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LLB Law with Criminology

Start date
September
Duration
3 years
UCAS code
M2L6
Course Type
Undergraduate, Single Honours
Fees

Annual tuition fees for 2025/26:
£9,535 (UK)
£24,470 (International)
More detail.

Photo of the Royal Courts of Justice, London

Our undergraduate LLB Law with Criminology degree is a qualifying law degree taught collaboratively between Birmingham Law School and the School of Social Policy, drawing upon the significant expertise of academic staff in both Schools to offer a wide range of specialist modules in Criminology.

With a particular emphasis on the nature, extent, causes, and control of criminal behaviour in individuals and society, this exciting undergraduate LLB Law degree provides students with a rigorous and critical understanding of these issues. It explores social responses to crime and criminality, and looks at the processes and consequences of law making, law breaking and law enforcement.

Criminology complements and contextualises legal study, and is an extremely useful addition to those looking to practice criminal law or work in the criminal justice system.

With a 100-year history and storied reputation, the Birmingham Law School honours our tradition of Law excellence with global top rankings year after year.  

International undergraduate scholarships available for Law

We are proud to offer 10 scholarships to international students in the form of £3,000 per year towards your tuition fees on one of Birmingham Law School's LLB Law programmes.

Learn more about our scholarships and apply

Studying Law with Criminology has allowed me to develop an extensive knowledge of the law by learning how to research and critically analyse its interactions with society.

Rebecca, LLB Law with Criminology graduate

Why study this course?

Birmingham Law School is right for you if… 

  • You value connections and real-world opportunities – UoB placement schemes, annual law fairs, and visits to leading firms connect you to the sector. Our Centre for Employability, Professional Legal Education and Research (CEPLER) runs pro bono groups, mooting competitions, and more. 

  • You want a degree that matches your passions – Tailor your undergraduate Law degree to suit your interests in your final year with our vast range of optional modules including topics such as Counter Terrorism Law, Advocacy and Employment Law in Practice. 

  • You think globally – Study overseas at a partner institution and experience an incredible new culture, an alternative perspective on Law, and a different academic environment. Undergraduate Law students have had the opportunity to study all over the world in countries including Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, France, Germany and Japan. 

  • You’re ready to get to work – As the 3rd most targeted University for Graduate Employability in the 2023 High Fliers Report, recent Law graduates have gone on to work for companies including Eversheds, Pinsent Masons, Gowling WLG and HSBC. 89% of our law students are in work or further study 15 months after graduation (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2022). 

  • You’re a changemaker – Join 1 of 14 Pro Bono Projects offered at Birmingham Law School. Projects range from securing equal access to justice for those facing the death penalty in the United States through Amicus Charity, to informing policy on electric car battery recycling   with the Environmental Law Matters research team. 

  • You champion diversity in the Law sector – All University of Birmingham law students are members of the Birmingham Law Society, the largest and most diverse Law society outside of London. 

Modules

Please note: You will take 120 credits of modules in each year of study. The modules listed on the website for this programme are regularly reviewed to ensure they are up-to-date and informed by the latest research and teaching methods. Unless indicated otherwise, the modules listed for this programme are for students starting in 2025. On rare occasions, we may need to make unexpected changes to compulsory modules; in this event we will contact offer holders as soon as possible to inform or consult them as appropriate.

First year

Students currently take the following compulsory modules in their first year:

You will also study Criminological Theory I, and Crime, Justice and Society.

Second year

In their second year students take modules in:

You will also study Criminological Theory II, and Contemporary Issues in Policing. 

Year Abroad

You can apply to study abroad for a year in an approved university around the world. If you achieve a grade of 2.1 or above in your first year, you will be eligible to apply for a Year Abroad in your second year. If your application is successful, you will go abroad in your third year and return to us for your final year.

More about a Year Abroad

Final year

In the final year you will study Equity, Trusts, Wills and Formalities.

You will also study Harmful Societies: Crime, Social Harm and Social Justice; and you will  have the opportunity to study one optional criminology module and three optional law modules from the range available within the Law School.

Fees

The University will charge the maximum approved tuition fee per year. If your offer is for 2025 year of entry, we expect that the tuition fee for your first year of study will be £9,535. If Parliament agrees on an increase in tuition fees, the University will increase fees for each year of study normally in line with these changes and will communicate any change in the fees to you without delay. If you are applying for 2026 year of entry, you will be advised of the annual tuition fee closer to the time. Visit our tuition fees page for more information.

Fees for 2025/26 are as follows:

  • UK: £9,535
  • International: £24,470

Eligibility for fees can be verified with Admissions. Learn more about fees for international students.

For further information on tuition fees, living costs and available financial support, please see our pages on undergraduate fees and funding.

