Criminal Justice Degree Online

The criminal justice program offers coursework leading to the M.S.C.J. Upon graduation, students will be prepared for agency employment or continued study in the field of criminal justice/criminology.

Degree and program plans require a minimum of 36 semester hours of credit, to include the following:

Required Core (36 Hours)

CJ 606 Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice (3)
CJ 610 Nature and Function of the American Judicial System (3)
CJ 614 Management and Policy in Criminal Justice Organization (3)
CJ 618 Crime in America (3)
CJ 622 Contemporary Issues in Corrections (3)
CJ 630 Victimology (3)
CJ 634 Advanced Criminal Procedure (3)
CJ 640 Methods of Research in Criminal Justice (3)
CJ 645 Advanced Statistical Applications (3)
CJ 650 Criminological Theories (3)
CJ 660 Comparative Criminal Justice (3)
CJ 690 Contemporary Issues in Law Enforcement (3)
CJ 698 Comprehensive exam (0)

Optional (3 hours)

CJ 699 Independent Study/Research

In the last semester in which all other course requirements are expected to be completed, the student must register for CJ 698 in order to take a written comprehensive examination prior to graduation in order to complete the program.

COURSES

CJ 606. Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice.

An analytical approach to the controversies surrounding the juvenile justice process. Including the goals of the system, police-juvenile interaction, juvenile adjudication and corrections.

CJ 610. Nature and Function of the American Judicial System.

Structure and function of the American judicial system; judicial process, ethics and decision making in the criminal and juvenile courts.

CJ 614. Management and Policy in Criminal Justice Organizations.

Approaches to the effective management of criminal justice organizations, with specific emphasis on personnel management and policy implications. Specialized topics include management principles, organizational structures, legal mandates, and political and social influences.

CJ 618. Crime in America.

This course will focus upon the statistical patterns of specific crimes, the modus operandi of offenders, the social-psychology of specific types of offenders (rapist, arsonists etc…), techniques of crime prevention/protection, and potential solutions to the crime problem.

CJ 622. Contemporary Issues in Corrections.

An analytical examination of current issues in corrections, including those applicable to American prisons and jails, probation, parole, and correctional programs both within correctional institutions and in the community.

CJ 630. Victimology.

The study of victims and victimization, including sources of victimization data, patterns of victim/offender relationships, the role of victims in their own victimization, special needs of victim types, responses of the community, law enforcement, judicial and correctional systems to the needs of victims.

CJ 634. Advanced Criminal Procedure.

Investigation, pretrial procedure, trial procedure and sentencing, post-trial motions, appeals, reviews, and remedies in the criminal courts.

CJ 640. Methods of Research in Criminal Justice.

The application of the elements of scientific research to criminal justice; the implementation of research designs and tools; data processing analysis.

CJ 645. Advanced Statistical Applications.

An examination of the use of inferential statistics in the analysis of criminal justice data. Major course topics will include the analyses and applications of probabilities, chi-square, t-test, ANOVA, correlations, bivariate and multiple regression.

CJ 650. Criminological Theory.

A critical analysis of the major criminological theories and their empirical foundation with emphasis on current theory and research.

CJ 660. Comparative Criminal Justice.

A study of international expressions of law, police, courts, and corrections emphasizing how various countries organize and administer their formal social control efforts. This course aims to provide students with an opportunity to contrast American criminal justice practices with those of several countries so as to understand why criminal justice systems work as they do and what advantages and disadvantages are related to such expressions of criminal justice.

CJ 690. Contemporary Issues in Law Enforcement.

An analytical examination of the controversies surrounding law enforcement practice, with primary emphasis on its functions, problems, administration, and interaction with other criminal justice agencies.

CJ 698. Comprehensive Examinations.

Orientation to and administration of written comprehensive examination for the M.S.C.J. program. A non-credit course required of all candidates to be taken the last term in which the student is expected to complete all other program requirements. A grade of “S” indicating satisfactory performance or a grade of “U” for unsatisfactory will be recorded on the transcript. A grade of “S” is required for graduation; may be repeated once. Prerequisite: student must have completed all other program requirements or be enrolled in the last course for program completion.

CJ 699. Independent Study/Research.

Guided independent study and/or research in an area related to criminal justice administration. Prerequisite: approval from department chair.

60 credit hours
Day, Evening and Weekend
Queens and Staten Island Campuses

Candidates are required to complete 60 semester hours of credit of a prescribed program of study with a minimum cumulative quality point index of 2.0 for all courses and for the major area.

Graduates of the New York City Police Department may be awarded credit for field training.

Major Area Requirements
18 credit hours
CRJ 2000: An Introduction ot the Criminal Justice System
CRJ 2001: Crime and the Criminal
CRJ 2002: The Police and the Community
CRJ 2003: The American Judicial System
CRJ 2004: American Correctional Systems
3 credits may also be chosen from the additional Criminal Justice offerings.

60 credit hours
Day, Evening and Weekend
Queens and Staten Island Campuses

Candidates are required to complete 60 semester hours of credit of a prescribed program of study with a minimum cumulative quality point index of 2.0 for all courses and for the major area.

Graduates of the New York City Police Department may be awarded credit for field training.

Major Area Requirements
18 credit hours
CRJ 2000: An Introduction ot the Criminal Justice System
CRJ 2001: Crime and the Criminal
CRJ 2002: The Police and the Community
CRJ 2003: The American Judicial System
CRJ 2004: American Correctional Systems
3 credits may also be chosen from the additional Criminal Justice offerings.

