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Program Requirements
Note: University regulations apply to all students at Laurier. If there is any discrepancy between the program or progression requirements outlined on this page and those in the university's academic calendars, the academic calendars are the official sources of information. The information below is from the latest calendar, and you may be following progression requirements from an earlier calendar. Students are responsible for checking the appropriate calendar. Contact your program coordinator should you notice any discrepancies.
Undergraduate Programs
Note: For any academic concerns or help understanding program requirements, contact Academic Advising.
Laurier Brantford has developed a comprehensive Honours BA Criminology program, which is suitable for students who wish to use Criminology as a basis for a variety of different career paths.
The honours Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Criminology program is only available at Laurier’s Brantford campus. It consists of 20.0 credits of which no more than 7.0 credits may be at the 100 level. The program must include a minimum of 10.0 and a maximum of 11.5 credits in Criminology (CC).
Requirements
Students must complete all required courses (4.5 credits), plus a minimum of 5.5 additional CC credits. Of these 5.5 credits, at least 1.0 credit must be at the 300 level and at least 1.0 credit must be at the 400 level.
Required Courses (4.5 credits)
CC100, CC102, CC210, CC233/HS233/OL233, CC290, CC390, CC327.
Plus one of:
- CC291/PD291
- CC292
- LY205
Plus one of:
- CC425
- CC426/PD426
Additional Courses (5.5 credits)
Any senior CC course in addition to the required list.
Degree Program Electives
An additional 10.0 credits for the degree total of 20.0 credits. All students in the program must complete successfully the Foundations curriculum: BF190, BF199, BF290, BF299.
Notes
- Students who are required to take research methods and statistic courses in their second honours program should seek academic advice to avoid duplication.
- Students completing the honours Criminology program are excluded from completing the Honours Law and Society program. Students may hold a minor in Law and Society.
- Students who complete PS296 and/or PS295 towards CC requirements must replace each 0.5 credit with a senior 0.5 CC credit in order to meet graduation requirements. Academic advising is strongly recommended.
- Refer to the university regulations chapter of the academic calendar for progression and course regulations and the earlier section regarding regulations for all honours programs.
Note: For any academic concerns or help understanding program requirements, contact Academic Advising.
The Honours BA Criminology (Sussex LLB Stream) enables students who successfully complete its requirements to earn an Honours BA degree from Laurier and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of Sussex, United Kingdom in six years.
Honours BA Criminology Component
The Honours BA in Criminology is only available at the Brantford Campus. It consists of 20.0 credits of which no more than 7.0 credits may be at the 100 level. The program must include a minimum of 10.0 and a maximum of 11.5 credits in Criminology.
Upon successful completion of their LLB at the University of Sussex, students will be awarded 5.0 transfer credits equivalent to: 1.0 senior CC credit, 1.0 credit at the CC 300 level, and 3.0 senior elective credits. Taking into account the awarding of these 5.0 transfer credits then, students must complete all required Criminology courses (4.5 credits) as listed in the calendar, 3.5 additional CC elective credits (including 1.0 credit at the 400 level), 2.0 Foundation credits (BF190, BF199, BF290, BF299), and 5.0 elective credits while studying at Laurier.
Note that in the final year of the program to be completed at Laurier (Year 6), students will take 3.5 of their additional elective credits in the form of courses to be offered by Laurier to prepare to write the National Accreditation exams.
Prior to departing for studies at the University of Sussex, students must have completed the 10.0 credits that are listed under Year 1 and Year 2 below. Due to the compacted nature of the Sussex Stream, students are strongly encouraged to pursue their degree in the following manner:
- Year 1: CC100 (F), CC102, CC210 (W), 1.0 credit of CC electives, BF190, BF199, BF290, 1.0 elective credit. Total: 5.0 credits
- Year 2: CC233 (F), CC290 (F), one of: CC291, CC292 or LY205; CC327 (W), CC390 (W), BF299, 1.5 credits of CC electives, 0.5 credit elective. Total: 5.0 credits
- Years 3-5: Students pursue an LLB at the University of Sussex. Upon successful completion of their LLB, students will be awarded 5.0 transfer credits equivalent to: 1.0 senior CC credit, 1.0 credit at the CC 300 level, and 3.0 senior elective credits. Total: 5.0 credits
- Year 6: CC425 or CC426, 1.0 credit of CC at the 400 level. Students will take 3.5 of their additional credits in the form of courses to be offered by Laurier to prepare to write the National Accreditation exams. Total: 5.0 credits
Note: (F)=Fall Semester, (W)=Winter Semester, to assist with prerequisite planning.
