Complex Crime Scenes

Course manual 2025/2026

Course content

The following topics/subjects will be addressed:

• Search Technique including equipment and methods most commonly used.
• Large Scale Investigations – the Police approach
• Forensic Microtraces including working with hypotheses
• Non-Human DNA
• Toxicology
• Forensic Botany – both lecture and practical
• Forensic Entomology
• Digital Forensics 
• Crime Scene visualization techniques will be introduced
• Mock Crime Scene – students will process a simulated crime scene, write a crime scene report and give a brief presentation of their findings
• Forensic Archaeology and Mass Graves
• Human Remains

Study materials

Literature

• Study material will be assigned by the respective lecturers.  Where pre-reading/preparation is required, students will be informed via Canvas. Recommended reading will be placed on Canvas. Assignment reading will be placed on Canvas.

Objectives

• 1. perform a personal analysis and evaluation on the potential impact of new knowledge, methods, and/or technology on complex crime scene investigations.
• 2. arrange the division of labour within the investigation team of a simulated crime scene and reflect on group performance and individual contribution at the subsequent presentation.
• 3. generate (alternative) hypotheses and scenarios as part of the simulated crime scene.
• 4. prioritise items of evidence for research based on selected criteria in a situation where limited information is provided.
• 5. communicate the results of the examination of the simulated crime scene in an understandable manner.
• 6. explain the principles of crime scene investigations and the hierarchy of responsibilities within complex crimes.
• 7. judge the methods used during a crime scene examination based on the appropriateness of the methods and explain the scientific basis of those methods.
• 8. explain the strengths and weaknesses, limitations and pitfall of forensic techniques including computer science techniques.
• 9. describe the principles of at least three of the most frequently used techniques and their applications in forensic investigations.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Computer lab session/practical training
• Self-study

The course has both a theoretical and practical composition. The module will incorporate two practical assignments: essay and a mock crime scene where students will be split into groups and be required to give a briefing on their findings and prioritise evidence, recovered from the crime scene, for further investigation in a laboratory. The logic applied and the justification for the selection of the items must be given. 

• For the mock crime scene, the students will be divided into groups and given specific assignments to complete.
• For the mock crime scene – the teams will be expected to provide the complete list of the evidence that they collect, adhere to basic chain of custody principles, provide a short presentation on their examination of the crime scene to the class, and prioritise five items of evidence for research.  The students are expected to be able to explain the selection process, and reasoning behind the selection of the evidence.

Learning activities

Attendance

Additional requirements for this course:

Attendance: Attending all scheduled education activities is strongly advised. By doing so, you actively contribute to a lively learning community and significantly improve your chances of successfully completing the course. The designated mandatory activities play a crucial role in achieving the course objectives and are essential for your overall progress.

Additional requirements for this course:
Attendance at the Mock Crime Scene is compulsory.  

Assessment

The components will be weighted as follows:

1. Writing assignment (50%)
2. Mock Crime Scene (50%)

All components will be graded on a scale from 1 to 10, with a maximum of one decimal after the point. These grades are used to calculate the final grade. In order to pass the course, all components and the final grade have to be sufficient, i.e. at least a five and a half. When a student has not fulfilled this requirement, the examiner will register the mark ‘did not fulfill all requirements’ (NAV) whether or not the averaged grade is sufficient.

The final grade will be announced at the latest February 20th. Between this date and March 20th an inspection moment will be planned. This will be announced on Canvas and/or via email.

Table of specification: the relation between the Learning Outcomes (LO) of the course, the assessment components of the course and the Exit Qualifications (EQ) of the Master’s Forensic Science (described in the Introduction in the Course Catalogue)

Assignments

• Component 1, Writing assignment

Students (individually) will be required to submit a written assignment on a topic assigned by the co-ordinator.  The writing assignment is marked on a number of criteria, see Canvas for further details.

• Component 2, Mock Crime Scene

Students will be required to work in groups and undertake an examination (virtual) of a mock crime scene.  Students are expected to present their findings in the form of a brief presentation.  Each group is expected to prioritise five items of evidence, recovered (virtually) from the mock crime scene exercise, for further analysis and outline why these items have been selected and what is the argument/justification for their selection. The presentation will be for 20 minutes with five minutes Q&A. The presentation is marked on a number of criteria, see Canvas for further details.

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Additional information

The Mock Crime Scene will take place at the Police Academy in Apeldoorn.

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Use of GenAI in MFS
Within the Master Forensic Science, you are allowed to use Generative AI (GenAI) to support your learning process process but according to the policy framework and guidelines as defined by the University of Amsterdam. For example, you can use large language models (LLMs) to help your self-study by generating flashcards or generating explanations of concepts. GenAI should be a support tool to help you reach the course's learning objectives, not a system to which you delegate activities that are meant to promote your learning. The course examiner has final say on which use cases are permissible or not within their course.

You may not use GenAI to create any content you submit for assessment, regardless of whether it's graded numerically or on a pass/fail basis. The only exception is if an assignment description explicitly allows GenAI use. In such cases, permissible use is delineated by the course instructor.

Never share personal information, research data, or course materials with a GenAI system, except for UvA AI Chat. This UvA-hosted system was built with GDPR compliance and data security in mind. If in doubt about sharing information, don't share. You can always check with your course coordinator whether any intended use case is responsible. 

Teachers are never allowed to use GenAI to grade your work. They may, however, use it to formulate their feedback. Only tools allowed by UvA should be used in research and education. If there is no UvA license for software, use cannot be mandatory in education. This implies that learning objectives must be achievable without the use of non-licensed tools. UvA AI Chat can be used, if used with due consideration and care.

Use within CCS

Contact information

Coordinator

• drs. Y.C. van Duin