Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences

2023 Changes for Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Honours)

In response to extensive student and industry feedback a new 3-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (BCCJ) program will be offered for students commencing in Semester 1, 2023.

As a continuing Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Honours) (BCCJ(Hons)) student please be assured that you will be able to complete your program requirements and we are here to assist you with planning your enrolment.

  1. What is changing in 2023?
  2. What does this mean for continuing 4-year BCCJ(Hons) students?
  3. I am thinking of changing from the BCCJ(Hons) to the new BCCJ or the BCCJ/BA. What should I consider?
  4. I am thinking of changing from the Bachelor of Arts (BA) to the new BCCJ/BA. What should I consider?
  1. How do I apply to change from the 4-year BCCJ(Hons) or BA program to the new 3-year BCCJ program or the new BCCJ/BA dual program?
  2. I still have questions. Who can I talk to?
  3. What next?

1. What is changing in 2023?

A new 3-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice program for students commencing in 2023

For students commencing in 2023, a new 3-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (BCCJ) program will be offered, and this will replace the previous 4-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Honours) (BCCJ(Hons) program. Commencing students will complete the 3-year program that will not include an embedded Honours experience. To provide greater flexibility a student can apply to commence in either Semester 1 or Semester 2.  

From 2025 students who have completed the 3-year BCCJ program will have the option of applying for a place in the 1-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Honours) (BCCJ(Hons)) program. This is a stand-alone Honours research experience program that commences in Semester 1 of each year. 

This 3-year BCCJ and 1-year BCCJ(Hons) program model reflects the same structure and duration of other programs such as the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Arts (Honours) or the Bachelor of Social Science and Bachelor of Social Science (Honours) programs offered at UQ. 

This means that from 2023 there will be two degrees with similar names:

  • the Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Honours) (BCCJ(Hons)). This is a 4-year degree with an embedded Honours program. Program code: 2408.

  • the Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice (BCCJ). This is a 3-year degree with no Honours. Program code: 2519.

Please be assured that as a continuing 4-year BCCJ(Hons) student you will still be able to complete your program requirements unless you elect to apply to change to the new 3-year BCCJ program.

A new Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice/Bachelor of Arts dual program for students commencing in 2023

From 2023 a new 4-year Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice/ Bachelor of Arts (BCCJ/BA) dual program will be offered. This dual program will enable students to combine their criminological training with a range of study areas offered in the Bachelor of Arts component such as Peace and Conflict Studies, Anthropology, History, Economics and Geography. To provide greater flexibility a student can apply to commence this dual program in either Semester 1 or Semester 2. 

Due to the overlap in Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice Core Courses, students will not be able to complete Bachelor of Arts component with study in the areas of Criminology or Legal Education Studies.