Notes on Progression Requirements
- Progression to Year 2 requires completion of five credits with a minimum cumulative GPA of 7.00 in all Criminology courses and a minimum cumulative GPA of 8.00 in all 5.0 credits. All credits taken during Year 1 will be included in the GPA requirements for progression into Year 2. These course and GPA requirements must be achieved by Aug. 31.
- To be recommended for application to the Sussex LLB program in year three, students must have maintained a minimum overall GPA of 8.0 (B) over all credits completed over their first three full terms (i.e, minimum 7.5 credits). These course and GPA requirements must be achieved by Dec. 31 of the students’ second year.
- Refer to the university regulations chapter of the academic calendar for progression and course regulations and the earlier section regarding regulations for all honours programs.
Application to Sussex
- Students will apply to Sussex via the standard Sussex application procedures. Students will apply through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) for entry. Students will provide Sussex full application documents, including high school and University transcripts, references (Laurier students will submit references on a standardised reference form), and a personal statement, in line with normal admissions procedures. Sussex will consider applications according to its normal procedures. Students will be guaranteed an offer of a place if they meet the progression requirements described above and where students have achieved Sussex's standard English language entrance requirements, where appropriate.
- Note: The University of Sussex reserves the right not to provide a guaranteed offer after consideration of any relevant unspent criminal convictions a student may have. Sussex recommends that if students have a conviction, Laurier contact the Admissions Office to discuss this before proceeding further.
Note: For any academic concerns or help understanding program requirements, contact Academic Advising.
The combined Honours Criminology program consists of 20.0 credits, of which not more than 7.0 may be at the 100 level. A minimum of 6.0 and a maximum of 8.0 senior credits may be in Criminology (CC).
Program Requirements
Students must complete all required 4.0 credits in the combined honours program, plus 3.0 additional credits in CC, of which at least 0.5 credit must be at the 300 level and at least 0.5 credit must be at the 400 level.
All students in the program must complete successfully the Foundations curriculum: BF190, BF199, BF290, BF299.
Required Courses (4.0 credits)
CC100, CC102, CC210, CC233/HS233/OL233, CC290, CC390, CC327.
Plus one of:
- CC425
- CC426
Degree Program Electives
An additional 13.0 credits toward the degree total of 20.0 credits, which includes the second Honours BA major, and no more than 2.0 CC credits. All students in the program must complete successfully the Foundations curriculum: BF190, BF199, BF290, BF299.
Notes
- Students who are required to take research methods and statistic courses in their second honours program should seek academic advice to avoid duplication.
- Students completing the combined honours Criminology program are excluded from completing the Honours Law and Society program. Students may hold a minor in Law and Society.
- Students who complete PS296 and/or PS295 towards CC requirements must replace each 0.5 credit with a senior 0.5 CC credit in order to meet graduation requirements. Academic advising is strongly recommended.
- The criminology combined major is available via online delivery.
- Students completing the online Criminology combined major are excluded from the Policing combination major. Students who wish to combine these online programs must enrol in the fully online part-time Honours BA Criminology and Policing program. Consult Academic Advising for more information.
- Refer to the university regulations chapter of the academic calendar for progression and course regulations and the earlier section regarding regulations for all honours programs.
The minor in Criminology is available at Laurier Brantford and Laurier Waterloo.
The minor in Criminology consists of 3.0 credits in Criminology (CC) courses, including CC100 and CC102, and 2.0 senior (at the 200 level or above) CC credits.
Refer also to the regulations governing minors in the academic calendar.
If you are a Criminology major at Laurier Brantford, Foundations courses are part of your program requirements. You cannot graduate without finishing the four Foundations courses. Completion of all of these Foundations courses will assist you in understanding and fully engaging with Criminology-specific courses.
Because the following two courses will probably help you the most in the early stages of the Criminology program, we strongly recommend that you complete them in your first year. Instructors in senior-level Criminology courses will expect you to have the skills and competencies learned in these Foundations classes, and you will be a more successful student in your Criminological studies if you take these courses early on.
- BF190: Modernity and the Contemporary World: This course, and its successor, BF299, will help you contextualize the discussions that you will encounter in your Criminology classes, and will give you the intellectual background to form stronger arguments. This course is beneficial for core Criminology courses such as Introduction to Criminology as well as all Criminology theories courses.
- BF290: Academic Literacy: Social Sciences: Criminology requires your ability to process and synthesize information from all areas, and bring it to bear on the criminal justice issue in question. The ability to engage contemporary issues raised in criminology with scholarship from the broader social sciences will make you a more versatile and ultimately more successful Criminological scholar.
The following two courses, to be taken in your second year or earlier, will make you a better scholar, and can help you better engage any course you take.
