Overview
Criminological research is making fast progress in understanding the causes and prevention of crime, the impact of penal laws and sanctions on behaviour, the prediction of future risk, and the functioning of the criminal justice system.
The course is open to senior legal practitioners, including prosecutors, defence counsel, judges, and other criminal justice professionals/ stakeholders from Singapore.
Participants will undertake five days of classes/presentations on basic criminological theories & research methods at NUS Faculty of Law. Conducted by Adjunct Professor & Deputy Attorney-General Tai Wei Shyong SC, Assistant Professor Benny Tan, and other leading local experts, these will give participants the opportunity to discuss and apply criminological theories to Singapore’s context.
Topics may include, but not limited to:
- Introduction to criminology and criminological research
- violent offences, sexual offences, and misuse of drugs offences in Singapore
- contemporary issues in sentencing and punishment in Singapore
The first three days will comprise mainly lectures and class discussions. The sessions seek to equip participants (who come from varied backgrounds and experience) with a base level of relevant knowledge and skills. For the last 2 days of the course (to be held 2 weeks later), participants will prepare presentations (presented over two days), where they are required to propose law reforms to Singapore criminal justice system.
Learning Objectives
The course aims to:
a) Introduce criminal justice professionals to criminological knowledge and research relevant for practice
b) Advance an application of criminological knowledge and research methods relevant for practice
c) Promote knowledge exchange among stakeholders in the criminal justice system.
The course participants would be experts in Singapore criminal law and justice but lack formal training in the fields of criminology and criminological research. The latter fields are increasingly become integral to the effective running of any criminal justice system, and the course will enable participants to engage in their respective work through more multi-disciplinary lens and perspectives.
Who Should Attend
Prosecutors, legal practitioners, policymakers, judges and other criminal justice stakeholders who have significant experience (estimated at least 10 years) in criminal law and justice in Singapore.
Course Run
The 5-day course will be conducted in-person:
Dates : 9 to 11 September 2026 (Day 1 to 3) and 28 & 29 September 2026 (Day 4 & 5)
Time : 9:30am to 4:30pm
Venue : National University of Singapore
Click here for workshop schedule.
Trainers' Bio
Assistant Professor Benny Tan
Benny is an award-winning educator at NUS Law whose teaching spans evidence and criminal law, alongside leadership as Director of the Legal Skills Programme and Fellowship with the NUS Teaching Academy. His pedagogy has been recognised with multiple NUS Faculty of Law Teaching Excellence Awards and the university-level NUS Annual Teaching Excellence Awards. A specialist in criminal law—especially sentencing law and policy—as well as criminal evidence and procedure, he brings interdisciplinary depth from an MPhil in Criminological Research (Cambridge), where he won the Manuel López-Rey Graduate Prize (2019). He is the author of Foundations of Criminal Law in Singapore (Academy Publishing, 2022), with scholarship cited by Singapore courts, and he serves as a Professorial Fellow with the AGC–Legal Service Academy.
Click Here to View Full Profile.
Mr Tai Wei Shyong, SC
Mr Tai Wei Shyong, SC, obtained his undergraduate law degree from the University of Oxford, where he also obtained the postgraduate degree of Bachelor of Civil Law. He trained and qualified in London as a solicitor with an international law firm, and is called to the New York Bar. He joined the Singapore Legal Service in 1999 as a Justices’ Law Clerk. He later served as a Deputy Public Prosecutor, and Assistant Registrar of the Supreme Court. He was appointed Chief Prosecutor in the Attorney-General’s Chambers in 2013. In addition, he has held a number of appointments in the Singapore Public Service, including Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Mr Tai obtained an MPhil in criminology from the University of Cambridge in 2009, focussing on violence research, in particular, historical levels of homicide in Singapore.
He was appointed and assumed office as Deputy Attorney-General on 1 January 2021.
Attendance & Assessment
Mode of Assessment
Participants are required to prepare presentations to propose law reforms to the Singapore criminal justice system.
Certificate of Completion
Participants who achieve at least 75% attendance and a minimum score of 50% on the presentation project will be awarded a Certificate of Completion by NUS Law Academy.
SILE-CPD Points
Participants who wish to obtain CPD Points must comply strictly with the Attendance Policy set out in the CPD Guidelines. For this activity, participants are reminded to sign in on arrival and sign out at the conclusion of each day of the event in the manner required by the organiser. Participants must not be absent from each day of the event for more than 15 minutes. Participants may obtain 5 Public CPD Points for each day of the event on which they comply strictly with the Attendance Policy. Participants who do not comply with the Attendance Policy on any particular day of the event will not be able to obtain CPD Points for that day. Please refer to www.sileCPDcentre.sg for more information.
Public CPD Points:
Day 1 – 5 (TBC)
Day 2 – 5 (TBC)
Day 3 – 5 (TBC)
Day 4 – 5 (TBC)
Day 5 – 5 (TBC)
Practice Area: Crime
Training Category: Advanced
Course Fees
Course Fees
S$4,360 (inclusive of 9% GST)
SkillsFuture Credit
This course is eligible for SkillsFuture Credit claim. All Singaporeans aged 25 and above can use their SkillsFuture Credit from the government to offset part of the course fee for this programme. Applicants who wish to use the SkillsFuture Credit may refer to here for more details. Please note that this course is not eligible for SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) claim.
Course ID :
Terms & Conditions
NUS Law Academy reserve the right to:
- amend, postpone or cancel the course
- change the course location
- change or amend course structure or content
For postponed/ cancelled courses, the participants will be given at least one week’s notice with an option of transferring to the next course date or having a full refund of the fees. We regret that no refund will be given in any other circumstances.
Apply Now
Applications be open from February 2026.
Participants who are keen to further their learning can sign up for a separate two-week residential programme at Cambridge’s renowned Institute of Criminology. The programme, scheduled from xx to xx September 2026, features seminars led by world-leading, research-active senior academics. Programme highlights include Keynote lecture & College Formal Dinner, Lunch & refreshments on all seminar days, and Visit to the Inns of Court. Details on the programme can be found at : XXX.
Contact
For enquiries, please contact NUS Law Academy at nuslawacademy@nus.edu.sg.
