Q. What’s the first thing you teach your students?
To challenge what they have heard about crime and criminal justice from the media. The reality is usually far more interesting.

Q. Please explain in detail what students will learn during each part of your course?
In the first year, we give students a broad introduction to criminology, the law, sociology and social policy. In the second year, they deepen their understanding of criminal justice issues and the criminal law, as well as doing a course on research methods. Options become available during the second year in issues like youth crime, restorative justice, forensic psychology, drugs and crime and policing. More, similar options are available in the third year, when our students also do a dissertation on a topic of their choice. We also give students the opportunity to earn academic credit for voluntary work with local charities.

Q. Why do you love your subject?
Studying criminal justice allows you to examine the worst and the best aspects of society and humanity. Why do people harm each other? Why do we cause each other pain? How can we protect ourselves and our fellow citizens from this suffering? These questions are at the heart of a civilized society. Studying criminal justice allows you to find answers to them.

Q. What qualifications route did you take to realise your career?
I did a first degree in French, but got interested in criminal justice through voluntary work with an Arts in Prisons project. I worked for a charity called Prisoners Abroad for a couple of years, and then developed my interests through a Masters degree in Socio-Legal Studies. After a few years working for a drug treatment charity, I then got into researching effective treatments for drug dependent offenders, and received a PhD in Social Policy through this research. I’ve always been interested in combining research with practical experience of work with offenders and victims of crime.

Q. What skills do your students have by the end of the course?
Our students leave us with useful skills in research and in understanding and communicating complex information quickly. They gain a broad understanding of crime and the criminal justice system, and specialist knowledge of the options that they follow.

Q. What kinds of careers can your students hope to embark on after graduation?
Many of our students move on to careers in the public or voluntary sectors, working with offenders and victims of crime. Examples include the probation service, the police service and charities such as the Howard League for Penal Reform. Other students go on to do postgraduate study, including conversion courses to become lawyers. Still others use the skills they have developed to achieve successful careers in jobs that are not directly related to criminal justice.

Q. What’s the best way to go about getting an entry-level job in your industry after graduation?
Apart from getting a good degree from an excellent University, the best way to get a head start in the job market is to gain some relevant work experience. This is why we encourage our students to volunteer (e.g. as Special Constables, with Victim Support, or as members of Youth Referral Panels) and why we offer academic credit for voluntary work in one of our modules.

Q. Where can students find great sources of information to learn more about your subject?
Our course website: http://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/undergrad/2012/subjects/criminal-justice-studies

The UCAS website:
http://www.ucas.com/seps/profiles/criminology

The Prospects Website:

http://www.prospects.ac.uk/options_criminology_your_skills.htm

The Oxford Handbook of Criminology:

http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/product/9780199205431.do

Q. What advice do you have for people interested in studying a course like yours?
Come to an Open Day and talk to the academics who’ll be teaching you. Bring questions about how the course meets your own specific interests and ambitions.  It helps if you are doing relevant A levels (e.g. Law, Sociology, Psychology, History, Economics, Politics), but it’s not essential.

Q. How competitive is the job market for your graduates and what will set them apart?
The job market is very tight at the moment (Spring 2011), with many employers suffering cutbacks. But by 2015, they will need to start recruiting a new generation of highly skilled and committed graduates to meet the public need for safe communities.

Q. What career paths and options are available to students that complete your course?
The course qualifies graduates for entry to accelerated promotion schemes in the police service, the prison service and the probation service. The voluntary sector is also a big employer in this area.