Keele Law People: Richard Miastowski

Richard Miastowski I visited Keele after it was recommended to me by my sixth form tutor for its legal education. After attending an open day, I put Keele down as my first choice on the UCAS application. Its campus environment was a great attraction to me, providing both convenience and a tranquil setting.

I knew that I wanted to study Law at degree level, but I also wanted to try something new, and Keele allowed me to do this through its dual honours system. Being particularly interested in Criminal Justice, I read Criminology alongside Law. The two disciplines integrated well together, providing different perspectives on some common themes.Support from the tutors was superb. It was easy to get in touch with them and they were all very approachable. During my first year, time was devoted by both of my schools to settling in to higher education, with lectures and tutorials providing information on topics such as research and referencing, which proved beneficial for the rest of my degree.

Outside of my two disciplines I took benefit of the wide range of societies on offer and tried something new – presenting my own radio show on KUBE Radio. It was a great way to meet new people, and developed a range of skills. The society also offered a range of opportunities, including the opportunity to interview bands, attend radio award ceremonies and participate in workshops organised by the radio industry. The students’ union also provided a wide range of entertainment, with something different on each day of the week to cater for different tastes. Although Hanley has a good night scene, the convenience of the students’ union meant that I often spent my time there. The Union also offered a range of other services, such as a post office and the Independent Advice Unit, the latter of which gave me advice when searching for off campus accommodation during my second year of study.

Having studied Law AND Criminology for three years, and furthered my interest in criminal justice, I am confident that I want a career within the criminal justice system, probably as a police officer. The degree that I have studied has allowed me to take a flexible approach to gaining a thorough understanding of the criminal justice process. Not only have I gained an understanding as to why people commit crime (by reading Criminology), I have also gained a good knowledge of the substantive law (by reading Law). Alongside this, I have developed a range of skills which will prove beneficial in the police force. Not least to say, skills of research, analysis and problem solving. The benefit of reading two disciplines together is, in my opinion, having a wider range of choices available upon graduation than in comparison to studying just one discipline. For example, the option is still available for me to engage in postgraduate studies in both disciplines, or join other professions which I have an interest in, such as Trading Standards or the Health and Safety Executive.