The Master of Science in Criminal Justice (MSCJ) is designed to provide students with advanced knowledge and skills to enable them to succeed in the field of Criminal Justice. The program emphasizes both the theoretical and applied aspects of Criminal Justice.

Upon successful completion of the master’s degree in criminal justice, students will be able to:

• Evaluate fundamental concepts, roles and functions of criminal justice and the criminal justice system.
• Argue the merits of applying general management theories and practices to criminal justice administration.
• Synthesize new knowledge as a result of independent research using up-to-date information technology and evaluate findings with respect to their merit, worthiness, or importance.
• Design research studies and define appropriate statistical methods to be used, to address current problems in criminal justice.

The MSCJ program is designed to meet the needs of students seeking a master's degree as a prerequisite for entry to the field, as well as the needs of students who are currently employed in the field and want to broaden their knowledge, skills, and abilities. This is accomplished by offering sufficient foundation courses for a student who did not major in criminal justice at the undergraduate level, as well as sufficient electives to accommodate students who did.

The MSCJ program consists of:

• Core courses covering theory, research, scholarship, quantitative analysis, and criminal justice administration. (18 credit-hours); and
• Electives covering specific content areas that help focus students' studies on topics that are best suited to their own career goals and interests. (15 credits).

The degree requires the successful completion of a minimum of 33 credit-hours.

Core Courses

These courses provide a broad foundation for the more advanced studies in the concentration courses.

CJ 200. Criminal Justice System
CJ 210. Criminal Law
CJ 230. Criminology
CJ 240. Criminal Justice Management
CJ 255. Criminal Courts System
CJ 260. Research Methods in Criminal Justice

Electives

CJ 205. Juvenile Justice
CJ 215. Corrections
CJ 220. Ethics in Criminal Justice
CJ 225. Law Enforcement
CJ 250. Criminalistics
CJ 275. Criminal Justice Policy
CJ 298. Directed Readings & Research
Mgt 201. Effective Communications & Soft Skills
Mgt 202. Business Law & Ethics
Mgt 210. Quantitative Methods for Decision-making
Mgt 230. Leadership & Organization
Mgt 231. Organizational Behavior
Mgt 270. Principles of Public Sector Management
Mgt 271. Structure & Function of Government
Mgt 272. The Budget Process
Psy 210. Abnormal Psychology
Psy 215. Theories of Personality
Soc 215. Race & Ethnic Relations
Soc 225. Juvenile Delinquency
Stat 220. Advanced Research Methods