Program Overview

Criminology and Criminal Justice, M.A.

The Master of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice at Saint Louis University provides students with a core criminological knowledge foundation and the opportunity to gain additional skills. The program prepares graduates to be advanced practitioners in various community and justice agency/organizational settings.

Overview

Communities and organizations require professionals with interdisciplinary skills to handle complex challenges. This program offers a comprehensive education in criminology and criminal justice, with five diverse concentrations: Cybersecurity, Emergency Management, Organizational Leadership, Strategic Intelligence, and Treatment and Rehabilitation.

Concentrations

• Cybersecurity: Apply security principles to analyze, detect, and mitigate vulnerabilities and intrusions into justice-serving organizations' cyber infrastructure.
• Emergency Management: Learn critical thinking, leadership, and crisis-management skills through seminars and simulations.
• Organizational Leadership: Prepare for leadership roles in justice-serving organizations through coursework designed to increase management skills.
• Strategic Intelligence: Learn to manage various information sources, think strategically, and analyze data to develop actionable plans for managing investigations.
• Treatment and Rehabilitation: Gain an in-depth understanding of human behavior, issues related to the treatment of high-risk populations, and evidence-based practices for improving the health of offenders and communities.

Careers

Graduates are prepared to take on challenges in leading criminal justice organizations. Recent graduates have accepted professional opportunities with the FBI, U.S. Marshals, Secret Service, IRS, and the St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office.

Tuition

• Total Program Cost: $35,000
• Additional charges may apply.

Financial Aid

• All incoming students are considered for merit-based scholarships.
• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for graduate financial aid.
• The Graduate Financial Aid Handbook outlines the process of financing graduate education.
• Scholarships, fellowships, and graduate assistantships are available.

Admission Requirements

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
• Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00
• Conditional admission may be considered for students with GPAs below 3.00
• Application requirements:
  • Application form
  • Transcript(s)
  • Rťsumť
  • Professional statement (not to exceed three double-spaced pages)

Program Requirements

• 33 total credits
• CCJ Core Courses (18 credits):
  • CCJ 5000: Criminological Theory
  • CCJ 5100: Ethics in the Administration of Justice
  • CCJ 5200: Research Methods
  • CCJ 5300: Proseminar in Criminal Justice
  • CCJ 6400: Issues in Jurisprudence
• CCJ Elective Courses (6 credits)
• Concentration Courses (12 credits)
• Continuation Standards: Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.00 in all graduate/professional courses.

Concentration Courses

• Cybersecurity:
  • CCJ 6000: Issues in Policing
  • CYBR 5000: Cybersecurity Principles
  • CYBR 5010: Networking Concepts
  • CYBR 5030: Cyber Threats and Defense
• Organizational Leadership:
  • CCJ 6000: Issues in Policing
  • ORLD 5010: Contemporary Organizational Leadership
  • ORLD 5350: Team Leadership
  • ORLD 5100: Prof Leadership Development
• Strategic Intelligence:
  • CCJ 6000: Issues in Policing
  • INTL 5000: The Intelligence Cycle
  • INTL 5050: Terrorism & US Foreign Policy
  • INTL 5200: Cyber Operations and National Security
• Treatment and Rehabilitation:
  • SWRK 5762: Diagnosis & Assessment in Clinical Practice
  • Select 3 graduate-level SWRK classes (9 credits)

Roadmap

The roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study and assumes full-time enrollment. Courses and milestones designated as critical must be completed in the semester listed to ensure timely graduation.

CCJ Core Courses

Classes are offered on a four-semester cycle. Students should register for CCJ core classes when they are offered. If a class is missed, it will not be available for another four semesters, delaying the degree-completion date.

CCJ Electives

• CCJ 5910: Criminology and Criminal Justice Internship
• CCJ 5990: Thesis Research
• CCJ 6000: Issues in Policing
• CCJ 6100: Issues in Corrections
• CCJ 6200: Issues in Juvenile Justice Administration
• Related Field Elective

Learning Outcomes

Graduates will be able to:

1. Assess relevant criminology and criminal justice literature/scholarly contributions.
2. Apply criminology and criminal justice theories, design and implement policies, and competently employ research methodologies.
3. Apply knowledge from criminology and criminal justice to address problems in broader contexts.
4. Articulate criminology and criminal justice explanations/arguments to a disciplinary/professional audience in both written and oral formats.
5. Evidence scholarly/professional integrity (ethics) in criminology and criminal justice.