Criminal Justice, B.A.

The College of Arts and Sciences  offers a B.A. in Criminal Justice that is developed from the social and behavioral sciences. The study of criminal justice combines the traditional aspects of the criminal justice system, such as law enforcement, courts and the judiciary, corrections, and juvenile justice with an understanding of social deviance as a whole. It also recognizes the interdependence of historical social traditions, values, politics, economic, and legal structures that impact policy questions in a democratic society.

The requirements of the B.A. degree in Criminal Justice include completing courses covering 1) Traditional criminological and restorative theoretical perspectives important to understanding crime, deviance, and the shaping of public policy; 2) Social justice approaches to crime prevention and community-based problems; 3) Ethics, diversity, professionalism; and 4) Research design and inquiry to strengthen analytical skills.

Program Outcomes

The Criminal Justice program has four program outcomes that focus on skills necessary for a successful career in the 21^st Century.  Courses are structured and sequenced within the major to satisfy one or more of the following program outcomes by way of introducing, reinforcing, or mastering the following:

1. Employ clear written, visual, and oral communication with diverse audiences, as experienced through individual and collaborative skill-building exercises;  
2. Demonstrate critical thinking, analytic thinking, research skills, and/or problem-solving skills to current policies and issues in criminal justice;
3. Select the relevant and appropriate criminal, social, and restorative justice theories and research methods to the understanding of criminal justice practices, policies, and institutions;           
4. Design academic and professional work that embodies ethical values, personal integrity, and social equity.

Emphasis on Strengthening and Applying Important Career Skills

The Criminal Justice Faculty designed the program with relevant professional, analytical, and communication skills in mind to put our majors in a strong position for careers where a degree in criminal justice are particularly useful, such as:

• Advocacy: Nonprofit, activism, and community outreach.
• Government and Social Services: Victims advocacy, conflict mediation, security and patrol agents, and social worker by way of MSW in Social Work.
• Higher Education: Admissions, advising, development, and professor and/or researcher by way of Ph.D. degree in graduate school.
• Investigations and Forensics: Criminal, Homeland Security, DEA, and FBI investigations and forensics by way of a specialized M.A. or M.S. degree in criminal justice and/or forensics.
• Law and Legal Services: Lawyer by way of J.D. degree in law school, and paralegal by way of a degree or certificate.
• Policing: Policing, community- and institutional- corrections, juvenile facilities, and
• Technology: Project management, customer relationship management, and other non-technical consultation projects.
• Other Careers: Positions where critical thinking, collaboration, research, and writing skills are needed in tandem with the traditional, restorative, and community-based perspectives of criminal justice. 

Students considering graduate school in Criminal Justice, Law, or other relevant graduate degree program are highly encouraged to work with full-time faculty in Criminal Justice in their Junior year so that s/he can write the student strong letters of recommendation for their graduate school applications that are often due in Fall of their Senior year.  Students are also highly encouraged to take an internship in their senior year once core courses are near-completed.