Criminal Justice Curriculum
You must maintain a 2.75 GPA for all courses that apply to the Criminal Justice Major.
Internships require an overall GPA of 3.0
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Criminal Justice 103 (3 credits) - Introduction to the Criminal Justice Process: An introductory survey of the history, role, and structure of the American criminal justice process (this course is reserved for non-majors).
Criminal Justice 110 (3 credits) - Introduction to the Criminal Justice Process: An introductory survey of the history, role, and structure of the American criminal justice process (this course is reserved for CJ majors). Must receive a grade of B or better with an average GPA of 2.75.
Criminal Justice 212 (3 credits) - Managing Criminal Justice Organizations: The study of administrative problems and issues as they relate to criminal justice organizations. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110 and 270.
Criminal Justice 218 (3 credits) - Adjudication Process in Criminal Justice: An exploration of the criminal judicial process as distinguished from adjudication of civil disputes. Includes discussion o constitutional mandates and other aspects of justice administration in political and social institutions. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110 and 270.
Criminal Justice 244 (3 credits) - Correctional Process: A survey of the correctional process; correctional objectives, alternatives, policies, and procedures; relationship between the correctional process and crime control, rehabilitative, and due process models. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 103, 270.
Criminal Justice 270 (3 credits) - Introductory Criminal Law: Inquiry into the categories of crimes, responsibility for crimes, limitations on criminal capacity, modifying circumstances and special defenses for criminal conduct.
Criminal Justice 281 (3 credits) - Elementary Statistics in Criminal Justice Research: This course provides students with the skills necessary to understand and use many contemporary statistical procedures used in criminal justice research, and to understand statistical theory. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110 & 270; must be taken in conjunction with CJ 343; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 288 (3 credits) - Police in Modern Society: An analysis of police roles, structure, and performance in American Society. A review of the interaction between economic, legal, political, psychological, and social forces, and police behavior. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110 & 270; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 304 (3 credits) - Criminal Investigation: A survey of the techniques used for investigation of crime. Includes early developments and their effect on modern methods, interrelationships between scientific crime detection and professional skills of investigators, the proper care and handling of evidence for its useful introduction at criminal trials, and the impact of court decisions on police procedures. The course focuses on practical limitations on the effectiveness of crime investigation techniques. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 319 (3 credits) - Criminal Courts: Proof of Guilt: Rules of evidence as they affect participants in justice administration and the consequences for the justice system. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 328 (3 credits) - Criminal Court Behavior: An analysis of the behavior of the principal actors in the criminal court process--prosecutors, judges, and defense attorneys. Court processes will be analyzed from an organizations perspective. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 333 (3 credits) - Illegal Bias in the Criminal Justice System: An examination of the extent of illegal biases in criminal justice practice. Students will be guided to confront their and others' attitudes shaped by racial, sexual, and sexual orientation biases. The primary goal is to teach o method of open discourse to negotiate these conflicts in an evolving culture. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110 or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 340 (3 credits) - Police Administration: Focus is on theoretical principles as they related to practice in complex organizations. Attention given to the interrelation of police, courts, and correctional facilities as administrative units. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 341 (3 credits) - Administration of Police Operations: Organizational functions, structures, processes and behavior as they relate to law enforcement agencies (exp. local police). An analysis of the administrative problems and practices associated with the delivery of all manners of police services: crime prevention and control, conflict resolution, and general service. Operational police development, implementation, and evaluation. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 343 (3 credits) - Quantitative Research Design: Methods of quantitative research (i.e., survey analysis, experimental design, evaluation research) used in criminal justice research; selection of appropriate quantitative methods and statistics; data analysis using computer facilities; proposal and research paper publication. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 346 (3 credits) - Introduction to Community-Based Corrections: An overview of probation and parole services and other alternatives to incarceration for adult offenders. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 347 (3 credits) - The Juvenile Justice System: The development and present structure of the juvenile justice system: legal structure, services, and current policy issues. Survey of both community-based and institutional juvenile corrections. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 348 (3 credits) - Law of Corrections: Examination of the rights of pretrial detainee and convicted offenders from detention through parole. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 351 (3 credits) - Theories of Crime: An introduction to the study of crime, criminals, and crime theory. Substantive areas to be studied include (1) what is crime? and (2) what causes crime? Goals of the course: (1) develop an understanding of the complex relationship between crime and society; and (2) learn to identify underlying assumptions inherent in any societal approach to crime. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 352 (3 credits) - Organized Crime: The purpose of this course is to highlight: 1) the nature, extent, and theoretical explanations of organized crime, 2) the business of organized crime, 3) the measures being taken to combat organized crime in the U.S. and around the world and, 4) differing world perspectives on organized crime. In our attempts to understand the nature, extent, explanation, and business of organized crime, we will focus on the history of organized crime in the U.S. paying close attention to the attributes and structure of organized crime, and examine relevant pieces of sociological theory that can be effectively used to explain the existence and perpetuation of organized crime. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 353 and CJ 553 - Convict Criminology: Convict Criminology explores a new way of thinking about crime and corrections. This course examines the emerging field of convict criminology that consists primarily of essays and empirical research conducted and written by convicts, or ex-convicts, on their way to completing or already in possession of a Ph.D., or by enlightened academics who critique existing literature, policies, and practices, thus contributing to a new perspective in criminology, criminal justice, corrections, and community corrections. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 110, 212, 218, 244, 270, 281, 288, 343, 351; or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 358 (3 credits) - Major Criminal Justice Issues: The administrative machinery of criminal justice in theory and practice. Critical examination of the roles of police, prosecution, courts, and corrections in American today. Policy development implementation and evaluation with regard to key criminal justice issues. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 103 and senior standing or consent of instructor.
Criminal Justice 375 (3 credits) - Special Topics in Criminal Justice: A course on a topic not normally covered in the curriculum. Each tim it is offered, the topic will be announced in the timetable. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice 103 and at least one of the following: Criminal Justice 218, 244, or 288.
Criminal Justice 396 (1 to 8 credits) - Internship in Criminal Justice: Supervised field experience in a criminal justice agency (e.g., police department, prosecutor's office, or a correctional agency) accompanied by an analysis of the experience. Open only to students who have earned a minimum of 90 credits. Prerequisite: consent of instructor and an overall GPA of 3.0.
Criminal Justice 446 (1 to 3 credits) - Independent Studies: The purpose of Independent Study is to allow a student to explore indepth topics of scholarly interest, which are not attainable through University course work. Related readings permit the student to pursue research usually well beyond that required in extablished courses. Before beginning the course, the student must present a bibliography of readings that he/she and the instructor have agreed upon and which are to be reviewed and discussed. The outcome is a reasearch paper critiqued by the instructor. Can not be used as a substitution for General Education requirements. Prerequisite: consent of instructor and an overall GPA of 3.0.
Criminal Justice 474 (1 to 6 credits) - Honors Thesis: Honors Thesis projects include any advanced independent endeavor in the student's major field of study, e.g., a written thesis, scientific experiment or research project, or creative arts exhibit or production. Proposals (attached to Independent Study contract) must show clear promise o honors level work and be approved by a faculty sponsor. Course title for transcript will be "Honors Thesis" Completed projects will be announce and presented to interested students and faculty. Maximum of 6 credits. Prerequisite: University Honors status and junior standing.