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Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice (BSCJ)

Graduates of the Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice program should have the intellectual depth, breadth, and adaptiveness of learning to anticipate, recognize, evaluate, and solve problems in criminal justice or public safety using knowledge, skills, and tools appropriate to entry-level criminal justice and public safety positions. Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice graduates will be able to:

  • Communicate effectively important information and ideas in criminal justice or public safety management (especially within their major), both with individuals and in group settings, and using oral, written, visual, and electronic modes.
  • Recognize, characterize and analyze issues and problems in criminal justice or public safety using appropriate technology to collect, collate and assess data through statistics and other quantitative tools.
  • Apply extant criminal justice or public safety management knowledge and theory to analyze, evaluate and contribute to the development of solutions for criminal justice or public safety management issues and problems.
  • Recognize and demonstrate sensitivity to diverse points of view.

Students will be able to demonstrate additional learning specific to their major.

Criminal Justice Major

The criminal justice major is concerned with the functioning of the major elements of the criminal justice system, policing, courts and corrections, including both public and non-governmental agencies. Students learn what crime is, why and how often it occurs, how we attempt to prevent it, and how we punish those who commit crimes. Criminal justice graduates will be able to:

  • Define crime, legally and socially, discuss how it is measured, and current trends in crime.
  • Describe major theories of crime and discuss corresponding public policies to reduce crime.
  • Discuss the constitutional foundations of the criminal justice system, especially the tension between individual rights and public order.
  • Discuss the history and evolution of policing, the role of discretion, the nature and effectiveness of police activities, and issues of police misconduct.
  • Describe the structure, process, and actors in the court system, as well as current issues in processing criminal cases.
  • Describe the major philosophies of punishment, the history and evolution of corrections systems, and the current issues in corrections.
  • Describe current crime control strategies, and discuss the strengths and limitations of various approaches.
  • Read criminal justice research and communicate findings clearly, and apply basic research methods to criminal justice research questions.
Public Safety Management Major

The public safety management major is intended to prepare students to work in agencies that ensure public safety, such as fire departments, emergency management and homeland security agencies. Public safety management graduates will be able to:

  • Define public safety, and discuss the major components of the public safety system and how they operate.
  • Define and describe homeland security, how federal state and local agencies work to maintain homeland security, and how it relates to public safety, in theory and in practice.
  • Discuss the constitutional foundations of public safety, especially the tension between individual rights and public order.
  • Discuss the history and evolution of terrorism, the motivations that lead to terrorism, and the nature and effectiveness of responses to terrorism.
  • Describe emergency service agencies, and current issues and trends in emergency service in the United States and around the world.
  • Discuss technology and how it relates to maintaining public safety, particularly the use of geographic information systems.
  • Describe current public safety strategies, and discuss the strengths and limitations of various approaches.
  • Read public safety research, communicate findings clearly, and apply basic research methods to criminal justice research questions.
  • Articulate methods of recognizing and resolving crisis situations, including crisis planning, crisis management and ethical decision making processes and practices.
  • Describe the dynamics and processes (individual, group, institutional bureaucratic and psychological) that can impact decision making during crises, and articulate methods of learning from past approaches/ experience to build future strategies for managing disasters or crises.