Program Overview

Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice

Why Earn Your Criminal Justice Degree at Saint Leo University?

Create safer communities, and improve the lives of people everywhere. While pursuing your bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice, you’ll develop the highly specialized knowledge and leadership skills to decode and correct criminals, work with law enforcement agencies, and investigate crimes in Florida, the United States and the world.

Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice - Program Details

This program is offered:

• Campus
• Education Center
• Online

This program is a 39-hour major based on the input of a diverse criminal justice advisory board that is designed to prepare students for careers and rapid advancement in the criminal justice system and related fields. This program of study will enhance the effectiveness of working professionals, provide a foundation for advancement to administrative levels, and prepare students for graduate study in criminal justice administration and related fields.

• Est. Time to Complete: 4 years
• Credit Hours: 120 hours

Learn Your Way: Online, On Campus, or Near You

What are the on-campus facilities like?

Students who pursue their degrees at Saint Leo’s main campus near sunny Tampa Bay, Florida, join a community of enthusiastic learners just like them.

Criminal Justice students enjoy plenty of engaging learning opportunities both inside and outside the classroom, as well as exciting departmental events.

What are the benefits of earning your criminal justice degree online?

Saint Leo University’s online learning experience provides a well-rounded education with the flexibility to tailor your course of study to meet your individual needs. We know our students have lives outside school, and we seek to meet them where they are. Online students can count on receiving excellent academics as well as opportunities for hands-on learning.

Are education centers near you offering criminal justice degree programs?

You may also choose to pursue your degree through one of our education centers, which merge a traditional in-person education with the flexibility to match your lifestyle. Education centers offer eight-week academic terms as well as evening and weekend classes.

Specialization Options

Saint Leo University offers specialization options for criminal justice students. You can customize your degree to match your passions by choosing one of the following concentrations.

Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice - Criminalistics

• Campus
• Education Center
• Online

A criminalistics degree will provide you the knowledge and training you need to solve the crime. Saint Leo's Criminal Justice - Criminalistics Specialization trains you in crime scene investigation and forensic science. Crime scene analysts process evidence—like DNA, fingerprints and bullets—in a forensics lab to help identify suspects and reconstruct the events of a crime.

Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice - Homeland Security

• Campus
• Education Center
• Online

Become an expert on international and domestic terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, law enforcement ethics and law, and Middle Eastern political, religious and economic forces. Saint Leo is an approved educational partner by the FBI National Academy Associates, and our faculty members have served as local and federal agents, chief deputies, detectives and FBI advisors.

Career Outlook

No matter which learning experience you choose, you will receive plenty of professional development opportunities, industry knowledge from expert professors, and support from the Saint Leo community. All this together means that you will be ready for a successful career or continued studies upon graduation.

How will you gain real experience?

• Field placement
• Hands-on learning
• Co-curricular activities

What can you do with an undergraduate criminal justice degree?

Graduates rapidly advance in the criminal justice system and pursue graduate study in criminal justice administration and related fields.

What are the top criminal justice degree jobs?

• Crime Scene Investigator: 19% growth, $60,590 per year
• Juvenile Probation Officer: 4% growth, $55,690 per year
• Police Officer: 7% growth, $67,290 per year

Where are Saint Leo criminal justice graduates now?

• Secret Service
• FBI
• Tampa Police Department
• Atlanta Police Department

Accreditation

Saint Leo University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award associate, bachelor’s, master’s, specialist, and doctoral degrees.