Our society faces new and burgeoning threats from terrorism, and from increasingly sophisticated organised criminals. As a result, most security, defence and law enforcement agencies – both at home and abroad – and organisations embodying key security functions are necessarily undergoing a dramatic shift in their strategic thinking.
Now, the focus has moved towards the increased recruitment of practitioners and analysts capable of assessing risks and threats, using intelligence and developing strategies to secure institutional assets (be they national or corporate in nature).
Focusing on criminality
Proudly 180 years young, University College London (UCL) is one of the world’s Top 10 universities (according to The Times’ World University Rankings for 2007). With 70 departments, 4,000 academics and 20,000 students, it’s also one of the largest and most active universities (producing 20 Nobel Laureates over the years).
Of late, UCL’s Centre for Security and Crime Science has been working hand-in-glove with the UCL Jill Dando Institute of Crime Science, an interdisciplinary panel of five star-rated academic departments, industrial partners and law enforcement/security agencies to develop a topical MSc course specific to the needs of practitioners and their employers.
The MSc in Countering Organised Crime and Terrorism equips students with the knowledge to understand, analyse, prevent and disrupt organised crime and terrorism by using a set of evidence-based methodological tools and core expertise pioneered by the Jill Dando Institute. It’s particularly suited to practitioners from a wide field of law enforcement, defence, the military, public policy and industrial security backgrounds.
Although the normal entry requirement is a good second class Honours degree, those applicants with no first degree will be considered for inclusion on the basis of professional experience.
Course programme structure
The MSc is studied part-time over either two or three years. Students may choose from six core modules (90 credits) and a major research project (also worth 90 credits) in Stream 1 or, for Stream 2, six core modules (90 credits) plus two elective modules (30 credits) and a research project worth 60 credits.
Core Module 1 concentrates on research methods. This focuses on methods appropriate to the analysis of counter-terrorism and organised crime in order to equip students with the necessary skills to carry out their own research. Students are able to critique the way in which research is conducted, so too the conclusions derived.
Core Module 2 is all about perspectives. There’s a contemporary overview of terrorism and organised crime worldwide, including an historical outline, specific manifestations (political, social and religious) and broader issues of definition and theory. A number of specialist topics are under the microscope, such as suicide terrorism, the financing of terrorist activity, the human trafficking aspect of organised crime and the pivotal roles played by money laundering and drugs cartels.
Risk and contingency planning takes up Core Module 3. The key elements of risk theory are presented, including the quantitative assessment of threats, vulnerabilities and assets. Students learn methods to invoke an effective contingency plan for critical assets.
Intelligence gathering skills
Core Module 4 offers an outline of the latest theories on intelligence gathering and analysis, and an understanding of the role of intelligence in relation to supporting operations. Key topics are addressed, including an understanding of the difference between data, information and intelligence, and how to evaluate the credibility of information.
Prevention and disruption are the key elements contained within Core Module 5. Four major strategies to address organised crime and terrorism are considered, as follows:
– ideologies used to justify terrorism and organised crime;
– how to prevent organised crime and terrorist incidents by using situational means that render these acts more risky, less rewarding, more difficult or less provoked;
– how to disrupt, disable or suppress the activities of organised criminals and terrorist networks or ‘cells’;
– how to remove the economic basis for terrorist activities by directly attacking organised crime.
Key investigation techniques
The final core module, Core Module 6, provides students with an overview of the approaches used in detecting crime and terrorism.
Students will study the scientific processes of hypothesis formulation and testing, drawing inferences and making deductions based on the available evidence (in addition to the science of probabilities and their relevance to crime investigation).
This module also examines terrorist behaviour and decision-making processes, and their implications for detection strategies. It will also address the investigative process, introducing physical evidence and analytical methods which can then be used as part of detailed forensic investigations.
Elective modules (Stream 2 only) may be chosen from a set of subject-specific modules designed specifically to match a student’s particular field of interest. These include modules such as ‘Thinking Scientifically’, ‘Globalisation and Security’, ‘People and Security’ and ‘Peace and Security’.