Criminal Justice

Department of Criminal Justice

226 Garinger Building

704-687-2563

Degree

M.S.

Coordinator

Dr. Michael G. Turner

Graduate Faculty

Bruce Arrigo, Professor

Beth Bjerregaard, Associate Professor

Anita Blowers, Associate Professor

Charisse Coston, Associate Professor

Charles Dean, Professor Emeritus

M. Lyn Exum, Assistant Professor

Paul C. Friday, Professor

Jennifer Hartman, Assistant Professor

David Hirschel, Professor Emeritus

Joseph B. Kuhns III, Assistant Professor

Vivian Lord, Associate Professor

Kathleen Nicolaides, Senior Lecturer

Michael G. Turner, Assistant Professor

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE

The Master of Science degree program in Criminal Justice is designed to promote broad based study of the phenomenon of crime and to enhance career opportunities in the field of criminal justice. The program utilizes the social and behavioral sciences in an interdisciplinary approach to study law, crime, and social deviance, and to examine critically the systems created in response to deviance and crime. The objectives of the program are to: (1) provide present and future criminal justice personnel with the educational background necessary to function effectively in the dynamic field of criminal justice; (2) familiarize students with the nature, methods, and functions of research, and with the existing body of knowledge on criminal justice; (3) provide the criminal justice system with qualified candidates for careers in the field; and (4) prepare students for entrance into doctoral programs. Career opportunities available in the criminal justice system include law enforcement, corrections, administration, planning and analysis, juvenile justice, and college instruction. There are also private sector careers available, including private security. Students may enroll in the program on either a full-time or part-time basis. Many classes are scheduled in the evening to accommodate the part-time student.

Additional Admission Requirements

Admission to the Criminal Justice graduate program is open to students with bachelor's degrees in any discipline who meet the general requirements for admission to the Graduate School, provided they meet the following requirements. Applicants must have a grade point average of at least 2.75, a satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) , a personal statement, and strong recommendation letters from those who are able to attest to your academic ability.

Degree Requirements

A minimum of 36 semester hours is required. Eighteen of these 36 hours must be in courses open only to graduate students (6000 level and above). All students must complete each of the following five core courses with a grade of B or above: CJUS 6100 (Criminal Justice Policy); CJUS 6101 (The Nature and Theory of Crime); CJUS 6102 (Research in Criminal Justice I); CJUS 6103 (Research in Criminal Justice II); and CJUS 6104 (Criminal Justice and Social Control). A maximum of 12 hours may be taken outside the Criminal Justice Department, and a maximum of six hours with grades of B or above may be transferred from another institution. Transfer courses must be consistent with the program and will be accepted at the discretion of the department. At least 30 semester hours must be taken in residence. In addition to the above course work, all students are expected to successfully pass a qualifying exam. This exam is to be taken after the student has completed 12 credit hours including 6101 & 6102. Students can not proceed to the thesis or the applied research project until after they have passes the qualifying examination. Additionally, students must complete either a thesis (6 hours) or an applied research project (3 hours).

Assistantships

The Criminal Justice Department offers graduate assistantships which are awarded solely on the basis of academic merit.

Financial Aid

In addition to the graduate assistantships, the department offers, as available, research assistantships and grant-funded opportunities for students. In addition, the competitive Dean Reep Scholarship is available for an incoming graduate student each year.

Qualifying Examination

The qualifying examination is offered each Fall and Spring semester. Anyone who has successfully completed 12 semester hours, including 6101 & 6102 with a B or above, is eligible to take the examination. The qualifying examination may be taken no more than two times.

Courses in Criminal Justice

CJUS 5000. Topics in Criminal Justice. (3) Specialized criminal justice topics. May be repeated for credit. (Fall, Spring)

CJUS 5101. Drugs, Crime and the Criminal Justice System. (3) Provides an overview of the current state of drug use in this country and throughout the world and examines the nature and extent of drug use, the history of drug use/ abuse, contemporary drug use patterns, licit and illicit drug dealing and trafficking, crime and violence associated with drug use and drug markets, drug control strategies at the local, state, national and international level, treatment level, treatment options and alternatives, drug policy issues, legalization debates, and prevention strategies. (On demand)

CJUS 5103. International Criminal Justice. (3) Examination of the patterns and trends in international crime such as terrorism, transnational organized crime, and trafficking in people and a review of how the legal traditions of common law, civil law, Islamic law and socialist legal systems are structured and function criminal justice systems of the United States and other nations. (On demand)

CJUS 5160. Victims and the Criminal Justice System. (3) Relationship between victims of crime and the criminal justice system. Specific topics include an analysis of the characteristics of crime victims, victim reporting patterns, treatment of victims by the various segments of the criminal justice system, victim assistance programs, and the issue of compensation and/or restitution for victims of crime. (On demand)

CJUS 5161. Violence and the Violent Offender. (3) Issues surrounding violence in today’s society and their impact on offenders involved in homicide, child and domestic abuse, and other forms of violence. Examination of myths about violence, victim-offender characteristics and relationships, and theories of violence. (On demand)

