Investigative Management MA

Develop your skills and be part of the future of the police. Bring a high level of professionalism to investigation. Qualify for more senior roles within the police.

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Overview

The MA Investigative Management degree is ideal for professionals seeking to advance their careers by studying leadership and management in the context of work-based investigative practice.

This investigation course has been designed in collaboration with senior police representatives to enhance your intellectual capability and professional practice in relation to how investigations are led, managed and delivered.

By its nature, this cross-disciplinary investigation course has a substantive professional experience component. Throughout your studies you will be supported by academic staff, as well as various professionals with practical experience of investigation. With a clear focus on merging theory and practice, you will gain a deeper understanding of investigative management in the context of real-world experience(s) and professional practice(s).

This investigation course includes a dissertation module which allows you to tailor your studying to suit your career needs and research interests.

Why us?

Flexible study that fits around your work commitments
Gain an extremely industry-specific postgraduate qualification

Qualify for more senior positions

Course structure

MA Investigative Management is taught via lectures, workshops and self-study.

Your progress will be assessed with coursework, a research proposal (in written and presentation form) and your dissertation.

Throughout your studies, you will receive one on one guidance and support from academic staff and professionals with practical experience of investigation.

The course contact dates are 15-16 February 2023, 7-8 June 2023, and 25-26 October 2023.

Modules on this course include:

Advanced Critical Thinking and Applied Research Skills (30 credits)

Gain a critical understanding of the processes involved in conducting effective business management and build awareness of a range of research strategies and techniques to pursue your own research interests. Explore the significant role that theoretical principles play in the research process and the importance of presenting clear and credible argumentation and evidence to support both the research design and study’s findings.

Professional Leadership and Decision-Making in Investigation (30 credits)

Examine the wider impact of your professional leadership and decision-making in investigations, both for your own and your organisation’s benefit. Consider the changing nature of your professional environment by exploring various theories of professional leadership and management, focusing on a process of critical reflection upon your professional identity. Develop a deeper understanding of the practical issues of managing and leading investigations with a view to improve current practice.

Critical Decision-Making in Investigation (30 credits)

Develop an understanding of and reflect upon the importance of criticality in decision-making within the professional context of investigative management. Examine the similarities and differences between the approaches to critical evaluation of different stakeholders, and how these approaches impact outcomes of relevant investigations.

Advanced Investigative Management Proposal (30 credits)

Identify a key area of operational practice related to investigative procedure which you perceive requires further reflection and analysis to produce a written assessment, tailored towards writing for a practitioner-friendly peer journal.

Investigative Management Dissertation (60 credits)

Enhance your understanding of the processes involved in conducting effective business management research. Analyse, interpret and critically evaluate information relevant to the research topic and produce an investigative management dissertation from the gathered data.

Some modules have prerequisites. Read more about what this means in our Help and Advice article.

More about MA Investigative Management at Sunderland

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Fusing a 19th-century facade with a newly built glass, steel and stone structure, this impressive building houses 3,500sqm of workspace, including 30 offices and seven workshops allowing businesses to start-up, scale up, develop and access advice, research and expertise. The building is also home to FabLab Sunderland, the North East’s first digital fabrication laboratory and the Enterprise Place, a facility that supports students and graduates to start their own businesses.
Hope Street Xchange
You can access free Wi-Fi throughout the University campus, so you can work from anywhere. If you don't want to carry a laptop around, just use one of the University’s PCs or Macs. We have hundreds of computers for you to use in the Murray Library, St Peter's Library, and the David Goldman Informatics Centre. If you ever have any technical problems, just ask the friendly helpdesk team.
IT provision
We’ve got thousands of relevant books and e-books, with many more titles available through the inter-library loan service. We also subscribe to a comprehensive range of print and electronic journals so you can access the most reliable and up-to- date academic and industry articles. There are nearly 9,000 journal titles, mostly in electronic format.
Library Services - general
Map and directions

Facilities

You will study in the Hope Street Xchange – the £10million centre for enterprise and innovation.

Entry requirements

Our typical offer is:

Qualification	Minimum grade
a Canadian bachelor's degree	GPA 2.40
a USA bachelor's degree	GPA 2.5

If you already hold a postgraduate qualification, please see our Applying for additional postgraduate degrees Help and Advice article.

If you don't meet our standard entry requirements, you can take one of the foundation pathways at our partners ONCAMPUS Sunderland. Find out more information and whether your course is eligible on our ONCAMPUS page.

If your qualification is not listed above, please contact the Student Administration team at studentadmin@sunderland.ac.uk for further advice.

To apply for this course you need to be at least one of the following:

Graduate in BA (Hons) Applied Investigation
Senior Investigative professional with experience of leading and managing investigations
Professional graduate with at least five years’ experience in investigation
Have attained Pip level 3

If English is not your first language, please see our English language requirements.

Is your qualification not displaying here? For international qualifications, search our full list of international entry requirements for this course.

Fees and finance

The fee for this course is £2,650 per year.

If you currently serve (or have recently served) within the Armed Forces, then the Ministry of Defence's ELCAS scheme may be able to help cover your funding for this course. For more information, see our Funding for Armed Forces personnel page.

Take a look at the Your Finances section to find out about the scholarships and bursaries that may be available to you.

This information was correct at the time of publication.

Career ready

The MA Investigative Management course has been designed in response to the current sector needs in policing. It is extremely relevant to modern police practices, and its structure, content and assessment strategies have been created in collaboration with senior police representatives. As an Investigative Management graduate you will be able to immediately make a positive impact in your current role in the police. If you are seeking employment or planning to change roles, you will be qualified for positions with more seniority and responsibility within police investigation.

Related courses

Contact

Contact the Student Helpline for further information about studying at the University of Sunderland:

0191 515 3000

student.helpline@sunderland.ac.uk

View Programme Specifications for the Faculty of Education and Society

Page last updated: 16 March 2023

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