MSc Criminology and Criminal Justice

Student profile

Richard Jones – MSc Criminology and Criminal Justice

What made you decide to come to the University of Portsmouth to enrol on your course?

"Primarily I wanted somewhere where I could study criminal justice. While I was applying there seemed to be a lack of universities who provided a sole criminal justice course, but Portsmouth did and this got my attention. Compared to other institutes it seemed to take criminal justice as an academic course very seriously. Secondly, I wanted somewhere compact, whose main campus, student residential areas and attractions were all together. This is certainly true with Portsmouth, everything is in walking distance."

How have you found the course?

"Although I found the course extremely challenging it was also very enjoyable. By doing the course full time there was much work to cram into a year. This meant I was constantly working to deadlines, which I believe motivated me highly. I studied alot harder for this than for my degree. The enjoyable part was the range of interesting subjects we researched, and the fact that we were allowed to look into very specialised areas. For example, during the year I digressed from penology to maritime piracy to criminal profiling in the space of a few months which shows the broad range of subjects available. My dissertation was also a highlight, as it gave me the freedom to research with little boundary and really delve deeply into a subject matter. My finished thesis 'The Land of the Rising Gun' a study into the rise of gun crime in the UK, gave me a great sense of pride when it was complete. You have to study the one subject for much of the summer so the trick is to research something you are interested in."

How have you found life at the University of Portsmouth and what aspects of being a student here have you valued?

"My time here has been brilliant! Because Portsmouth is quite small there is a real student community feel to the place and this means you make lots of friends. The academic buildings all have good facilities and are excellent places to study and there is a diverse night life. Portsmouth is certainly the perfect place to study hard in the day and party hard at night."