Transnational Organised Crime

• A chance to study contemporary issues such as drug trafficking, terrorism, human trafficking, illegal arms trading and financial crime
  
  

• Relevant to careers in areas such as law enforcement, customs and excise, and security or defence ministries
  
  

• Start in either September or February and study part-time in a flexible, supportive, virtual learning environment

This new award provides an advanced programme in a new and rapidly changing area of study. During recent decades transnational crime has become a major area of concern for politicians and policy makers and an increasingly important area of research. Its context is the growth of global anxiety regarding activities such as drug trafficking, terrorism, human trafficking, illegal arms trading and financial crime which appear either to be on the increase or are assuming new and increasingly global forms.

In this award we intend to examine this phenomenon in terms of its recent emergence and further development, its historical precedents at a global level, typical forms and law enforcement responses, and the way in which transnational organised crime is typically represented by news and broadcasting media. Our intention is to provide you with a rigorous and critical education in this area which will provide you with the basis for both further study and for seeking employment in professional careers related to the award.

The award is organised within the framework of the modular system. This means that learning and teaching is divided into modules of 16 weeks in length (12 weeks of direct teaching and 4 weeks of independent work on assessment) which coincide with the first (September – January) and second (February – June) semesters. Students will normally take 2-3 years to complete the MA in full.

You will study a range of modules which cover the history, theory and analysis of transnational organised crime as well as providing a very wide range in-depth case study regarding both organised criminal groups and the global activities which they engage in. This typically includes phenomena as diverse as international terrorism, drug trafficking, illegal arms deals, the smuggling of radioactive material, human trafficking, the global sex trade, racketeering, trading in human organs, counterfeiting of documents and identities, extortion and many different forms of state and corporate crime.

The MA provides a curriculum which is suited to those seeking employment or further study in relation to careers in law enforcement, policing, customs and excise, the security industry, international governmental and non-governmental institutions, national foreign, security or defence ministries, and internationally oriented organisations of many types.

• MA Transnational Organised Crime (Distance Learning) Programme Specification (PDF, file size: 156.26KB)

For more information about Transnational Organised Crime please contact: