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1. Admissions/ Management Information
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Title of the programme – including any lower awards
Please provide the titles used for all awards relating to this programme. Note: all programmes are required to have at least a Postgraduate Certificate exit award.

See guidance on programme titles in:
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https://www.york.ac.uk/media/staffhome/learningandteaching/documents/programmedevelopment/Framework%20for%20Programme%20Design%20-%20PG.pdf
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Masters Masters of Arts in Criminology and Social Research
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Postgraduate Diploma
PGDip
Criminology and Social Research
Please indicate if the Postgraduate Diploma is available as an entry point, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.Exit
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Postgraduate Certificate
PGCert
Criminology and Social Research
Please indicate if the Postgraduate Certificate is available as an entry points, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.Exit
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Level of qualificationLevel 7
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This document applies to students who commenced the programme(s) in:2021-22
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Awarding institutionTeaching institution
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University of York University of York
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Department(s):
Where more than one department is involved, indicate the lead department		Board of Studies
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Lead Department SociologySociology
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Other contributing Departments:
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Route code
(existing programmes only)		PSOCCRI
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Admissions criteria
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Applicants must have at least a 2:1 degree in sociology, criminology in a cognate discipline or equivalent suitable experience or qualifications.
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Length and status of the programme(s) and mode(s) of study
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ProgrammeLength (years/ months) Status (full-time/ part-time)
Please select		Start dates/months
(if applicable – for programmes that have multiple intakes or start dates that differ from the usual academic year)		Mode
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Face-to-face, campus-basedDistance learningOther
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MA Criminology and Social Research1 year full-timeFull-timeMonday, September 28, 2020Please select Y/NYesPlease select Y/NNo
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MA Criminology and Social Research2 year part-timePart-timeMonday, September 28, 2020Please select Y/NYesPlease select Y/NNo
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Language(s) of study
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English
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Language(s) of assessment
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English
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2. Programme accreditation by Professional, Statutory or Regulatory Bodies (PSRB)
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2.a. Is the programme recognised or accredited by a PSRB
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Please Select Y/N: Noif No move to section 3
if Yes complete the following questions
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3. Additional Professional or Vocational Standards
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Are there any additional requirements of accrediting bodies or PSRB or pre-requisite professional experience needed to study this programme?
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Please Select Y/N: Noif Yes, provide details
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4. Programme leadership and programme team
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4.a. Please name the programme leader for the year to which the programme design applies and any key members of staff responsible for designing, maintaining and overseeing the programme.
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Dr Ruth Penfold-Mounce (programme leader); Dr Ruth Penfold-Mounce (Chair of BoS)
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5. Purpose and learning outcomes of the programme
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5.a. Statement of purpose for applicants to the Masters programme
Please express succinctly the overall aims of the programme as an applicant facing statement for a prospectus or website. This should clarify to a prospective masters student why they should choose this programme, what it will provide to them and what benefits they will gain from completing it.
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York's Criminology and Social Research masters programme offers students an in-depth understanding of key issues, debates and theoretical perspectives in criminology. Taught by leading researchers in the field this programme critically analyses practitioner debates in criminal justice, concepts of social control, policing practice, human rights and justice, social policy and law and order. Alongside these conceptual questions, the programme also offers social research methods training to equip students with the practical knowledge and skills required to conduct criminological research, such as critical ethnography, narrative analysis, regression analysis, and SPSS. As a student on this programme you will develop an advanced comprehension of criminology, gain a critical understanding of the way in which criminology relates to ‘real world’ problems of crime, and acquire key transferable skills in research, communication, IT, digital technology, self-management and group working, all of which will prepare you for a variety of exciting career pathways within criminal justice, and beyond. You will learn in a stimulating research-intensive environment, benefitting fully from the range of expertise of colleagues in the department. Through research led teaching, this programme offers a distinct and innovative approach to criminological study allowing students to engage with cutting-edge research that tackles contemporary local and global issues related to crime, deviance and social control.
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5.b.i. Programme Learning Outcomes - Masters
Please provide six to eight statements of what a graduate of the Masters programme will be able to do.
If the document only covers a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma please specify four to six PLO statements in the sections 5.b.ii and 5.b.iii as appropriate.
Taken together, these outcomes should capture the distinctive features of the programme. They should also be outcomes for which progressive achievement through the course of the programme can be articulated, and which will therefore be reflected in the design of the whole programme.
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PLOOn successful completion of the programme, graduates will be able to:
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1Systematically approach, conceptualise and analyse theoretical and empirical issues relating to academic criminology and criminal justice systems in contemporary societies.
