Program Overview

This is the only degree of its kind in Western Australia. Study a Bachelor of Criminology with a Bachelor of Science to gain a unique set of skills and expand your career options.

In your Bachelor of Science coursework, you will learn about a range of forensic disciplines including forensic palynology (the use of pollen grains to connect a suspect with a crime scene), the pathology of asphyxiation, electrocution, gunshot wounds and fatal fire injuries, as well as how to recognise blunt and sharp force injuries and the weapons that cause them.

In Criminology, you’ll learn what’s behind the motivations and patterns of criminal behaviour in Australia, the science that helps solve major crime, and how our justice system works in Australia.

Major: Crime Science

Learn about what can cause growing crime rates and look closely at the “who, what, when, where, why” and how offences are committed.

In Crime Science you can combine your interest in science with your fascination for criminology. You’ll explore the areas of science that can lead to solving and preventing crime – and learn why more than one approach is often needed in problem-solving.

As part of your studies you’ll examine how crime hotspots are identified and how patterns of crime have changed over time. You will learn how data can identify and create opportunities for early intervention strategies and approaches to policing and crime prevention. Your studies will allow you to see the value of scientific methods in the analysis of crime trends and the difficulties faced by police forces in protecting the community.

3 reasons to study Crime Science at Murdoch

• Murdoch is the only university in Australia to offer this course.
• Use real local data on local crime to analyse crime problems and propose targeted problem-solving strategies through working with the different disciplines that crime science covers – law, forensics and criminology.
• Build your network from within our Law, Forensics and Criminology disciplines making use of our strong ties to the Western Australian legal and forensics community.

What you’ll learn
Build the knowledge and skills you need to meet your career or study goals. Here are some of the things you’ll learn:

• Forensic anatomy and anthropology
• Forensic science and miscarriages of justice
• Advanced criminology
• Crime science
• International and transnational crimes