MCJ 500. Criminological Theory 3 credit hours
Theories of crime causation, participation, and treatment, Intervention, and prevention strategies. Topics covered include: prominent theories in the study of crime, the use of official and unofficial statistics in assessing crime in the US society, the inter-play of theory and social policy/ program implementation.

MCJ 501. Independent Study 1-3 credit hours

Specialized readings and applied research in criminal justice.

MCJ 503. Workshop 1-3 credit hours
Topics and activities are designed to offer practical skills development opportunities useful to criminal justice practitioners. May be repeated to a maximum of three semester credits if topics differ.

MCJ 507. Seminar in Criminal Justice 3 credit hours
Capstone seminar focusing on analysis and evaluation of current practice, with emphasis on ethical and operational issues confronting criminal justice practitioners.

MCJ 510. Crime Policy Analysis 3 credit hours
Examination of development and implementation of crime policy from a political, institutional, and administrative perspective. Application of political theories and policy analysis research techniques to better understanding and improving crime policy. Overview of crime theories with analysis and evaluation of the consequences for crime policy.

MCJ 511. The Constitution and Criminal Justice 3 credit hours
This course is a constitutional law course specifically geared to the interests and needs of the criminal justice professional. Students will be introduced to the organization of the American judicial system, the historical origins of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and the study of the rights of the accused that are protected by the Constitution.

MCJ 530. Advanced Criminal Justice Statistics 3 credit hours
This course is structured to introduce undergraduate and graduate criminal justice majors to the statistical tests and interpretation used to explore and explain the study of crime and criminal justice. An in-depth analysis of quantitative descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, as well as qualitative data analysis will be explored.

MCJ 531. Advanced Criminal Justice Research Methods 3 credit hours

This course is designed to introduce undergraduate and graduate criminal justice majors to social science methodology used to explore and explain the phenomenon of crime and criminal justice. The scientific method, research design and implementation, sampling, experimental and quasi-experimental, and survey designs will be explored.

MCJ 532. Organized and White Collar Crime 3 credit hours
This course discusses the structure and environment of the organized and white-collar crime. It provides a detailed analysis of the origins, history, theoretical explanations, and structure of organized and white-collar crime. The methods employed by law enforcement agencies to combat organized crime are also explored.

MCJ 550. Applications of Criminal Justice Research 3 credit hours
Applications of the statistical techniques learned in previous course data sets obtained from criminal justice sources. Emphasis will be placed on obtaining and manipulating data, using statistical software and communicating the results of the analysis through presentations and reports suitable for publication.

MCJ 587. Race, Class, Gender, and Justice 3 credit hours
This class is designed to examine and address the stereotypes surrounding the issues of race, class, and gender and their impact on the criminal justice system. Specifically, it will discuss how race, class, and gender influence the decision- making process from arrest through sentencing.

MCJ 599. Comparative Justice Systems 3 credit hours
A comparative justice system examines the four justice traditions covering most of the worlds legal systems. These include the Common, Civil, Socialist and Islamic traditions. Justice systems of countries representative of each tradition will be examined.

MCJ 620. Administration of Justice 3 credit hours
Administrative system analysis of the political and organizational dimensions of criminal case process through the agencies of criminal justice. An applied research project is required.

MCJ 640. Justice Planning and Leadership 3 credit hours
A leadership development seminar focusing on the nature and sources of conflict within and between criminal justice and human service agencies. Organizational problems are identified and addressed through an action- research model. It also examines the systems approach to planned organizational change from the perspective of applied behavioral science.

MCJ 650. Correctional Counseling 3 credit hours

Theory and practice of counseling with emphasis on evidence-based practices with offenders in both institutional and community-based programs.

MCJ 660. Stress and Crisis Management 3 credit hours

Recognition and identification of personal and social stress or crisis situations, and the development of interpersonal and group strategies for school, social service, and justice personnel.

MCJ 670. Seminar in Juvenile Justice 3 credit hours
Graduate level class intended to provide a comprehensive look at juvenile crime as well as intervention and prevention strategies aimed at dealing with the youthful offender. Emphasis will be placed on the research conducted in this area.

MCJ 671. Seminar in Law Enforcement 3 credit hours

This course provides an overview of policing styles with an emphasis on community policing. Current research will be examined as it relates to the functions of policing as well as historical developments and trends.

MCJ 672. Seminar in Corrections 3 credit hours

This course examines the theories and philosophies related to institutional and community corrections. An emphasis on research related to historical developments and trends will be examined.

MCJ 700. Practicum 3-6 credit hours

Observation and applied action- research on a management problem in a criminal justice related organization. Open only to MCJ candidates.

MCJ 701. Research Design 3 credit hours

This course is designed for the student choosing the research option to complete the MCJ degree. It is in this course that the methodology used to examine the topic chosen in seminar in CJ.

MCJ 702. Thesis 3 credit hours

Academic presentation and oral defense of student thesis.

“A combination of history, criminal justice and business courses allows students to find a greater interest in law and propels students into law school!”
– Lance Jenkins, current Pre-Law major

Students enrolling in the Pre-Law Program will follow along a specialized track of study which will include courses in:
United States Constitutional History
American Judicial System
American Politics
Business Law
Criminal Law
Criminal Procedures

These courses and more will prepare students for immediate employment right out of school or for entering distinguished law school programs around the country.

By combining the best of both worlds, Chowan University’s Criminal Justice Department and Department of History team up to provide Pre-Law students with a proven track for success!