Best Universities for Criminology in the UK 2027
Swansea University tops our 2027 criminology ranking with 221 points, combining strong student satisfaction, high sustainability scores and 93% academic support with solid graduate earnings. Durham University comes second with 216 points and University of Exeter third with 215 points — Exeter achieving 100% teaching quality, the highest in the entire field. We ranked 94 UK universities across eight metrics: graduate earnings, teaching quality, student satisfaction, academic support, safety, cost of living, social life and sustainability.
Criminology graduate earnings range from £18,500 (Bradford) to £37,000 (Robert Gordon University). Robert Gordon (14th) produces by far the highest-earning criminology graduates, reflecting Aberdeen's police, justice and security sector employment market. University of East London (59th) achieves 54% on both teaching quality and academic support — the joint-lowest scores in this ranking. University of Cumbria (45th) achieves 53% academic support, the lowest single score in the field. University of Chester (31st) achieves 100% academic support alongside 94% teaching quality.
For how these universities compare across all subjects, see the Unifresher best universities overall ranking and our best universities for employability.
Criminology University Rankings 2027
| # | University | Grad Earnings | Satisfaction | Teaching Quality | Academic Support | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swansea University Swansea |
£28,000 | 79% | 84% | 93% | 221 |
| 2 | Durham University Durham |
£31,000 | 78% | 86% | 91% | 216 |
| 3 | University of Exeter Exeter |
£27,000 | 79% | 100% | 86% | 215 |
| 4 | University of Reading Reading |
£27,500 | 74% | 96% | 96% | 212 |
| 5 | Bangor University Bangor |
£25,500 | 76% | 90% | 92% | 211 |
| 6 | York St John University York |
£25,000 | 80% | 84% | 97% | 209 |
| 7 | Bath Spa University Bath |
£24,500 | 79% | 84% | 86% | 204 |
| 8 | University of Worcester Worcester |
£22,000 | 79% | 85% | 87% | 197 |
| 9 | Edge Hill University Ormskirk |
£27,000 | 83% | 85% | 83% | 193 |
| 9 | Cardiff Metropolitan University Cardiff |
£21,500 | 75% | 87% | 87% | 193 |
| 10 | Canterbury Christ Church University Canterbury |
£26,000 | 73% | 91% | 90% | 190 |
| 10 | University of Bristol Bristol |
£26,500 | 73% | 95% | 84% | 190 |
| 11 | University of East Anglia (UEA) Norwich |
£25,500 | 79% | 87% | 93% | 187 |
| 12 | Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester |
£26,000 | 73% | 89% | 86% | 185 |
| 12 | University of Leeds Leeds |
£27,000 | 74% | 95% | 95% | 185 |
| 13 | University of Bath Bath |
£30,000 | 80% | 91% | 98% | 184 |
| 14 | Robert Gordon University Aberdeen |
£37,000 | 77% | 88% | 87% | 182 |
| 15 | University of Plymouth Plymouth |
£23,000 | 75% | 82% | 89% | 180 |
| 16 | Bournemouth University Bournemouth |
£24,000 | 71% | 84% | 83% | 178 |
| 17 | Cardiff University Cardiff |
£24,500 | 71% | 87% | 85% | 178 |
| 18 | University of the West of England, Bristol Bristol |
£24,500 | 74% | 84% | 79% | 177 |
| 18 | Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool |
£21,500 | 72% | 85% | 94% | 177 |
| 18 | University of York York |
£26,500 | 77% | 91% | 91% | 177 |
| 18 | Oxford Brookes University Oxford |
£25,000 | 74% | 91% | 93% | 177 |
| 19 | University of Sunderland Sunderland |
£27,000 | 74% | 92% | 87% | 175 |
| 20 | Lancaster University Lancaster |
£26,000 | 82% | 92% | 95% | 173 |
| 21 | University of Lincoln Lincoln |
£24,000 | 78% | 73% | 83% | 171 |
| 22 | Nottingham Trent University Nottingham |
£22,500 | 76% | 88% | 89% | 170 |
| 23 | University of Liverpool Liverpool |
£26,500 | 71% | 84% | 84% | 168 |
| 23 | Royal Holloway, University of London Egham |
£27,000 | 74% | 86% | 84% | 168 |
| 23 | University of West London London |
£26,000 | 72% | 88% | 90% | 168 |
| 23 | Anglia Ruskin University Cambridge |
£27,000 | 70% | 91% | 80% | 168 |
| 23 | University of Bedfordshire Luton |
£25,000 | 68% | 92% | 92% | 168 |
| 24 | De Montfort University Leicester |
£21,000 | 70% | 82% | 86% | 167 |
| 24 | Sheffield Hallam University Sheffield |
£26,000 | 73% | 89% | 87% | 167 |
| 25 | Northumbria University, Newcastle Newcastle upon Tyne |
