Dr Julie Harris joined the Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJ) team at Ulster University in October 2018.  She is the Course Director for the MSc in CCJ and a Fellow of the HEA.  She completed a BA (Hons) in Politics in 2004 and a Master’s in Social Research Methods (distinction) in 2006 at Queen’s University Belfast (QUB).  Julie returned to QUB to complete her Ph.D. in Sociology which was awarded in 2018.  Her Masters and Ph.D. were funded by the Department of Employment and Learning.  

Before joining the CCJ team at Ulster University, Julie taught on a wide range of criminology, sociology and research methods modules at QUB and Ulster University.  She had also worked as a statistician, harm reduction trainer and low threshold, assertive outreach worker for people who use and/or inject drugs.   

Julie's Ph.D. examined transitions to and from injecting drug use and subsequent patterns of use within the context of Northern Ireland.  The research specifically examined risk environment influences upon these processes to identify enabling environments mitigating drug-related harms. Her research findings have been published in leading international journals including Qualitative Health Research and Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

Her primary research interests focus on drug consumption practices, harm reduction programmes, drug markets and criminalisation.  She is particularly interested in the drug policy, public health and criminal justice responses to these issues.  Julie has also been involved in research examining gender-specific drug treatment and support experiences, probation, survivors of historic institutional abuse and the impacts of counter-terrorism and emergency legislation.

Current research is funded by the Northern Ireland Drug and Alcohol Alliance, Barnardo's and Carlisle House. 

Teaching

Drugs and Crime (PUP547)

Research Methods for Criminologists (PUP308)

Surveys and Quantitative Methods (SOP708)

Previous Teaching

Introduction to Crime and Deviance (PUP119)

Crime and Criminal Justice (PUP120)

Criminology Applied Placement and Learning (PUP349)

Foundations of Social Science Research (PCS706)

Preparing for your Dissertation (PUP546)

Current Ph.D. Students

Zoe Campbell: Charting and understanding the health and social care experiences of those with long-term alcohol dependence.

Joao Raphael Da Silva: Responding to extremism: examining the criminal justice response.

John McQuaide: Harm reduction interventions to improve the health-related quality of life of people with long-term alcohol dependence.

Tobias Niblock: Exploring Young People’s Involvement in Drug Markets in Northern Ireland.

Josie Scott: Sentencing disparities between domestically motivated assaults and non-domestically motivated assaults.

Jessica Spratt: Drug Consumption Amongst Members of LGBTQ+ Communities in Northern Ireland.