Currently, almost two hundred applicants a year compete for about 10-15 places. In order to attract people with appropriate experience, they are given special priority. This means that places for people without that experience are very competitive. Thus such applicants are required to have a very good undergraduate degree and some extra experience that distinguishes them. Selection is not done by computer but by human beings attempting to choose people who will contribute to the development of this exciting new application of psychology. Normally applications are reviewed as they arrive and promising applicants called for interview. In deciding whether to offer a place to an applicant there are three key criteria:

· One is that the individual has the intellectual ability to complete an intensive Masters level course. In particular, we require that students can show previous methodology and/or research experience.

· The second is that the individual is really motivated to contribute to the development of the discipline of Investigative Psychology.

· The third is that the applicant has a very full understanding of the nature of the course, its objectives and framework.

Why are these criteria appropriate? Firstly, simply because of the number of places vs. applications the course is competitive in terms of student grades etc. In terms of contribution it is important that we attract people who are not content with simply absorbing material, but rather that they want to make a positive difference to the field, are able to challenge current beliefs, practices and research and that they have sufficient energy, intensity and capacity for independent thought. Students that tend to do well on the course appear to be those that can think independently, objectively, calmly and rationally, that are open to new ideas and to challenging currently accepted principals in an objective but well defended fashion. We would say that the capacity for sceptical critical evaluation is almost more important than current academic achievements. Finally, it is important that you understand what the course is all about and what it is not about. The course is not suitable for individuals who wish to exclusively focus on serial killing, on attending crime scenes, who want to speak to murderers or want to become FBI profilers. Clearly, determining some of these require dialogue with applicants, so we are always ready to try and respond to applicants' interests and concerns and to try and ensure that students appreciate what the course entails.

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