The faculty of the Department of Criminal Justice recognizes its mission as three-fold. First and foremost, the department is dedicated to providing its majors with the best possible education in criminal justice by providing them with a critical understanding of the total system of criminal justice and the society in which it functions. At the same time, as part of the College of Liberal Arts and Education, we are committed to preparing our students to move successfully into criminal justice careers or post-graduate work as liberally educated, intellectually mature, ethically aware and culturally sensitive men and women.
Second, the Department is dedicated to providing students throughout the university with opportunities to examine critically the broad questions of how justice is administered in American society and to confront firsthand the fundamental issues of criminal justice which they will face as involved citizens.
Finally, the Department of Criminal Justice is dedicated to providing the expertise of its faculty as a resource to assist criminal justice and social service agencies in the realms of applied research, policy development, training and planned change to meet the social and technological challenges of the twenty-first century.
Graduates of the Criminal Justice program should:
The major in criminal justice provides a basic understanding of the criminal justice system and the society in which it functions. The first 60 credits are composed primarily of general education courses to develop a broad educational background, along with the first three core criminal justice courses. After completion of 60 credits, in-depth knowledge can be obtained by careful selection of courses in policing, corrections, criminological theory, law, forensic investigation, AODA counseling and private security.
The Criminal Justice Department has received national recognition for the superior quality of its internship program. As a result, participation in the internship program is competitive. The Criminal Justice Department reserves the right to refuse a student an internship if the department decides that the student is not a suitable candidate on the basis of scholarship, verbal ability or character. To be eligible for internship, the student must have earned at least 60 credits plus 12 upper division criminal justice credits, a 2.25 GPA, and a passing score on the department's writing certification requirement.
The Departments of Chemistry and Engineering Physics, Biology and Criminal Justice cooperate in preparing students interested in becoming crime laboratory analysts.
In cooperation with the Department of Psychology and the Counselor Education Graduate Program, undergraduate criminal justice majors can obtain AODA (alcohol and other drug abuse) certification.
The Departments of Criminal Justice and Psychology also cooperate in the social work certification process.
Required courses (6 credits, 3 credits per discipline):
Students must choose one of two options.
Required courses (6 credits, 3 credits per discipline):
Required courses (4 credits):
In addition, each major must earn a "C" or better in ENGLISH 1130 and ENGLISH 1230 and pass the departmental writing proficiency exam before taking upper division criminal justice courses.
IIn addition to the social science requirements of the university, all criminal justice majors must either complete at least 6 credits each in psychology, sociology and political science; or complete a minor or second major in any discipline.
Minors to consider include foreign languages, accounting for federal law enforcement or psychology for corrections. Computer science, political science, chemistry, biology and business administration are also excellent minors for students majoring in criminal justice.
Emphases within the major. Students may select one of the three emphases within the criminal justice major. Students are not required to select an emphasis. Students who do not want an emphasis may select 15 to 21 credits of electives from criminal justice courses.
The minor in forensic investigation provides a basic understanding of the role and procedures used by crime scene technicians at a crime scene. Emphasis is placed on the collection, analysis, documentation and preservation of crime scene evidence.