Bachelor's degree in Criminology

Introduction

Objectives and competences

Objectives

• To learn how to carry out a systematic analysis and scientifically describe various criminal phenomena in current society.
• To develop in-depth knowledge of the main objectives of criminological analysis: crime, victims and social control.
• To train students in the scientific explanation of crime, based on knowledge and the use of criminological theories drawn from empirical evidence and scientific consensus.
• To train students to apply the knowledge they have gained in the analysis and prediction of crime risks in specific social situations and contexts.
• To train in the use of scientific information to make effective proposals on the prevention, control and reduction of crime.
   

Competences

Generic Competences

• Commitment to ethical practice (critical and self-critical capabilities/capacity to demonstrate attitudes consistent with accepted notions of ethical practice).
• Capacity for learning and responsibility (capacity for analysis and synthesis, to adopt global perspectives and to apply the knowledge acquired/capacity to take decisions and adapt to new situations).
• Ability to work in a team (capacity to collaborate with others and contribute to a common project/capacity to work in cross-disciplinary and multicultural teams).
• Creative and entrepreneurial skills (capacity to conceive, design and manage projects/capacity to research and integrate new knowledge and approaches).
• Concern for sustainability (capacity to assess the social and environmental impact of actions taken in a particular setting/capacity to adopt integrated and systemic approaches).
• Appreciation of the importance of gender equality.

Specific competences

• Theoretical and practical understanding of the principal scientific theories on the human psyche and human behaviour and their relevance to the analysis of criminal behaviour.
• Understanding of the fundamental rights of individuals involved in criminal proceedings, particularly with respect to privacy, security and freedom.
• Understanding of the basic concepts of public law, the structural principles of the State and the structure and foundations of political systems and institutions.
• Basic theoretical and practical knowledge of legal medicine and forensic science.
• Understanding of the basic concepts of sociology, the main sociological theories and the principal aspects and processes of Spanish and Catalan society.
• Sociological and analytical understanding of deviance, delinquency and control, legal changes and social problems.
• Knowledge of the structure and operation of the sentence enforcement system in Spain and alternative measures, including those applicable to minors.
• Understanding of the structure of the criminal justice system and the agents involved, including the structure of powers held by security forces and bodies.
• Knowledge of current and historical theories on criminality, the phenomenology of criminal behaviour and types of crime.
• Understanding of the fundamental scientific and methodological principles of criminology and capacity to apply the data collection and analysis techniques commonly used in this discipline.
• Knowledge of the principal psychological factors involved in career criminality and capacity to apply techniques for predicting the risk of violent and criminal behaviour.
• Critical understanding of the scientific, ethical and legal aspects of the means-end relationship in the prevention and processing of criminal behaviour.
• Understanding of the legal framework applicable to public and private security, the connections between society, the police and private security, and the planning and management of security activity.
• Capacity to conceive, design and manage legislative projects in the area of social intervention and action.
• Ability to review and synthesize criminological information for the expert analysis of a specific situation of case, and understanding of the possible influence of this analysis on the decision-making process.
• Up to date understanding of organized crime (terrorism, state crime, professional crime, drugs and sects).
   

Access and admission

Applicant profile and access requirements

Recommended applicant profile

Applicants for the bachelor's degree in Criminology at the University of Barcelona should be concerned about social issues, democracy, the rule of law, coexistence and diversity, and collective well-being. They should be broad-minded, innovative people who can adopt a scientific approach. Applicants must be clearly motivated to learn and take on new ideas, and have a certain degree of altruism.

The ideal criminology student is a person who wants to obtain professional training on the concepts of security, justice and well-being; someone who has understood that people's safety, the modernization of institutions, or plurality and coexistence are essential issues in the risk society, with implications for security and for the economic and social development of the country; someone who wants to build a professional career in these areas.

Access requirements and conditions

Admission for students with studies completed outside Spain.

Applicants holding higher educational qualifications from a university outside Spain should consult the page Admission with foreign qualifications to find out about specific admission requirements.
 

Pre-enrolment

Students that have studied abroad and who wish to study at the University of Barcelona may be admitted to EHEA bachelor's degree courses. Procedures for gaining admission will depend on the qualifications held by each applicant.

For further information about admission, consult the page Admission with foreign qualifications.
 

Enrolment

As a general rule, at the UB you will be required to enrol online via the Món UB portal. To find out the date and time you have been assigned, check the specific information for your course. Remember that you can lose your place if you do not enrol on the day you have been assigned.