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2Critically evaluate and apply a wide range of complex and innovative methodological approaches to undertake criminological research.
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3Applying insight from in-depth knowledge of cutting edge developments in the study of crime and deviance to inform and support areas such as policymaking, service delivery, and further academic research.
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4Expose, assess and explain formal and informal forms of social control and how they shape and order local and global contemporary societies.
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5Design, execute and present a major piece of criminological research in the form of a dissertation. This will involve implementing and managing your own research through a rigorous ethics process and independent study.
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6Deploy a range of advanced transferable skills in research, communication, IT, digital technology, self-management and group working, which can be utilized to inform planning, decision-making and problem solving for public, private and third sector employers.
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8
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5.c. Explanation of the choice of Programme Learning Outcomes
Please explain your rationale for choosing these PLOs in a statement that can be used for students (such as in a student handbook). Please include brief reference to:
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i) ... in what way will these PLOs result in an ambitious, challenging programme which stretches the students?
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The PLOs for this programme have been designed to ensure that students undertake an ambitious programme of study that challenges and expands their knowledge. The theoretical and methodological content of the programme has been designed to enable students to gain an advanced understanding of academic criminology and the criminal justice systems of contemporary societies. Students’ knowledge is stretched across a number of modules in which they are enabled to develop a systematic understanding of a number of key issues relating to crime and its control. In the dissertation module, students are significantly stretched when they are required to apply the knowledge they have gained from the taught modules in order to execute and produce a major piece of criminological research. Students are also equipped with a range of practical and transferable skills to enable them to enter a range of careers in criminal justice and related fields.
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ii) ... in what way will these PLOs produce a programme which is distinctive and advantageous to the student?
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The programme is distinctive because it combines bespoke taught modules in criminology with advanced training in social research methods. These taught aspects of the programme are designed to enable students to develop an advanced comprehension of crime and criminal justice and the practical skills to undertake high-quality research in these areas. This is advantageous to students who either wish to progress into crime-related fields of work, or further study. As such they are equipped with key knowledge and a range of diverse transferable skills that can be practically applied to academia, or private, public and voluntary sector employers.
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iii) ... how the design of the programme enables students from diverse entry routes to transition successfully into the programme? For example, how does the organisation of the programme ensure solid foundations in disciplinary knowledge and understanding of conventions, language skills, mathematics and statistics skills, writing skills, lab skills, academic integrity
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The programme is designed to ensure that students gain a solid understanding of the fundamental elements of academic criminology and research practice. It is recognized that students on the programme come from diverse entry routes and the programme has been designed to support them in transitioning successfully. This is achieved initially through a specialist induction training session with the programme leader. Students are guided through the course and also asked to introduce themselves and interests. In this session students will be given a detailed course overview and also have the opportunity to engage within a Q & A with the programme lead. The VLE site provides core texts and materials that students are encouraged to engage with which will help them familiarize or refresh their understanding of key criminological concepts and approaches. Students also have a session with the library services to enable them to gain confidence using and making most of the facilities available. Furthermore, support training includes a language course (for those whose first language is not English) and a plagiarism awareness module which all students must complete. Across the taught criminology-focused modules, seminar-based class discussions and peer-supported presentations are designed to support all students in engaging with diverse materials relating to criminological theory and criminal justice practice. Research methods modules are designed to include support for students with different levels of prior knowledge and understanding to successfully progress. Such support includes For Qualitative Methods, such support includes a two-hour interactive, introductory session in which students are encouraged to: i) discuss and reflect on what skills, experience, and pre-existing assumptions they bring to the module; ii) make proactive efforts to learn from each other over the course of the module; iii) make connections between the module and their specific learning goals. Academic integrity is supported by a mandatory online tutorial taken by all students to familiarize them with information explaining what is academic integrity and misconduct, as well as what is expected from the students. There are multiple avenues for students to check their work for plagiarism or misconduct, including the Turnitin program on the VLE.
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iv) ... how the programme is designed to enable students to progress successfully - in a limited time frame - through to the end of the award? For example, the development of higher level research skills; enabling students to complete an independent study module; developing competence and confidence in practical skills/ professional skills. See QAA masters characteristics doument http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Masters-Degree-Characteristics-15.pdf
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The programme is designed to ensure that students are best able to progress across the modules successfully through the acquisition of required knowledge, competencies and skills. The teaching on each taught module – which involves, lectures, seminar discussions, student presentations – is designed to ensure that students are fully equipped with the knowledge and skills required to undertake the summative assessments. In the dissertation module, students are supported by a dissertation supervisor throughout the course of their research to ensure that they are able to successfully complete this aspect of the programme. Students are allocated a personal supervisor to support them throughout the duration of the programme which provides them with a permanent point-of-contact through which they can address any problems or issues. In addition to this teaching has been designed to ensure that students are fully supported and equipped with a range of employability skills, including communication skills, engagement with digital technologies, interpersonal skills, time management, group work and critical thinking, all of which feature heavily across the programme through lectures, workshops, the dissertation, seminars and independent study.
