Mature student gets to grips with the Law

After nearly 30 years policing the streets of London, Dipesh Dattani, still a serving Police Officer, decided his next step was off the beat, and into University, to study for a Master’s.

Speaking about his decision to study the Transnational Rights and Security LLM, at the University of Northampton, Dipesh said: “I left school at 16 and until I started studying with the University of Northampton, my educational qualifications hadn’t kept up with my life and policing experience.

“As I come towards the end of my time as a serving police officer, postgraduate study was an obvious choice. After 30 years in policing, I am now heading towards a second career, and Masters’ qualification will help me on the road to that new career.

“I looked at the University of Northampton course after seeing Simon Sneddon, one of the academics on the course, speak at a National Crime Agency event. After a good chat about my professional and personal experience, I applied and successfully joined the course.”

Talking about the transition into higher education, Dipesh said: “As a detective sergeant, the transition to back into education, after 35 years out, has been a challenging, but very rewarding experience.

“It was a bit of step-change adjusting to academic writing and it has sometimes been a challenge to balance university study, alongside my job as a serving police officer and family life. I feel fortunate the police and the University have both been very supportive throughout my studies.

Through a varied career in the police service, including working closely with international embassy’s in the UK, Dipesh has developed a keen interest in international policing, he said: “Working for the Metropolitan Police Service, which is responsible for keeping London’s diverse community safe, as well as welcoming a huge number of international visitors each year, has shown me how global influences and crime can impact our cities and towns.

“The modules on the Transnational Rights and Security LLM provide a broader understanding of the legal, political, religious, and ethical factors for international crime and crime prevention.”

Speaking about his experiences studying as a mature student, Dipesh said: “You get out what you put in, and that’s been a lot for me. I’ve had great debates with my tutors and others on the course and I’ve worked hard to put forward the debate within my assignments. The feedback I’ve had from my tutors has been valuable and helped me improve my academic work. I’m grateful for that.

Looking to the future, Dipesh has just a few weeks to submit his final dissertation, in which he explores academic thinking to explore if the PREVENT’ strand of Contest, the Governments Counter-terrorism strategy, is an effective tool.

When asked what advice he has for students considering the Transnational Rights and Security LLM he said: “The academics on the course know what they’re talking about, they’re experts in the areas of the law from religion, human rights and organised crime. They give supportive and helpful academic feedback to build your academic skills to support you to get the most out of your learning experience.”