Inside JJC (Faculty & Staff)Master of Arts in Criminal Justice
Program Director: Professor William Heffernan
Criminal justice is a rapidly expanding field of academic study central to the mission of the College. The aim of the Master of Arts in Criminal Justice Program is to broaden the perspective of those already in the criminal justice profession and prepare students for further graduate work and scholarship. Its courses provide a general survey of the field covering research methods, causes of crime and analyses of the police, courts and correctional system. In addition, courses are offered in criminal law, crime mapping, cybercrime, information security and technology, as well as drug abuse and terrorism.
The program is designed for:
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students, who wish to obtain a terminal master’s degree as a credential for entry into the criminal justice professions
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those employed in the criminal justice system, who wish to acquire job-related knowledge or broaden their perspectives
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those already employed in the criminal justice system, who seek to teach at the community college level or to obtain a post in some other area of the criminal justice system
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those interested in an academic career in higher education, who wish to obtain a master’s degree before entering a doctoral program
Program details:
Degree Requirements
Required Courses
Electives
Specializations
Degree Requirements
The course requirements for the Master of Arts in Criminal Justice are 30–36 credits, depending on whether the thesis or the comprehensive examination track is selected.
Thesis Track
Students, who select the thesis track, must complete 30 credits of coursework. The thesis track includes 15 credits in the program’s core courses, 12 credits from elective courses and an additional 3 credits for the thesis prospectus. This option is available only to students who received a grade of A or A- in CRJ 715. Pursuit of the thesis track also requires permission of the program director.
Comprehensive Examination Track
Those who choose the comprehensive examination track must complete 36 credits of coursework and must pass the comprehensive examination. The Comprehensive Review Course (CRJ 793) is recommended but not required. If CRJ 793 is taken for credit, 18 additional credits of electives are needed. If not, 21 credits of electives are needed. Electives may be selected from any of the graduate courses offered at John Jay, subject to the approval of the graduate program director.
Criminal Justice 710–711* Issues in Criminal Justice
Required Courses
Subtotal: 15 credits
Criminal Justice 715* Research Design and Methods
Criminal Justice 716 Using Computers in Social Research
Criminal Justice 730 Policy Analysis in Criminal Justice
* Students must complete Criminal Justice 710, 711 and 715 within their first 15 credits of courses.
All students must complete the 15 core credits listed above. In addition, students must take from 12 to 21 credits in elective courses (depending on whether the thesis or comprehensive examination track is followed). Electives may be selected from any of the graduate courses offered at John Jay, subject to the approval of the graduate program director.
Electives
Subtotal: 12-21 credits
Specializations
Students must specialize in one of eight areas and take a total of 9 credits within the specialization selected. The specialization lists provided below are not intended to be exhaustive. The program director has discretion to accept courses other than those noted in determining whether a student has satisfied the specialization requirement. Students should consult with the program director before taking a course for specialization credit when that course has not been noted in the list of courses for the student’s specialization.
Experimental courses in the 800-level series can be used to fulfill a specialization requirement with the approval of the program director. Dual specializations are permissible if the student has fulfilled the requirements of both specializations.
Criminology and Deviance
Criminal Justice 701 The Sociology of Crime
Criminal Justice 712 Sex Crimes
Criminal Justice 713 White Collar Crime
Criminal Justice 714 Social Aspects of Alcohol and Drug Use
Criminal Justice 727 Cybercriminology
Criminal Justice 744 Terrorism and Politics
Criminal Justice 746 Terrorism and Apocalyptic Violence
Criminal Justice 766 Sociology of Delinquency
Criminal Justice 769 Deviant Behavior
Criminal Justice 770 Advanced Criminology
Criminal Justice 772 Treatment of the Offender
Criminal Justice 778 Victimology
Criminal Justice 783 Crime and the Media
Criminal justice 784 Organized and Transnational Crime
Psychology 701 Psychology of Criminal Behavior
Psychology 704 Epidemiology of Deviant Behavior
Criminal Law and Procedure
Criminal Justice 708 Law, Evidence and Ethics
Criminal Justice 725 Capital Punishment
Criminal Justice 732 United States Constitutional Law
Criminal Justice 733 The Constitution and Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice 734 Criminal Law
Criminal Justice 736 Seminar in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
Criminal Justice 754/Public Administration 754 Investigative Techniques
Criminal Justice 785 The American Jury
Public Administration 741 Administrative Law and Regulation
Public Administration 760 Court Administration
Police Administration
Criminal Justice 739 Crime Mapping
Criminal Justice 751 Crime Scene Investigation
Criminal Justice 756 Problems in Police Administration
Criminal Justice 754/Public Administration 754 Investigative Techniques
Criminal Justice 757 The Police and the Community
Criminal Justice 759 Comparative Police Administration
Criminal Justice 760 History of Police Administration
Criminal Justice 761 Youth Crime and Delinquency Control
Criminal Justice 786 Problem-Oriented Policing
Correction Administration
Criminal Justice 703 Advanced Penology
Criminal Justice 704 Probation and Parole: Theory and Practice
Criminal Justice 728 Problems in Contemporary Corrections
Criminal Justice 749 Punishment and Responsibility
Criminal Justice 761 Youth Crime and Delinquency Control
Computer Applications in Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice 720/Public Administration 720 Computer Programming for Management and Analysis
Criminal Justice 727 Cybercriminology
Criminal Justice 739 Crime Mapping
Criminal Justice 747/Public Administration 747 Computer Applications in Public Policy and Management
Criminal Justice 750/Public Administration 750 Security of Information and Technology
Public Administration 711 Operations Research
Study of Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Criminal Justice 714 Social Aspects of Alcohol and Drug Use
Criminal Justice 729 Drugs, Crime and the Criminal Justice System
Criminal Justice 775 Evaluation and Monitoring of Alcoholism Treatment Programs
Criminal Justice 776 Sociological Perspectives on Alcoholism
Criminal Justice 777 Alcohol Abuse and the Family
Investigative Techniques
Criminal Justice 708 Law, Evidence and Ethics
Criminal Justice 733 The Constitution and Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice 739 Crime Mapping
Criminal Justice 751 Crime Scene Investigation
Criminal Justice 754/Public Administration 754 Investigative Techniques
Juvenile Justice
Criminal Justice 704 Probation and Parole
Criminal Justice 729 Drugs, Crime and the Criminal Justice System
Criminal Justice 761 Youth Crime and Delinquency Control
Criminal Justice 766 The Sociology of Delinquency
Psychology 716 Psychology and Treatment of the Juvenile Offender
Total: 30–36 credits