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Undergraduate | MAQ-PICX1030-2023

Introduction to Criminology

Study method

100% online

Assessments

100% online

Entry requirements

No ATAR needed

No prior study

Duration

18 weeks

Start dates

  • 20 Feb 2023

HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available

About this subject

What you'll learn

On successful completion of this subject, you will be able to:

  1. Evaluate how societies come to define crime and the critical implications of such understandings on institutions of criminal justice.
  2. Identify and distinguish between key criminological theories and their practical implications.
  3. Analyse and demonstrate critical understanding of how social categories of gender, race and class impact experiences of crime and its responses.
  4. Research and locate different academic sources and express judgement about their validity.
  5. Engage in informed criminological discussion with practitioners, academics and peers
    • A week-by-week guide to the topics you will explore in this subject will be provided in your study materials.
  • This subject introduces students to the discipline and study of criminology, including a broad overview of key developments, theories and practical implications. The intention is to situate criminology, and its various strands, within its particular social, political and intellectual contexts and to outline some of the key approaches associated with the field. Specifically, the unit is concerned with three broad and interrelated questions: 1) What and how societies define crime and harm in a particular way? 2) How theories of crime attempt to explain why certain people offend and certain crimes are committed? 3) What are the social responses to crime and how do institutions of criminal justice engage in mechanism of crime control?

    • Research essay (50%)
    • Annotated Poster (20%)
    • Quizzes (20%)
    • Participation (10%)
  • For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).

  • This research-intensive university in north-western Sydney offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. With over 44,000 current students, Macquarie has a strong reputation for welcoming international students and embracing flexible and convenient study options, including its partnership with Open Universities Australia.

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Entry requirements

No entry requirements

Additional requirements

  • Other requirements -

    Students who have an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion under Macquarie University's Academic Progression Policy are not permitted to enrol in OUA units offered by Macquarie University. Students with an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion who have enrolled in units through OUA will be withdrawn.

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