Professional Doctorate in Social and Criminal Justice
The Professional Doctorate in Social and Criminal Justice offers a unique opportunity to bridge the gap between research and practice.
A professional doctorate is an opportunity to combine professional practice with a research degree. This doctoral programme is the first of its kind in the UK to combine fields of social and criminal justice. The professional knowledge and expertise you bring to this programme coupled with the education you will receive from us about conducting advanced level research will ensure you gain the highest level of skills and knowledge and produce research with real-world impact. Years 1 and 2 are the ‘taught’ phase. Our programme is flexible but rigorous, designed to support your through the challenges of doctoral study and research. Years 3 and 4 are the thesis phase. In this phase you will undertake your independent research project, supported by an experienced supervisory team from within the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
This programme will be suitable for you if you are in professional practice in criminal justice and related organisations. This could include the police, prisons, probation, the Courts, forensic mental health services, and youth justice services as well as people working in policy development and organisational management in, for example, the Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. Other professionals who this programme is aimed at include, but are not limited to, drug treatment services, women’s services, housing services, education, training and employment services, security services and the not-for-profit sector.
School
Location
Duration
4 years part-time
Start month
September
What you should know about this course
What you will study
About the course team
Welcome to our Doctorate in Social and Criminal Justice which is taught by the School of Law and Criminology. Your teaching is delivered by an experienced team of lecturers. These include academics and practitioners with experience in criminal justice. All of our teaching team hold a teaching qualification.
Come and meet us
We are offering virtual events so that you can still experience how Greenwich could be the right university for you.
Next Open Days
Got a question?
To find out more about our Open Days and Campus Tours or if you need any assistance, please email opendays@gre.ac.uk.
Entry requirements
You are required to have:
- Masters-level qualification at Merit or above
and/or
- Undergraduate degree at 2:1 or above and equivalent professional experience and training.
Available to overseas students?
Yes
Can I use Prior Learning?
If you hold qualifications or courses from another higher education institution, these may exempt you from courses of this degree.
Find out more on our Recognition of Prior Learning pages.
How you will learn
Teaching
The taught element of the Professional Doctorate will use a blended learning approach. Three modules will run per year, one per term for the taught phase (years 1 & 2). Each module will have 2 full day in-person workshops, one in Week 1 of the module and one in week 7. You will also have 2 online tutorials over the course of the module. Between these sessions, you will be set online learning activities, group work, and guided reading and be expected to undertake independent learning.
| Week 1 | Interactive workshop |
| Week 2 | Online tutorial |
| Week 3 | Interactive workshop |
| Week 4 | Online tutorial |
The face-to-face workshops will have some taught content, some student-led content, individual and group work activities.
Class sizes
Approximately fifteen students join the programme each year.
Independent learning
Independent learning is essential to study at this level. Students will be provided with opportunities for guided self-directed study between teaching sessions.
Overall workload
The attendance requirement is mainly in the first two years of study, when you undertake a taught course designed to build your research expertise. Each 30-credit module is equivalent to around 300 student hours including all study-related activities. This equates to around 3 hours per week per module. In the thesis phase, you will have monthly supervision with your supervisory team. These sessions can be in-person or online.
Assessment
The assessment strategy on the programme is designed to enable you to incrementally become more sophisticated in your skills of gathering, analysing, and synthesising information, constructing arguments, and developing and explaining authoritative solutions to complex practical, theoretical, or policy problems within a professional context. The assessment strategy for each module includes an opportunity to submit a formative assessment. There will be time in the workshops and tutorials to discuss the assessments.
Feedback summary
We aim to give feedback on assignments within 15 working days.
Dates and timetables
The term dates for the Professional Doctorate in Social and Criminal Justice follow the University of Greenwich’s academic calendar which is available here.
Fees and funding
Accommodation costs
Whether you choose to live in halls of residence or rent privately, we can help you find what you're looking for. University accommodation is available from £126.35 per person per week (bills included), depending on your location and preferences. If you require more space or facilities, these options are available at a slightly higher cost.
Scholarships and bursaries
We offer a wide range of financial help including scholarships and bursaries.
The Greenwich Bursary
This bursary is worth £700 for new undergraduate students with a low household income, entering Year 0 or 1 who meet the eligibility criteria.
EU Bursary
Following the UK's departure from the European Union, we are supporting new EU students by offering a substantial fee-reduction for studying.
Financial support
We want your time at university to be enjoyable, rewarding, and free of unnecessary stress, so planning your finances before you come to university can help to reduce financial concerns. We can offer advice on living costs and budgeting, as well as on awards, allowances and loans.
Careers and placements
What sort of careers do graduates pursue?
A focus on employment and industry is one of the identifying characteristics of Professional Doctorates. Organisations benefit from high level research undertaken by a practitioner in their field. The assessments are ‘authentic’ in that they require the students to complete tasks related to planning, delivering, and disseminating high-level practice-based research. The completion of the Professional Doctorate provides the students with knowledge, skills, and experience that they can use to advance their careers in their chosen sector.
Do you provide employability services?
Employability activities take place all the time at Greenwich and students are encouraged to take part in as many opportunities as possible. The central Employability and Careers Service provides support for students preparing to apply for placements and graduate roles, such as CV clinics, mock interviews and employability skills workshops. In addition, your School has a dedicated Employability Officer who will be organising work-related activities throughout the year which will help you to build your industry knowledge and networks.
Accommodation
Greenwich
Living in halls of residence is a great way to make new friends and get into the social side of university life. With four great locations, all minutes away from the campus and the centre of historic Greenwich , you will be at the heart of one of the most beautiful university settings in the UK.
Rooms start at £146.30/wk and include Wi-Fi, utility bills, access to our on-campus gym and 24-hour security - and just a 10-minute train journey to central London. Students based at our Greenwich campus can also choose to live the Student Village at Avery Hill, which is only a short ride on our free shuttle bus.
Support and advice
Academic skills and study support
We want you to make the most of your time with us. You can access study skills support through your tutor, our subject librarians, and our online academic skills centre. Where appropriate, we provide support in academic English and mathematics. If you need to use particular IT packages for a specific module, we provide training for this.
Support from the department
The School of Law & Criminology provides pastoral support throughout your studies with us. Students have a personal tutor and access to training in study skills, dissertation preparation, methods and ethics and can have access to advice on employability and careers. Additionally, joining societies such as the University's student Criminology Society or initiatives such as the Innocence Project London can build skills and present new opportunities.
Not quite what you were looking for?
We've got plenty of other courses for you to choose from. Browse our postgraduate courses or check our related courses below.....
Criminology at the University of Greenwich
Study a subject area that covers a range of fascinating topics. Explore aspects of crime and the causes of crime with one of our courses in this exciting discipline.
Visit our criminology degrees page.
Innocence Project London
Our School of Law and Criminology students can get involved with the Innocence Project London (IPL) - a law clinic and charity at the University of Greenwich that investigates potential miscarriages of justice.
Mode of study
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