- BF199: Critiques of Modernity: This course, the to successor, BF290, will also provide essential context for the discussions that you will encounter in your Criminology classes, especially upper-year Criminological theories courses, that deal with modern explanations of crime.
- BF299: Academic Literacy: Humanities: This course will help you read more carefully, analyze texts more precisely, discern and form better arguments, and write clearer, sharper, better organized essays.
Diploma and Certificate Programs
The Criminology certificate and diploma provide academic training to professionals and mature students working in the field of criminal justice, thus allowing them to improve their effectiveness on the job. The curriculum is not designed to satisfy specific employment credentials, but encourages those engaged in the administration of justice to critically evaluate and consider the increasingly complex challenges of our criminal justice system.
The required courses and electives afford students with an opportunity to develop skills in logical thinking and critical analysis. These programs encourage professional development for individuals with at least one year of related formal work experience.
The Diploma in Criminology program consists of 10.0 credits, including no more than 4.0 at the 100 level. The diploma program can be taken on a part-time or full-time basis.
10.0 credits:
- 6.5 credits in Criminology (CC)
- 2.0 credits in Brantford Foundations (BF)
- 1.5 elective credits
Required Courses in Criminology (6.5 credits)
- CC100: Introduction to Criminology
- CC102: Introduction to the Criminal Justice System
- CC210: Psychology of Crime
- CC290: Theories of Crime I
- CC302: Crime and the Justice System
- CC390: Theories of Crime II
- Plus 3.5 elective credits in Criminology (CC)
Required Foundations Courses (2.0 credits)
- BF190: Modernity and the Contemporary World
- BF199: Modernity: Critique and Resistance
- BF290: Academic Literacy: Social Sciences
- BF299: Academic Literacy: Humanities
Notes
- Students must complete 6.0 credits at Wilfrid Laurier University after admission to the program.
- Students must attain a minimum cumulative GPA of 6.0 to graduate.
- Students who wish subsequently to be registered in a degree program may be granted advanced standing toward the degree, subject to senate and faculty regulations.
The Certificate in Criminology consists of 5.0 credits, including no more than 3.0 at the 100 level. The certificate program is offered on a part-time basis only and requirements must be fulfilled within five years from the date of entry.
5.0 credits: 3.0 credits in Criminology and 2.0 credits of Foundations.
Required Courses (Criminology)
- CC100: Introduction to Criminology
- CC210: Psychology of Crime
- CC290: Theories of Crime I
- CC302: Crime and the Justice System
- 1.0 elective credit in Criminology (CC)
Required Courses in Foundations
- BF190: Modernity and the Contemporary World
- BF199: Modernity: Critique and Resistance
- BF290: Academic Literacy: Social Sciences
- BF299: Academic Literacy: Humanities
Notes
- At least 3.0 credits of the courses counted towards the certificate must be taken at Wilfrid Laurier University.
- Students must attain a minimum cumulative GPA of 6.0 to graduate.
- Students who wish subsequently to be registered in a degree program may be granted advanced standing toward the degree, subject to senate and faculty regulations.
- The application form for the certificate is available from Enrolment Services.
Graduate Program
Students wishing to pursue graduate studies in criminology at Laurier may complete a Master of Arts (MA) in Criminology at Laurier Brantford. The MA Criminology program is a two-year research-intensive program that provides students with sound methodological and theoretical training as well as professionalization in the field of criminology and criminal justice. See the academic calendar for more information, including about admission requirements.
The MA program in criminology is normally expected to be completed in six consecutive terms. Students must develop their programs in consultation with the graduate coordinator. The graduate coordinator must approve the student's program in all cases. The major requirement of the program is the defence of a thesis based on original research. Students are also required to complete four required courses and two elective courses selected in consultation with the graduate coordinator. A minimum passing grade in a course or seminar is B−, and an overall average of B in all courses is required to earn the degree.
Required courses include:
- CC601 - Qualitative Fieldwork into the Study of Deviance
- CC602 - Advanced Quantitative Research Methods
- CC603 - Theories of Crime and Crime Control
- CC606 - Research and Professionalization Seminar
- 2 elective courses
- CC699 - Thesis
With the approval of the graduate coordinator, one of the elective courses may be taken from a master's program of another department at Wilfrid Laurier University. Students may also arrange to take one of their courses as a directed studies course under the supervision of an individual professor.
To meet all degree requirements, a student must earn a "pass" in CC606 - Research and Professionalization Seminar (graded as pass/fail), must earn no less than a B- in any given course, must hold a minimum of a B average at the end of their course work and must successfully complete a thesis.
If they fail to complete their coursework with the required B average the student will not be allowed to move onto the thesis stage and may be required to repeat or take another course to improve their standing.
The university regulations on master's theses and defences apply.