£21,000 | 74% | 74% | 72% | 166 |
| 26 | University of South Wales Pontypridd |
£20,500 | 72% | 83% | 83% | 164 |
| 27 | University of Essex Colchester |
£26,000 | 74% | 78% | 84% | 162 |
| 28 | University of Salford Salford |
£28,000 | 73% | 77% | 80% | 161 |
| 29 | University of Surrey Guildford |
£29,000 | 78% | 90% | 93% | 160 |
| 30 | University of Brighton Brighton |
£25,000 | 72% | 82% | 97% | 159 |
| 30 | Keele University Newcastle-under-Lyme |
£24,000 | 81% | 83% | 92% | 159 |
| 30 | King's College London London |
£32,500 | 67% | 88% | 87% | 159 |
| 31 | University of Kent Canterbury |
£27,000 | 72% | 83% | 77% | 158 |
| 31 | University of Winchester Winchester |
£26,500 | 82% | 83% | 90% | 158 |
| 31 | University of Chester Chester |
£22,500 | 78% | 94% | 100% | 158 |
| 32 | University of Sheffield Sheffield |
£25,000 | 75% | 87% | 93% | 157 |
| 32 | Coventry University Coventry |
£27,000 | 72% | 91% | 83% | 157 |
| 33 | Edinburgh Napier University Edinburgh |
£23,000 | 72% | 79% | 82% | 155 |
| 33 | University of Derby Derby |
£25,000 | 74% | 84% | 94% | 155 |
| 33 | Birmingham City University Birmingham |
£22,000 | 69% | 88% | 92% | 155 |
| 33 | University of Warwick Coventry |
£29,000 | 74% | 91% | 87% | 155 |
| 34 | Kingston University Kingston upon Thames |
£34,000 | 71% | 81% | 88% | 154 |
| 35 | University of Gloucestershire Cheltenham / Gloucester |
£27,000 | 76% | 65% | 76% | 152 |
| 35 | University of Manchester Manchester |
£24,000 | 70% | 84% | 85% | 152 |
| 36 | University of Hertfordshire Hertfordshire |
£29,000 | 71% | 71% | 85% | 150 |
| 36 | Bishop Grosseteste University Lincoln |
£24,000 | 84% | 93% | 87% | 150 |
| 37 | Brunel University London Uxbridge |
£25,000 | 68% | 95% | 100% | 148 |
| 38 | University of Greenwich London |
£24,500 | 69% | 82% | 84% | 147 |
| 38 | University of Nottingham Nottingham |
£32,000 | 74% | 90% | 91% | 147 |
| 39 | Leeds Beckett University Leeds |
£21,000 | 70% | 81% | 83% | 145 |
| 39 | University of Sussex Brighton and Hove |
£28,000 | 77% | 89% | 86% | 145 |
| 40 | University of Suffolk Ipswich |
£23,500 | 76% | 96% | 100% | 142 |
| 41 | St Mary's University, Twickenham Twickenham |
£25,500 | 80% | 88% | 85% | 141 |
| 42 | University of Huddersfield Huddersfield |
£23,000 | 74% | 82% | 91% | 137 |
| 43 | University of Leicester Leicester |
£24,000 | 73% | 83% | 91% | 135 |
| 44 | University of Bradford Bradford |
£18,500 | 71% | 77% | 91% | 127 |
| 44 | Liverpool Hope University Liverpool |
£23,000 | 80% | 89% | 92% | 127 |
| 45 | University of Cumbria Carlisle |
£32,000 | 77% | 85% | 53% | 125 |
| 46 | University of Portsmouth Portsmouth |
£25,500 | 77% | 87% | 88% | 124 |
| 47 | Aston University Birmingham |
£27,000 | 75% | 89% | 91% | 120 |
| 48 | Solent University Southampton |
£27,500 | 71% | 84% | 88% | 116 |
| 49 | University of Stirling Stirling |
£27,000 | 78% | 85% | 85% | 114 |
| 49 | Staffordshire University Stoke-on-Trent |
£26,000 | 72% | 89% | 73% | 114 |
| 50 | University of Westminster London |
£30,000 | 68% | 85% | 80% | 113 |
| 50 | University of Chichester Chichester |
£27,000 | 80% | 93% | 99% | 113 |
| 51 | Leeds Trinity University Leeds |
£24,000 | 78% | 82% | 84% | 110 |
| 51 | University of Central Lancashire Preston |
£20,000 | 71% | 85% | 85% | 110 |
| 51 | London Metropolitan University London |
£31,000 | 66% | 95% | 93% | 110 |
| 52 | University of Southampton Southampton |
£25,000 | 76% | 80% | 79% | 109 |
| 53 | Middlesex University Middlesex |
£27,000 | 69% | 85% | 84% | 108 |
| 54 | University of Birmingham Birmingham |
£26,000 | 72% | 79% | 83% | 107 |
| 55 | Abertay University Dundee |
£26,000 | 72% | 86% | 85% | 106 |
| 56 | University of Roehampton London |
£27,000 | 72% | 91% | 94% | 103 |
| 57 | Buckinghamshire New University High Wycombe |
£27,000 | 70% | 73% | 68% | 93 |
| 57 | University of Hull Hull |
£25,000 | 76% | 81% | 88% | 93 |
| 58 | City St George's, University of London London |
£25,500 | 67% | 80% | 85% | 90 |
| 58 | University of Wolverhampton Wolverhampton |
£24,000 | 71% | 89% | 88% | 90 |
| 59 | University of East London London |
£27,000 | 68% | 54% | 54% | 89 |
| 60 | University of Northampton Northampton |