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v) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will develop students’ digital literacy skills and how technology-enhanced learning will be used to support active student learning through peer/tutor interaction, collaboration and formative (self) assessment opportunities (reference could be made to such as blogging, flipped classrooms, response 'clickers' in lectures, simulations, etc).
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Many of the course modules, including Qualitative Methods, Quantitative Methods and Advanced Methods courses cover many examples in the classroom where digital literacy is taught. For example,
- Students are trained in the use of computer-assisted qualitative data analysis (using the software package, NVivo), through two two-hour hands-on sessions in the computer lab.
- They have a session on using online qualitative data archives as a basis for addressing appropriate research questions.
- As part of their assessment portfolio, they are required to deliver a 10-minute presentation, using powerpoint slides.
-A formative assessment in the form of an online digital self-test quiz
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vi) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will support and enhance the students’ employability (for example, opportunities for students to apply their learning in a real world setting)?
The programme's employability objectives should be informed by the University's Employability Strategy:
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http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/careers/staff/
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The programme is designed to support and enhance student employability in a number of ways. First, the advanced knowledge that students gain of academic criminology and criminal justice systems equips them with knowledge that is relevant to a wide range of crime and criminal justice related employment. Second, the advanced skills and competencies gained through research methods modules provides students with a suit of skills and competencies transferable across a range of research-focused employment. Third, the dissertation modules enables students to research “real life” issues/events and to offer practical solutions to these, thus demonstrating to employers the practical skills gained on the programme. Fourth, all modules encourage the development of a range of communication and presentation skills that are transferable to employment in the public, private and third sectors. Anticipated destinations of students on this programme include, youth justice, the police and prison system, probation service, victim support, social work and policy, crime prevention and other statutory, private and voluntary sector agencies.
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viii) ... how learning and teaching on the programme are informed and led by research in the department/ Centre/ University?
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Research-led teaching is central to this programme as a way to enable and enhance effective student learning. Students have the opportunity to engage first hand with cutting edge criminological research in the department, particularly on the modules Law and Social Control, and Critical Perspectives on the Criminal Justice System. The established research of Professor Paul Johnson (convenor of Law and Social Control) features strongly in sessions on Human rights law, the legal regulation of intimate life, and governmentality of the body. Similarly conceptual insights and research conducted by Dr Ruth Penfold Mounce features in a session on 'death and dead in the criminal justice system' for Critical Perspectives on the Criminal Justice System. Each aspect of the programme is therefore designed and delivered by leading experts in relevant fields. Research led teaching also feeds into the methods modules, which are delivered by a range of staff working in quantitative and qualitative methodologies spanning from SPSS, linear and logistic regression, and ANOVA, to ethnography, discourse analysis and conversation analysis. This programme thus ensures that its design and delivery is research-led at every possible level.
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5.d. Progression
For masters programmes where students do not incrementally 'progress' on the completion of a discrete Postgraduate Certificate and Postgraduate Diploma, please summarise students’ progressive development towards the achievement of the PLOs, in terms of the characteristics that you expect students to demonstrate at the end of the set of modules or part thereof. This summary may be particularly helpful to students and the programme team where there is a high proportion of option modules and in circumstances where students registered on a higher award will exit early with a lower one.

Note: it is not expected that a position statement is written for each masters PLO, but this can be done if preferred.
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On completion of modules sufficient to obtain a Postgraduate Certificate students will be able to:
If the PG Cert is an exit award only please provide information about how students will have progressed towards the diploma/masters PLOs. Please include detail of the module diet that students will have to have completed to gain this qualification as an exit award.
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Students will need to complete 60 credits to achieve a PGT Certificate. By completing the Certificate, students will be able to: 1. Draw upon and utilize criminological theories to inform social research
2. Critically analyse quantitative and qualitative data
3. Utilize computer software designed to manage quantitative and qualitative data, and apply a range of transferable skills (communication, presentation, interpersonal) developed throughout the programme
As a result they will have successfully met learning outcomes 1, 2 and 6
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On completion of modules sufficient to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma students will be able to:
If the PG Diploma is an exit award only please provide information about how students will have progressed towards the masters PLOs. Please include detail of the module diet that students will have to have completed to gain this qualification as an exit award.
