What is a Bachelor of Criminology?

Understanding the Bachelor of Criminology

A Bachelor of Criminology is an undergraduate degree that looks at why crime happens, who it affects, and how the justice system responds to it, from policing and courts through to corrections.

It’s often the first step for anyone interested in a career across justice, government, policy, corrections or community services, though it doesn't lock you into a single career path.

Jeff Ackerman, Program Director of Griffith's School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, explains that when you study a bachelor degree in criminology, you won't be trained to investigate crimes or carry out surveillance yourself. That kind of practical training comes later, if at all, through organisations like a police academy.

Instead, you’ll get under the skin of how it all works. “In a bachelor degree, students are trained to understand things more conceptually,” Jeff says. The degree focuses on helping you understand crime, the justice system, and how society responds to offending.

Want to learn more about the field of criminology? Read our guide to what criminology is.

What do you study in a Bachelor of Criminology?

A Bachelor of Criminology covers a lot of ground, from why people offend through to how the justice system responds once a crime has occurred.

When you study criminology, you’ll look at the patterns behind offending, how they shift depending on age, gender, class, location, opportunity, and life experience, right through to how victims, police, courts and corrections all fit into the picture, explains Jeff.

Crime and offending

You’ll learn about why people commit crime and how offending patterns shift depending on age, gender, class, location, opportunity and social environment. But it’s less about memorising theory and more about learning to ask the right questions about human behaviour.

Victims and victimisation

This covers how crime affects victims, why some groups are more vulnerable than others, and how victims are treated by police, courts, media and support services. It's one part of the degree few students anticipate learning, but it’s also an important concept to understand since it helps inform policy.

Policing

You’ll explore what role the police play in society, including police powers, discretion, and how investigations and surveillance work.

Students learn to understand the debates around fairness, accountability and effectiveness in policing, including procedural justice: whether people believe the system is treating them fairly and following the rules that matter to them, explains Jeff.

Courts and sentencing

You’ll study how criminal cases move through the courts and the reasoning behind different sentencing decisions.

This usually centres on four classic purposes of punishment: deterrence (both stopping the individual reoffending and discouraging others), rehabilitation, incapacitation, and the idea that punishment is deserved regardless of outcome.

Understanding these distinctions matters more than it might seem. Jeff Ackerman points out that it's not enough to ask whether a policy “works”. You also have to define what “work” means, whether that's reducing reoffending, changing public behaviour, or simply making victims feel the outcome was fair.

Youth justice and criminal law policy

This looks at why young people offend, how they're treated differently to adults within the justice system, and the policy debates around getting that balance right.

Research and evidence

Learning to read and interpret research, including how crime is measured, forms a core part of a Bachelor of Criminology, explains Jeff. You'll cover the difference between incidence (how much crime occurs) and prevalence (how many people are affected), and the three main ways researchers measure crime: official police statistics, victimisation surveys, and offender self-reports.

You'll also build basic statistical skills, typically starting with tools like Excel, so you can genuinely evaluate whether a policy or program is working rather than taking someone's word for it.

Still weighing up whether criminology is the right study path? Read our guide on if a criminology degree is worth it in Australia.

What skills can you develop in a Bachelor of Criminology?

Alongside the subject knowledge, you’ll also build skills that will change the way you interact with the world. From reading and interpreting research and critical thinking to writing clearly and analysing data, the skills you’ll hone will carry you well beyond criminal justice.

Much of the work in this field, whether in academia, government or corrections, comes down to working effectively with a wide range of people, all with different priorities and timeframes. Interpersonal skills are just as important as the other skills you’ll develop in a Bachelor of Criminology.

Who is a Bachelor of Criminology suited to?

Everyone who lands on criminology arrives there for a different reason. A lot of students arrive wanting to be a criminal profiler because they've watched Silence of the Lambs and want to be “just like Jodie Foster”, says Jeff. The reality of the degree, and the careers it can lead to, is something different entirely.

A Bachelor of Criminology might suit you if you:

• Are curious about crime and why people behave the way they do
• Enjoy ongoing debate and are comfortable with grey areas rather than needing one clear, right answer
• Want a career that can lead down a number of different paths rather than a single, defined job title
• Are drawn to research, writing and data as much as the subject matter
• Want to think more critically about policy and justice in society, even outside a criminal justice career

What can you do with a Bachelor of Criminology?

Graduates go on to work across a wide range of industries, including criminal justice, government, policy, community services and research. That spans roles in policing, corrections, courts, victim support, customs and border protection, and beyond.

Jeff explains that not all roles in this field require a degree to get started, but that's not really where its value lies. A bachelor degree in criminology helps you “understand more about how to make good decisions... at a policy level,” and think through complex issues “in a more sophisticated manner,” skills that carry across almost any of these fields.

A Bachelor of Criminology can also be a pathway into postgraduate study, including a Master of Criminology if you want to deepen your knowledge or build more advanced research, policy and analysis skills.

Want to see where a criminology degree can actually take you? Read our guide to criminology jobs and career pathways.

How can you get started in a Bachelor of Criminology?

To get started, you’ll need to find a Bachelor of Criminology that suits you - though you don’t necessarily have to jump straight into a full degree.

If you don’t meet the requirements, or you’d prefer to start small, you may be able to begin with a single subject or shorter qualification through Open Universities Australia.

Here’s what I’d suggest you do next:

• Compare Bachelor of Criminology courses offered online by different Australian universities. Look at things like course content, entry requirements, start dates and fees.
• Read our guide to entry requirements for criminology courses to understand what the different criteria means.
• Explore what alternative entry pathways are available if you don’t meet these requirements.
• Reach out to a student advisor for free advice on choosing a course.
• Enrol with your uni through Open Universities Australia when you’re ready.

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