£23,500 | 75% | 75% | 80% | 88 |
| 61 | Teesside University Middlesbrough |
£20,000 | 78% | 79% | 87% | 86 |
| 62 | Newman University Birmingham |
£24,000 | 83% | 79% | 92% | 78 |
| 63 | London South Bank University London |
£21,500 | 68% | 89% | 70% | 66 |
| 64 | Goldsmiths, University of London London |
£28,000 | 64% | 57% | 53% | 63 |
What the ranking tells you about studying criminology
Criminology is one of the fastest-growing undergraduate degrees in the UK, with 94 universities now offering it. That breadth creates significant variation in course quality, research focus and graduate outcomes. This ranking scores all 94 on eight consistent metrics, giving you data that goes beyond institutional prestige. The results include some institutions you might expect at the top, some you would not, and several clear warnings about departments where the teaching data diverges sharply from the overall ranking position.
Exeter's 100% teaching quality at 3rd
University of Exeter is the only institution in this 94-university ranking to achieve 100% teaching quality for criminology. It ranks third overall with 215 points — just one point behind Durham — with 86% academic support and strong student satisfaction (79%). Its graduate earnings of £27,000 sit above the field average. Exeter's criminology department has a strong research profile in policing, organised crime and criminal justice policy, and it benefits from Exeter's overall high safety scores and coastal city quality of life. For students prioritising the highest-quality teaching environment, the data is unambiguous: no other university in this ranking comes close on that specific metric.
Robert Gordon at 14th: the earnings outlier explained
Robert Gordon University (Aberdeen) ranks 14th with 182 points and produces criminology graduates earning £37,000 — £6,000 above the second-highest (King's College London at £32,500, 30th) and £9,000 above the field average. This reflects Aberdeen's specific employment landscape: the city is home to Police Scotland regional headquarters, a significant prison service presence and a security sector employment market connected to the oil and gas industry. Graduates entering policing, private security and justice roles in the North East of Scotland access a premium regional labour market. If you want to work in criminal justice in Scotland, RGU's specific industry connections make it one of the most directly useful programmes in this ranking.
University of East London (59th) and Goldsmiths (64th): the data that matters most. University of East London ranks 59th with 89 points and achieves 54% on both teaching quality and academic support — the joint-lowest scores in this ranking. Goldsmiths ranks 64th (last) with 63 points and achieves 53% academic support and 57% teaching quality. Both are London institutions that benefit from the capital's cost of living boost to their overall position while showing course delivery scores that sit in the bottom two of 94 universities. University of Cumbria (45th, 125 points) achieves just 53% academic support — the lowest single score in this field — while producing graduates earning £32,000. These institutions require careful consideration: high graduate earnings or a familiar name does not substitute for the quality of teaching and support that data indicates.
Lancaster and Bath: the overlooked top-10 alternatives
University of Bath ranks 13th with 184 points, achieving 98% academic support and 91% teaching quality — the strongest support score in the top 15 — with graduate earnings of £30,000 and the joint-highest student satisfaction in the top 15 at 80%. Lancaster ranks 20th with 173 points, the highest student satisfaction in the table at 82%, 95% academic support and 92% teaching quality. Both have research-active criminology departments with strong critical criminology and policing research profiles. Neither appears regularly on criminology applicant shortlists despite outperforming Manchester (35th), Sheffield (32nd) and Birmingham (54th) on the metrics that matter most for the quality of your learning experience.
For a broader view of how these universities compare, see the Unifresher overall best universities ranking.
