Program Overview

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Criminology and Criminal Justice, PhD

The School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Arizona State University offers an on-campus program of coursework and research leading to the Doctor of Philosophy in criminology and criminal justice. This program emphasizes criminal justice theory, research, and policy, and is designed to produce highly skilled criminology and criminal justice faculty and agency researchers and administrators.

Program Description

The doctoral program is organized around a core of required courses in research methods, analytic techniques, criminological theory, and policies and practices in the criminal justice system. The program offers distinctive elective courses in criminology, criminal justice, and related fields. To complete the program, students complete both a comprehensive examination and a doctoral dissertation.

At a Glance

• College/school: Watts College of Public Service & Community Solutions
• Location: Downtown Phoenix
• STEM-OPT extension eligible: No

Degree Requirements

• 84 credit hours
• A written comprehensive exam
• A prospectus
• A dissertation

Required Core (12 credit hours)

• CRJ 601 Seminar on Criminological Theory (3)
• CRJ 602 Seminar on Criminal Justice Policies and Practices (3)
• CRJ 603 Advanced Research Design (3)
• CRJ 604 Regression Models (3)

Professional Development Coursework (3 credit hours)

• CRJ 617 Professional Development in Criminology and Criminal Justice (3)

Theory or Systems Elective Coursework (3 credit hours)

• CRJ 606 Advanced Topics in Theoretical Criminology (3)
• CRJ 607 Advanced Topics in Policing (3)
• CRJ 608 Advanced Topics in Courts and Sentencing (3)
• CRJ 609 Advanced Topics in Corrections (3)
• CRJ 610 Advanced Topics in Juvenile Justice (3)
• CRJ 611 Advanced Topics in Crime and Victimization (3)
• CRJ 612 Advanced Topics in Race, Gender, and the Criminal Justice System (3)

Research Methods or Statistics Elective Coursework (3 credit hours)

• CRJ 510 Criminal Justice Planning and Program Evaluation (3)
• CRJ 531 Crime Mapping (3)
• CRJ 540 Qualitative Methods (3)
• CRJ 560 Topics in Research Methods (3)
• CRJ 605 Topics in Quantitative Methods (3)

Electives (51 credit hours)

Culminating Experience (12 credit hours)

• CRJ 799 Dissertation (12)

Additional Curriculum Information

Doctoral students may also ask the Director of the PhD Program to review (and approve) a statistics or research methods class offered at the graduate level by another in-person graduate program at ASU in the social sciences.

Credits from Master’s Degree (30 Credits)

A maximum of 30 credit hours of coursework from a previously awarded master's degree or JD may, with approval of the Director of the PhD Program and the Graduate College, be applied toward the doctoral plan of study.

Admission Requirements

• General university admission requirements: All students are required to meet general university admission requirements.
• Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions.
• Applicants often hold a master's degree from an accredited institution; it may be in criminal justice, criminology, or another field (e.g., sociology, political science, history, social work, public administration, psychology, or philosophy).
• The program also allows for direct admission into the doctoral program for highly qualified students with only a bachelor's degree; these students earn their master's degree along the way to completing their doctoral degree.
• Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
• All applicants must submit:
  • Graduate admission application and application fee
  • Official transcripts
  • Two letters of recommendation
  • Current curriculum vitae or resume
  • Personal statement
  • Sample of the applicant's written work
  • Proof of English proficiency.

Tuition Information

When it comes to paying for higher education, everyone’s situation is different. Students can learn about ASU tuition and financial aid options to find out which will work best for them.

Application Deadlines

• Fall:
  • Session A/C: In Person, Deadline: 01/01, Type: Final

Program Learning Outcomes

Program learning outcomes identify what a student will learn or be able to do upon completion of their program. This program’s learning outcomes include the following:

• Apply appropriate theoretical principles and procedures to issues and problems at the frontiers of criminology and the criminal justice system.
• Select appropriate data collection and data analysis techniques for conducting criminology and criminal justice research.
• Able to conduct dissertation research resulting in an original contribution to knowledge in criminology and criminal justice.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the criminology and criminal justice doctorate program find a strong job market in the public and private sectors. Employment opportunities include supervisory and management positions in criminal justice agencies (federal, state, and local), policymaking, and teaching and research, such as:

• City, county, and state government liaison to criminal justice agencies
• Court administrator
• Detective or investigator
• Evidence and crime scene supervisor (CSI activities)
• Forensic scientist
• Intelligence analyst
• Law enforcement or police crime analysis supervisor
• Policy analyst
• Probation, parole, or community supervisor
• Professor of criminal justice

Opportunities also include supervisory and management positions in social service agencies, such as:

• Child and family services (e.g., Head Start, child support enforcement, foster care, elder care)
• Department of Economic Security
• Homeless outreach
• Victim advocacy

Graduates also have the opportunity to work in supervisory and management positions in the private sector, including online security, as well as in the cybersecurity sector.