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Students will need to complete 120 credits to achieve a PGT Diploma. By completing the Diploma, students will be able to: 1. Critically analyse criminological theories to inform social research.
2. Critically evaluate a range of methodological approaches.
3. Apply a critical understanding to research on crime.
4. Present a deep awareness of social control.
5. Utilize computer software designed to manage quantitative and qualitative data, and apply a range of transferable skills (communication, presentation, interpersonal) developed throughout the programme.
As a result they will have successfully met learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6.
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6. Reference points and programme regulations
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6.a. Relevant Quality Assurance Agency benchmark statement(s) and other relevant external reference points
Please state relevant reference points consulted (e.g. Framework for Higher Education Qualifications, National Occupational Standards, Subject Benchmark Statements or the requirements of PSRBs): See also Taught Postgraduate Modular Scheme: Framework for Programme Design:
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https://www.york.ac.uk/media/staffhome/learningandteaching/documents/programmedevelopment/Framework%20for%20Programme%20Design%20-%20PG.pdf
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http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Masters-Degree-Characteristics-15.pdf
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http://www.qaa.ac.uk/assuring-standards-and-quality/the-quality-code/subject-benchmark-statements
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http://www.qaa.ac.uk/publications/information-and-guidance/publication?PubID=2843#.VthM1fmLS70
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UK Quality code for Higher Education: Subject Benchmark Statement for Criminology 2014. http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/SBS-criminology-14.pdf
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6.b. University award regulations
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The University’s award and assessment regulations apply to all programmes: any exceptions that relate to this programme are approved by University Teaching Committee and are recorded at the end of this document.
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7. Programme Structure
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7.a. Module Structure and Summative Assessment Map
Please complete the summary table below which shows the module structure and the pattern of summative assessment through the programme.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
If the structure of your programme does not fit the usual academic year (for instance students start at the beginning of September or in January) please contact your Academic Quality Team contact in the Academic Support Office for guidance on how to represent the structure in an alternative format.

To clearly present the overall programme structure, include the name and details of each individual CORE module in the rows below. For OPTION modules, ‘Option module’ or 'Option from list x' should be used in place of specifically including all named options. If the programme requires students to select option modules from specific lists by term of delivery or subject theme these lists should be provided in the next section (7.b).

From the drop-down select 'S' to indicate the start of the module, 'A' to indicate the timing of each distinct summative assessment point (eg. essay submission/ exam), and 'E' to indicate the end of teaching delivery for the module (if the end of the module coincides with the summative assessment select 'EA'). It is not expected that each summative task will be listed where an overall module might be assessed cumulatively (for example weekly problem sheets).

Summative assessment by exams should normally be scheduled in the spring week 1 and summer Common Assessment period (weeks 5-7). Where the summer CAP is used, a single ‘A’ can be used within the shaded cells as it is understood that you will not know in which week of the CAP the examination will take place. (NB: An additional resit assessment week is provided in week 10 of the summer term for postgraduate students. See Guide to Assessment, 5.4.a)
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http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/registry-services/guide/
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Full time structure
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CreditsModuleAutumn TermSpring Term Summer Term Summer Vacation
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CodeTitle12345678910123456789101234567891012345678910111213
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20SOC00015MCritical Perspectives on the Criminal Justice SystemSEA
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20RSS00006MIntroduction to Quantitative Methods & Data AnalysisSEA
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20RSS00001MIntroduction to Qualitative Methods and Data AnalysisSEA
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20SOC00016MLaw and Social ControlSEA
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20SOC00014MAdvances in Criminology TheorySEA
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20SOC00011MAdvanced Methods in Social ResearchSEA
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SOC00017M
DissertationSEA
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Please indicate when any Progression Board and Exam board will be held and when any reassessments will be submitted.
NB: You are required to provide at least three weeks notice to students of the need for them to resubmit any required assessments, in accordance with the Guide to Assessment section 4.9
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Progression BoardSummer Term & Week 8
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ReassessmentSummer Term & Week 20
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Exam BoardSummer Term & Week 8
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Part time structures
Please indicate the modules undertaken in each year of the part-time version of the programme. Please use the text box below should any further explanation be required regarding structure of part-time study routes.
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Year 1 (if you offer the programme part-time over either 2 or 3 years, use the toggles to the left to show the hidden rows)
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CreditsModuleAutumn TermSpring Term Summer Term Summer Vacation
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CodeTitle12345678910123456789101234567891012345678910111213
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RSS00001M
Introduction to Qualitative Methods and Data Analysis
SEA