Tuition fees when studying abroad

For those spending a whole academic year abroad (where available):

  • Students who are classed as UK for fees purposes are required to pay 15% of their normal annual tuition fee
  • Students who are classed as International for fee purposes are required to pay 50% of their normal annual tuition fee

For those studying abroad for just one semester (where available), normal annual tuition fees apply.

Note - Study abroad opportunities vary between courses; please see the course description for details of study abroad options offered.

How To Apply

Apply through UCAS at www.ucas.com  
Learn more about applying

Standard offer

International Requirements



Typical offer:
AAA
General Studies:
General Studies is not accepted but a good performance may be taken into account if you fail to meet the conditions of the offer.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma:

6,6,6 in Higher level subjects plus 32 points overall.

BTEC and Access qualifications:

  • BTEC Extended Diploma in the following subject areas will be considered: Business and Law. Grades required - D*D*D*. Other BTEC Extended Diplomas may be considered if offered alongside an A level.
  • BTEC Subsidiary Diploma in Business or Law combined with two A levels and BTEC Diploma in Business or Law combined with an A level will be considered.
  • Other BTEC subjects combined with A levels are considered on a case by case basis provided there is an appropriate subject combination.

Access to Higher Education courses in a relevant subject are considered.

We do not require or consider the LNAT admissions test for entry onto our programmes.

We do not accept transfers into the School from any programme including other Law programmes.

Other qualifications are considered - learn more about entry requirements.

Alternative offers through our Pathways to Birmingham programmes and our Contextual Offer scheme

Students who are eligible and successfully complete a Pathways to Birmingham programme will receive special consideration from admissions tutors and an alternative offer (typically two grades below the standard offer). In addition, our Contextual Offer Scheme recognises the potential of students whose personal circumstances may have restricted achievement in school or college. If you are eligible to benefit from the contextual offer scheme, you will receive an offer which is one grade lower than the standard offer.

International Students

Birmingham Law School has a thriving community of over 400 international students across our LLB programmes. We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Our country pages show what qualifications we accept from your country.

If your first language is not English you must provide an English language qualification. Recognised qualifications include:

  • IELTS: 6.5 with no less than 6.0 in any band

If you need to improve your level of English in order to meet the minimum entry-level requirement you may be able attend one of the full-time presessional English courses run by our Birmingham International Academy.

Depending on your chosen course of study, you may also be interested in one of our foundation pathways, which offer specially structured programmes for international students whose qualifications are not accepted for direct entry to UK universities. Further details can be found on Birmingham International Academy web pages.

Photograph of students consulting books in the University of Birmingham library

At Birmingham Law School the staff who teach you are frequent participants in legal debates and contribute regularly to the policy-making process. You will draw on their vast expertise to acquire essential skills that are highly valued in the competitive employment sector, from creativity and independence to team-working, goal-setting and problem-solving. 

Critical enquiry, debate and self-motivation, which we call enquiry-based learning, is central to learning and teaching here. This places you at the centre of your own learning process so that you learn through engagement and ownership and not simply by listening. 

Respondents to the National Student Survey have acknowledged the enthusiasm of our staff and their ability to explain things clearly and make material intellectually stimulating. We encourage all our students to challenge us and draw their own conclusions. 

What you can expect… 

Lectures 

Lectures are an important method of teaching used in the School, intended to provide a structured framework for learning and dispensing essential knowledge. They won't tell you all you need to know, but they should help you to navigate the reading you're expected to undertake to pursue your studies effectively. 

Seminars 

Seminars are smaller group classes, which involve the development and testing of ideas in discussion, with a high degree of student input. 

Providing a forum for discussion and exchange of ideas, in all seminars you are expected to be prepared and to participate. This is tremendously important at university level and will help you to clarify and extend your understanding of the topics you are studying, as well as develop confidence in expressing yourself orally. 

Seminars in Law also provide an opportunity to learn the difficult but vital skill of applying the law to factual situations. This is assessed in exams through ‘problem questions’. For some seminars you will be given the facts of problem questions in advance, and you devote time to working out your own answers beforehand, then testing those answers in argument during the seminar. 

Teaching staff 

Students at the University of Birmingham are taught by a mixture of professors, associate professors, assistant professors,  and doctoral researchers, thereby receiving a rich diversity of academic knowledge and experience. Many of our teaching staff have published important works about their areas of expertise, whilst others have taught at international institutions and can offer unique perspectives of their subjects. 

You can find out more about the members of staff (including their qualifications, publication history and specific areas of interest) in their academic profiles linked below. 

Contact Hours

All Birmingham degrees are set within a credit framework designed to measure your academic achievements. We expect all students to accumulate 120 credits in each full year of study which is equivalent to 45-54 hours of learning a week. Learning is considered to include contact learning (lectures and seminars), private study, revision and assessment. 
 
For this programme, those 45-54 hours are estimated to be broken down and split into lectures, seminars and other guided teaching opportunities and independent study. This is a general rule across the entire academic year and may change week by week.  

