People who have a Bachelor’s degree in Criminology, Law, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Legal Studies, a similar subject, or a legal equivalent.
Study program self-evaluation report (in portuguese)
This Master’s degree aims to continue the training started on the Bachelor’s degree in Criminology by furthering it, developing it and enhancing it with advanced training that emphasises desired, improved skills for students to achieve full integration into their specialist professional field in the labour market and in scientific research and the academic world. The course also aims to give students who have completed other Bachelor’s degrees advanced contact with criminology and relevant subjects and research methods. The different course units are taught by specialists in their field who hold PhDs. They will present essential and advanced knowledge on the different topics to provide training for research and work as a criminologist. The course specifically aims to further develop the subjects of criminology and the criminal justice system to help complete students’ academic and vocational training and provide better knowledge of the two fields and the crossovers between them. The theory aspects included in the course will include an analysis of features related to criminology and the criminal justice system, as well as scientific research methods in general, specific methods for criminology and methods from other subject fields that enable students to achieve in-depth training in criminology.
Professional opportunities
The Master’s degree in Criminology provides students with professional opportunities for which they are particularly prepared: joining and working effectively in different working contexts, from scientific and academic research (for example, carrying out studies and research projects on criminal acts, factors and behaviours, regarding the perpetrators, their methods and contexts) to the most specialised, professional settings, specifically those related to professional intervention in security and crime issues. This course prepares students for different interventions and scientific fields at all levels of the criminal justice system. But it also enhances access to prison services, social reintegration institutions, institutions that work with atrisk minors or victim support and, especially for criminology graduates, access to police forces (public security police, national guard, judiciary police), border control services, secret services, economic activity inspection services, prison services, private security, etc.
What makes this course different?
The Master’s degree in Criminology at ISMAI is closely linked to the Research Unit in Criminology and Behavioural Sciences (UICCC), which carries out research and community service projects in the area of criminology, and the Criminology and Forensic Science Lab (LCFC), which performs practical, laboratory-based activities in the field of forensic sciences and criminalistics. Study visits are also organised, which helps students to put their theoretical knowledge into practice. Academic staff are members of research units classified as “Good” (Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Human Rights - DH-CII) and “Very Good” (Interdisciplinary Centre of Social Studies - CICS.NOVA) in the Foundation for Science and Technology’s international evaluation