CJUS 5162. Sexual Assault. (3) Comprehensive and critical examination of sexual exploitation in the United States. (On demand)

CJUS 6000. Topics in Criminal Justice. (3-6) Specialized criminal justice topics. May be repeated for credit. (On demand)

CJUS 6100. Criminal Justice Policy. (3) Examination of the criminal justice subsystems (law enforcement, courts, corrections) with particular focus on the development of policy and the effectiveness of current policies aimed at reducing crime. (Fall)

CJUS 6101. The Nature and Theory of Crime. (3) Definitions and patterns of criminal behavior. Major theoretical perspectives on crime, including historical, philosophical, individual, community-oriented and societal approaches. (Fall)

CJUS 6102. Research in Criminal Justice I. (3) Introduction to research methodology and statistics with emphasis on applications to criminal justice settings. Topics to be covered include problem selection, theory, hypothesis formulation, research design, sampling, measurement and proposal writing. (Spring)

CJUS 6103. Research in Criminal Justice II. (3) Prerequisite: CJUS 6102. Advanced research methodology with emphasis on conducting, presenting and evaluating research in criminal justice settings. Topics to be covered include data collection, data input, data analysis, and interpretation. (Fall)

CJUS 6104. Criminal Justice and Social Control. (3) Examines how the law functions as a powerful tool of social control in our society. Particular emphasis is given to understanding the constitutional limitations placed on the construction of law, the elements of criminal offenses, and criminal defenses. (Spring)

CJUS 6120. Criminal Justice Management and Decision-Making. (3) Application of generic principles of management and supervision to operational problems confronted by criminal justice agencies with particular attention to decision- making and discretion in criminal justice settings. (On demand)

CJUS 6130. Law Enforcement Systems. (3) Consideration of the elements of law enforcement agencies as subsystems of the total criminal justice system. Comparisons of law enforcement systems in other countries is also considered. (On demand)

CJUS 6131. Police Problems and Practices. (3) Research on current issues in law enforcement with emphasis on the legal, social, and institutional contexts in which they occur. (On demand)

CJUS 6132. Legal Issues in Law Enforcement. (3) Law applicable to the functions of police administrators and line police officers including constitutional, statutory, judicial, and administrative law governing search and seizure, arrest, interrogation, use of force, jurisdiction, civil and criminal liability of administrators and officers, and the rights of officers and suspects. (On demand)

CJUS 6140. Prosecution and Adjudication Processes. (3) Functions and powers of prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges and juries including plea bargaining and court procedure. (On demand)

CJUS 6150. Corrections. (3) Functions of correctional agencies, principles of punishment and a historical analysis of correctional institutions and programs including prisons, jails, probation and parole systems. (On demand)

CJUS 6151. Correctional Strategies: Rehabilitation and Reintegration. (3) Efforts to change offender behavior and to facilitate the development of offender- community linkages. Institutional classification and treatment strategies, pre-release and temporary release programs, innovative uses of probation and parole systems, community residential programs and new dispositional models; e.g., sentencing to community service and restitution. (On demand)

CJUS 6152. Legal Issues in Corrections. (3) Major legal issues pertaining to corrections, including sentencing, probation, restitution, prisons, parole, pardon and restoration of rights with emphasis on legal issues often confronted by correctional administrators and probation and parole personnel. (On demand)

CJUS 6160. Juvenile Justice Systems. (3) The process by which specific behaviors are identified as delinquent and the responses of the juvenile justice system to such behaviors. Laws dealing with the juvenile justice system, the historical development of the system, and the effectiveness of innovative responses to delinquency. (On demand)

CJUS 6170. Program Planning and Evaluation in Criminal Justice. (3) Applied research as a foundation for criminal justice planning and evaluation. Emphasis on the interrelationship of planning and evaluation within program management. (On demand)

CJUS 6800. Directed Individual Study in Criminal Justice. (1-6) supervised investigation of a criminal justice problem of special interest to the student. May be repeated one time with the approval of the student's major professor or academic committee. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

CJUS 6901. Thesis I. (3) Students taking this course will work on developing a research proposal of a significant criminal justice topic approved by the student’s thesis committee. The final proposal will include an extensive literature review and a detailed discussion of the research plan. Graded credit/no credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

CJUS 6902. Thesis II. (3) Prerequisite: CJUS 6901. Students taking this course will conduct independent research developed in CJUS 6901, successfully defend the research in an oral defense meeting, and have the final written thesis approved by the graduate school. Graded credit/no credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

CJUS 6903. The Applied Research Project. (3) Prerequisite: must pass the qualifying examination, have a research project and Human Subjects Approval, where necessary. Students will develop a major paper on a topic of criminal justice importance. It is designed to be completed within one semester. This project is typically designed for research in agencies within the community and must be successfully defended in an oral defense meeting. It is geared towards the terminal Masters student and not appropriate for those seeking the doctorate. Graded credit/no credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

CJUS 7999. Graduate Residence (1) Continuation of work for the thesis or comprehensive exam. (Fall, Spring, Summer)