Academic information

• Documents required for enrolment
• Procedure to formalize enrolment
• After enrolment
• Grants and financial aid
  

Welcome

Support and guidance

Pre-enrolment information and events

• Welcome portal
• Student Support Service (SAE)
• Open days
• Informative sessions

 

Course curriculum

Subjects and course plans

Distribution of credits

List of subjects

FIRST YEAR

Subject	Language	Type	Credits
Contemporary Political and Social History	1st semester	Basic training	6
Introduction to Criminology	1st semester	Basic training	6
Introduction to Public Law	1st semester	Basic training	6
Introduction to Sociology	1st semester	Basic training	6
Techniques in Work and Communication	1st semester	Basic training	6
Constitutional and Fundamental Rights	2nd semester	Basic training	6
English for Criminology	2nd semester	Basic training	6
Introduction to Political Systems	2nd semester	Basic training	6
Introduction to Psychology	2nd semester	Basic training	6
Statistics and Data Analysis	2nd semester	Basic training	6

SECOND YEAR

Subject	Language	Type	Credits
Criminal Theory I	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Legal Medicine and Forensic Science	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Methodology in Science	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Principles of Criminal Law and Theory of Crime	1st semester	Compulsory	9
Criminal Psychology	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Criminal Theory II	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Criminal Typology	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Sociology of Law	2nd semester	Compulsory	6

THIRD YEAR

Subject	Language	Type	Credits
Delinquency and Social Control	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Juvenile Delinquency	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Modes of Criminal Behaviour	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Research Techniques in Criminology I	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Criminal Policy	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Criminal Proceedings	2nd semester	Compulsory	9
Research Techniques in Criminology II	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Safety and Prevention Policy	2nd semester	Compulsory	6

FOURTH YEAR

Subject	Language	Type	Credits
Prediction, Prevention and Treatment of Criminal Offence	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Public Program and Policy Assessment	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Sexual and Gender Delinquency	1st semester	Compulsory	6
Final Project	1st semester 2nd semester	Compulsory final project	6
Penology and Criminal Law	2nd semester	Compulsory	6
Victimology	1st semester 2nd semester	Compulsory	6

OPTIONAL YEAR

Subject	Language	Type	Credits
Alternative Means of Conflict Resolution	2nd semester	Optional	3
Crime and Road Safety	2nd semester	Optional	3
Crime Science	2nd semester	Optional	3
Cybercrime	2nd semester	Optional	6
Delinquency in the State, in Organizations and in Professions	1st semester	Optional	3
Drugs and Toxicology	1st semester	Optional	3
Expert Criminology	1st semester	Optional	3
Fanaticism and Violence	1st semester	Optional	3
Institutional or Company Placement	1st semester 2nd semester	Practices	6
International Criminal Cooperation	2nd semester	Optional	6
Legal Psychology	1st semester	Optional	3
Minor Law	2nd semester	Optional	3
Minorities and Equality	2nd semester	Optional	3
Organized Crime and Terrorism	2nd semester	Optional	3
Police Law	2nd semester	Optional	3
Prison Management	2nd semester	Optional	3
Public Policies	1st semester	Optional	6
Safety and Risk Analysis and Management	1st semester	Optional	3
Social and Educational Care of Offenders	1st semester	Optional	3
Sociology of Police and Policing	2nd semester	Optional	3
Treatment of Violent Offenders	1st semester	Optional	3
Victimology	1st semester	Optional	6

Pathways and specializations

Minor in Safety and Prevention
Minor in Forensic Criminology and Application of Criminal Law
Pathway without Specialization
Check the planning of the different pathways of the degree

Previous years

• Course plans 2021 - 2022
• Course plans 2020 - 2021
• Course plans 2019 - 2020

Teaching staff

List of spring and autum teaching staff at teaching on a current course

Placements

Placements are supervised by tutors and subject to assessment.They are therefore included in the academic record.  There is also an option to complete non-curricular placements of up to 500 hours, which can be extended to 900 hours. For both curricular and non-curricular placements, an educational cooperation agreement is signed between the UB and the company, institution or other organization at which the placement will be carried out.
 

Institutional information

• Regulations on external placements
• FeinaUB

Career opportunities

What can you work on ?

The main career opportunities for graduates in criminology are in the following areas.

• Police and security forces: victimology, criminal science and police science.
• Prisons: rehabilitation programme design, technical teams, reports.
• Prison supervision: inmate monitoring, procedures and reports, advisors to supervising judges, technical team for observation centres.
• Victimology: management of victim care units, primary care for victims, reports and surveys, field work, prevention strategies.
• Private security: managers of security companies, training of security staff, consultancy.
• Law: criminal databases, writing and monitoring reports and statistics, forensic criminology.
• Justice for minors: control of probation and imprisonment, reports on measures and the development of the minor, processes of conciliation or reparation, treatment programmes, assessment and action in situations of risk.
• Marginality: studies, field work, preventive strategies.
• Criminal policy: diverse strategies and techniques.
   

Access to the labour market

Data from the university system in Catalonia

Contact us

Faculty of Law

Diagonal, 684 - 08034 Barcelona

Secretary: 934 020 127
sec.dret@ub.edu

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