1. Demonstrate skills in crime scene investigation including scene assessment, evidence recovery, and documentation at different types of scenes. Knowledge & Understanding; Digital Literacy

2. Integrate theoretical and practical knowledge across a range of criminalistic topics through simulated laboratory exercises and reflective seminars. Application & Problem Solving

3. Develop and implement forensic strategies to recover, analyse, and interpret criminalistic based evidence. Critical Reasoning & Collaboration.

4. To communicate the method, analysis, and interpretation of forensic evidence in a professional and academically rigorous manner. Communication; Reflection

Crime Scene Documentation – Learning Outcome 1 Students shall attend an assessed simulated crime scene and process the scene as a forensic investigator. As part of the assessment students shall produce scene documentation, such as contemporaneous scene notes, photographic logs, sketches, and evidence logs. This should be compiled in a logical and comprehensive manner.

Streamlined Forensic Report – Learning Outcomes 2-4 A Streamlined Forensic Report is a concise, structured document that includes key results and scientific interpretation of forensic evidence, written for legal professionals or law enforcement.

Formative Assessments Formative assessments will be set in the form of practical tasks, in-class exercises, pop quizzes, and intersessional activities. You will be provided with formative feedback in taught sessions.

Students shall obtain theoretical and hands on experience of crime scene investigation where they can develop skills in crime scene documentation strategies, such as sketching, photography, contemporaneous note taking and collecting forensic evidence.

Students shall learn about key criminalistic forensic methods from a theoretical and practical perspective and gain practical experience of evidence analysis using laboratory equipment.

Students shall apply their knowledge and practical skills to devise forensic strategies that involve the collection, analysis, and interpretation of evidence from a simulated crime scene and produce a scientific report that communicates the key findings of the analysis within the context of a mock case.

This module provides hands-on experience in crime scene investigation, where you will learn and develop the essential skills to locate, recover, and interpret forensic evidence from a variety of simulated crime types. You will explore decision-making at major crime scenes and learn how to develop effective strategies that maximise the quality and quantity of forensic evidence that can be recovered from scenes. You will have the opportunity to learn about and analyse forensic evidence in our laboratories using specialist forensic technology, and work under the supervision of subject area experts to interpret your results before reporting your findings in your role as a forensic scientist.

The crime scene aspects shall be taught through a combination of lectures and practical sessions in the simulation suite and laboratories.

The theory and practical elements of the criminalistic topics shall be delivered simultaneously.

Bertino, A.J. and Bertino, P.N. (2016) Forensic Science: Fundamentals and Investigations. 2nd ed. Nashville (TN): South-Western Educational Publishing.
Jackson, A.R.W. and Jackson, J.M. (2016) Forensic Science. 4th ed. Saddle River (NJ): Pearson Education. James, S.H. (2014) Forensic Science: An Introduction to Scientific and Investigative Techniques. 4th ed. Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press.
NicDaeid, N., White, P. and Royal Society of Chemistry. (2024) Crime Scene to Court. The Essentials of Forensic Science. 5th ed. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.
Saferstein, R. (2015) Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science. 11th ed. Harlow: Pearson.

A suitable computer capable of accessing the internet, Blackboard, and the university server. Library access is essential.