the most important issues facing modern policing today. Our entry requirements ask for serving police officers with a minimum two years of service or other relevant qualifications such as a HE diploma or FdA will also be considered.
The Policing Studies (Top-up) aside, we also have a range of other undergraduate and postgraduate degrees available that have been deliberately designed to be flexible, with both full-time study and part-time to complement working patterns. These courses cover specialist subjects including; investigative interviewing within major crime, family liaison and leadership and management in the criminal justice system.
If you’re looking to enhance your existing knowledge, skills or qualifications, some of these options include:
The BA (Hons) Applied Investigation degree allows students to participate in work-based learning and attain an honours degree in just six contact days over 18 months. You’ll be encouraged to focus on your areas of interest within the workplace and critically reflect on investigative practice.
The course is led by Gary Shaw and our students really benefit from Gary’s wealth of investigative knowledge. Gary is widely considered to be one of the key figures in changing the way suspects are interviewed across the country. The content of the course was developed with senior police officers and members of NPCC, making it highly relevant to those wanting to upskill in this area.
Similarly to the BA Applied Investigation, our MA Investigative Management has been developed in consultation with senior police representatives and addresses current sector needs in policing. This course also has a substantive professional experience component and is deliberately designed to be flexible to suit differing work schedules. Students who complete the MA will enhance their leadership and management skills in the context of investigative policing and will be qualified for more senior positions.
Also brand-new for this year, we’ve introduced a highly exciting and unique MSc course in Leadership in Criminal Justice and Policing. It is applicable to applicants from a range of sectors and focuses on leadership within the police and other criminal justice organisations. As part of the course content, students will study some of the most topical criminological issues in the modern day, including inequality and vulnerability in the criminal justice system, international criminality and criminological theory.
What really makes this course unique is that it bridges the gap between academic research and professional practice, examining different criminological theories and institutional practices. Teaching and learning will be conducted both online and on-campus to facilitate a range of working circumstances.
There’s still time to apply
Interested in applying for one of our courses? We still have spaces on our courses for entry in September 2021 and applications will open soon for 2022. Visit the University of Sunderland website to find out more about each course mentioned above and how to apply.
