Criminology & Criminal Justice

We strive for a learning environment that encourages students to work individually or as part of a team so you can develop your teamwork and communication skills, as well as skills of quantitative and qualitative analysis of the social phenomena associated with crime. This Masters will equip you with a number of key skills, including how to:

• Appreciate the strengths and limitations of key research methodologies.
• Demonstrate a detailed awareness of current controversies in criminology and criminal justice and knowledge of areas where the discipline is currently enjoying theoretical elaboration.
• Have the intellectual toolkit required to research and write a major dissertation.
• Integrate source material from a variety of disciplinary areas to reach reasoned decisions about the relative status of competing claims to knowledge.
• Unpack complex theoretical arguments and render  key disciplinary insights intelligible to a non-specialist audience.
• Use knowledge of debates within the discipline and different methodological approaches to interpret empirical research findings and to critique research designs.

Students on the full-time programme starting in September have the opportunity to spend a semester abroad as part of the Comparative, International and European Law (CIEL) graduate exchange programme with our partner Universities.

More information on the CIEL programme and the other exchange opportunities for Masters students are available on the School of Law website.

Please note that for timing reasons, study exchange is not possible for part-time or January start programmes.

The LLM Criminology & Criminal Justice is well-suited to those interested in legal practice, public service, or any other career where success is built upon the ability to understand, analyse and respond to developments in Criminology and Criminal Justice.

Upon completion of this programme many graduates have pursued careers in the legal profession while others have opted for careers in the NGO sector in areas related to probation, policing, prisons etc.  Academia has also become a popular direction for graduates as an increasing numbers of universities offer Criminology programmes at undergraduate and graduate level leading to greater demand for academics in the area.  This masters is an excellent foundation for a PhD which is generally the requirement to progress to a lecturing post at university level.

Masters students in UCD Sutherland School of Law can benefit from engaging both with the UCD Careers Network and the Head of Career Development in the School.  There are careers events hosted through the academic year and a specific Law Fair every October where Domestic and International Employers come on campus to meet with students.

LLM Criminology & Criminal Justice (B292) Full Time
nonEU    fee per year - € 22600
EU          fee per year - € 11790

LLM Criminology & Criminal Justice (B293) Part Time
nonEU    fee per year - € 11300

***Fees are subject to change

 

International Student Scholarships (Non EU): UCD offers a number of attractive graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information see  International Scholarships. 

EU Student Scholarships: We also offer a number of graduate scholarships for EU applicants. All applicants who apply before May 31st will be included for consideration. Further details at http://www.ucd.ie/law/study/scholarships/

SUSI Grant Funding: Domestic undergraduates who are eligible for government SUSI funding should note that their fees for graduate study may also be covered under the scheme. To check your eligibility please see the SUSI eligibility indicator tool available at this weblink

Further information about SUSI grants and funding is available at this weblink.

Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website.

Degree Requirements

• Applicants must hold a Law degree, or an inter-disciplinary degree in which law was a major component. Applicants must have achieved at least an upper second class honours or equivalent.
• Applicants holding a Graduate Diploma in Law (60 ECTS Credits) may be considered but will normally be admitted only where they can show an exceptionally strong performance in both their undergraduate degree and diploma.
• Exemption from these requirements may be given to those with significant, relevant, practical experience or those with a graduate qualification at Masters level or higher in a relevant discipline. Such applicants should state clearly in their application why they feel their qualifications/experiences are appropriate for admission to the programme.
• In exceptional circumstances, substantial professional experience within a related field may be regarded by the selection panel as compensating for a lack of an undergraduate degree to the required standard. Such applicants should state clearly in their application why they feel their other qualifications/experience are appropriate for admission onto the programme.

 English Language Requirements

• Applicants whose first language is not English must submit satisfactory evidence of competence in written and spoken English, i.e. overall IELTS 6.5 (including a minimum of 6.5 in the reading and writing parts and no part below 6.0) or 90 in the TOEFL iBT (with a minimum of 22 (reading) and 24 (writing) and no part below 20.) The test results must be less than 2 years old.
• The School encourages all applicants whose first language is not English to attend the pre-sessional English programme offered by the UCD Applied Language Centre, details of which are available at www.ucd.ie/alc.
• Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the  English language requirements, may enter the programme upon  successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes. Please see the following link for further information http://www.ucd.ie/alc/programmes/pathways/ 
•  International applicants should visit the UCD International Office website (www.ucd.ie/international) for information regarding our campus, location of UCD, visa information, registration and orientation.

These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes 

Application Procedure

Applicants should indicate which programme they are applying for. All applicants should note:

• Official transcripts must be submitted as proof of examination results by all applicants except UCD graduates.
• The personal statement is an important component of the application. It should contain information demonstrating your capability to undertake the course successfully. You should detail any relevant research and practical experience including any publications and major essays/projects.
• Applicants must nominate two academic referees (name, position, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number). If an applicant has been in employment for more than two years, one of the referees must be your employer.

Please note: If you are offered a place on the LLM programme, accepting that place is a two-part process. You must submit an on-line acceptance and you must also pay a non-refundable deposit (normally €500) within 15 working days of the date of your offer letter.

Letter Of Recommendation‌

Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EU) applicants: Yes

Part Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants: Yes