The criminal justice major may be taken on either the Bachelor of Applied Science degree, Bachelor of Arts degree or the Bachelor of Science degree and can lead to a broad range of career options in law enforcement and corrections. Required criminal justice courses provide students with foundational competencies in law enforcement, corrections, courtroom procedures, and criminal law. Students can build upon this foundation by completing one of two concentrations focused on preparing them for their future careers in criminal justice. Concentrations include Offender Rehabilitation, designed for those seeking careers in community supervision and offender treatment, and Law Enforcement, designed for those seeking careers as police officers or other law enforcement officials.
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
- Students will be able to compare different styles of policing and evaluate the effectiveness of each.
- Students will demonstrate mastery of the overall content of the basic purpose of and styles of policing.
- Students will be able to correctly identify and explain the five major philosophies of corrections.
- Students will be able to identify and explain common challenges to re-entry for offenders.
- Students will demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of the major criminological theories.
Courses
General Education Requirements - 46 hours
English 1301, 1302, and three hours sophomore literature - 9 hours
Fine Arts (three hours from music, theatre, fine arts, art, or equivalent) - 3 hours
Christian Ministry 1320 and 1330 - 6 hours
History - 3 hours
Political Science 2305 - 3 hours
Social Science (CJUS, ECON, GEOG, PSYC, SOCI) - 3 hours
Physical Activity - KINE 1238 - 2 hours
Science (must be lab science) - 8 hours
Mathematics 1342 or 1329, and three additional hours of MATH - 6 hours
Communication 1311, 1315, or 1318 - 3 hours
Departmental Recommendations for Criminal Justice Majors:
Spanish 1411 Elementary Spanish I
Major area of study (see below) - 33 hours
Minor or Concentration (minimum of 18 hours) - 18-21 hours
Electives (to total 120 hours)
Total: Minimum one hundred twenty (120) semester hours
Integrated Criminal Justice Major Requirements
Completion of thirty-three (33) semester hours, with a selected concentration or minor:
CJUS 1301 Introduction to Criminal Justice System
CJUS 1306 Courts and Criminal Procedure
CJUS 1311 Fundamentals of Criminal Law
CJUS/SOCI 1313 Juvenile Justice System
CJUS 2313 Correctional Systems and Practices
CJUS 2314 Police Systems and Practices
CJUS 3303 Criminology
PSYC/SOCI 3307 Seminar on Moral, Ethical, and Religious Issues
SOCI 3309 Race and Ethnicity
Six (6) additional advanced hours in criminal justice or forensic science
Offender Rehabilitation Concentration
Twenty-one (21) semester hours:
Foundation Studies: Fifteen (15) semester hours
CJUS 4304 Correctional Counseling
CJUS 3318 Probation and Parole
PSYC 2301 Introduction to Psychology
PSYC 3304 Behavior Modification
PSYC 3369 Group Dynamics
Support Studies: Six (6) semester hours from the following:
CJUS 3306 Violence and Victimization
CJUS 3313 Drugs and Drug Policy
CJUS 3317 Restorative Justice
PSYC 3301 Dynamics of the Counseling Process
PSYC 3306 Theories of Personality
PSYC 3337 Counseling Methods and Practice
PSYC 4301 Psychological Assessment
PSYC 4304 Abnormal Psychology