Year 1: 20% Lectures, Seminars or similar, 80% Independent study
Year 2: 20% Lectures, Seminars or similar, 80% Independent study
Year 3: 15% Lectures, Seminars or similar, 85% Independent study

Assessment Methods

Birmingham Law School uses a variety of methods to assess student performance, this includes exams, essays and dissertations. At the beginning of each module, you'll be given information on how and when you'll be assessed for that particular programme of study. 

  • Examinations take place at the end of each semester and exam-based modules are typically assessed by a 3-hour exam. 
  • Essays vary in length (1500-3500 words) depending on whether the essay is only part of the assessment for the subject or whether the subject is assessed 100% by essay. 
  • The dissertation is an optional module in the final year of the LLB which is an individual research project into a specific topic which varies in length (up to 6,000 words). 

Studying at degree-level is likely to be very different from your previous experience of learning and teaching. You will be expected to think, discuss and engage critically with the subject and find things out for yourself. We will enable you to make this transition to a new style of learning, and the way that you are assessed during your studies will help you develop the essential skills you need to make a success of your time at Birmingham.  

Feedback 

Developing skills and enhancing academic performance is a key part of a university education and the Law School provide feedback on your work throughout your degree. 

  • You'll receive feedback on each assessment within four weeks, so that you can learn from and build on what you have done 
  • Individual feedback on academic performance is provided during progress review meetings with your Personal Academic Tutor throughout the year. 
  • All academic members of staff will have academic support  hours during which you can see them without prior appointment and speak to them on a 1-1 basis to discuss feedback or other academic support you may require. 

Birmingham Law School Skills Academy 

In addition to the feedback you will receive from academic staff , our Birmingham Law School Skills Academy team will help you to develop skills which are crucial to legal study. We run regular drop-in sessions and workshops open to all undergraduate Law students. Recent workshops have included: 

  • How to prepare for seminars and lectures 
  • How to answer essay and problem questions 
  • How to read cases and articles 
  • How to learn from feedback and tackling common mistakes 
  • How to manage your time effectively 
  • How to prepare for exams 

Student support 

You will have access to a comprehensive support system to help you make the transition to higher education when you start at Birmingham: 

Personal academic tutors – You will be assigned your own personal academic tutor who will get to know you as you progress through your studies. They will provide academic support and advice to enable you to make the most of your time here at Birmingham. 

Wellbeing Officers – Alongside your personal academic tutor, you will also have access to dedicated wellbeing officers who provide professional support, advice and guidance to students across a range of issues. They can meet with you to discuss extensions, disabilities, reasonable adjustments, extenuating circumstances, or talk through any problems you might be experiencing, and help you access wider support on campus and beyond if you need it. 

Our Student Experience Team will help you get the most out of your academic experience. They offer research opportunities, study skills support, and help you prepare for your post-university career. They also organise social events, such as field trips, to help you meet fellow students from your course. 

Birmingham Law School's Centre for Employability, Professional Legal Education and Research (CEPLER) provides a diverse range of opportunities and activities to enhance knowledge, skills, confidence and employability - all the things that help graduates to stand out from the crowd in a competitive jobs market.

Our students can benefit from activities, opportunities, help and resources in areas including:

Careers

  • CEPLER's extensive provision of careers lectures and skills workshops offers advice and guidance on a range of specialist areas of law and legally-related careers, in addition to practical skills sessions on how to present yourself and succeed at interview. View information on our careers lectures provision. Or find out about other careers activities.
    • We are forging links right across the legal community and beyond to public, third sector and non-law commercial organisations to provide valuable work experience placements. 

Pro Bono

  • CEPLER's Pro Bono Group began in 2009 and has grown from one Street Law Project to a diverse portfolio of opportunities to build your experience and serve the community. Visit the Pro Bono Group page for full details on the range of projects.

Mooting & Advocacy

  • Being able to evidence your experience of advocacy is a key advantage in the over-subscribed legal profession. CEPLER offers skills sessions and three Mooting competitions, as well as Debating and Negotiation.

Education

  • CEPLER is developing new and innovative approaches to teaching to give you experience of real world law. So far, we have introduced two new practice-based modules: Regulation of the Legal Profession, which will encourage you to question assumptions about lawyers and their role in society; and Advocacy, which covers a range of skills such as mooting, negotiation and mediation, along with court observations and presentation skills development.

Professional Accreditation

  • Meets the Law Society of Northern Ireland (LSNI) requirement of an acceptable law degree to qualify as a solicitor under the Law Degree Route
  • Meets the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) degree pre-requisite for the purposes of the Solicitor's Qualifying Exam
  • Meets the Bar Standards Board (BSB) requirement as part of the academic component covering the "Foundations of Legal Knowledge" subjects, as well as the skills associated with graduate legal work such as legal research which are required for commencing a course of Bar training