Why study Criminology & Criminal Justice?
Opportunities to:
Learn to view issues of crime, victimization, and justice at multiple levels—from individuals to communities and institutions.
Develop a sociological perspective on these issues to focus your attention to the social aspects of crime, law, and deviance including understanding societal factors that contribute to crime, effective and innovative programmatic approaches to prevent or control crime, the unintended consequences of our system for marginalized communities, and the role of research in creating effective policy.
Gain a strong theoretical foundation in sociology, research methods, data collection, and analysis. These are all essential skills for a wide variety of careers associated with with law, justice, or advocacy.
Connect with alumni & faculty through our unique mentoring program that models how to transfer students’ sociological skill sets to meaningful employment after graduation.
Course Highlights:
Our faculty teach courses that address issues like forms of punishment in the U.S. and global context, how gender shapes people’s experiences with crime, environmental and state crime, as well as evidence-based policing practices. These are some of our students' favorite courses:
SOC 322 : Intro to Environmental Justice
SOC 253 : Intro to Criminology & Criminal Justice
SOC 351 : Corporate & State Crime
SOC 354 : Policing and Society
SOC 356 : Inequality and Criminal Sentencing
SOC 357 : Women, Crime, & Victimization
SOC 358 : Punishment & Society
SOC 359 : Green Criminology
SOC 455 : Sociology of Law
SOC 482 : International Criminal Justice Systems (our Education Abroad program in Prague!)
SOC 487 : Internship
Our 15-credit Certificate in Applied Social Research is a great addition to any major. Help create new pathways for social change with as you learn to identify, gather, interpret, and organize information about today’s pressing social justice issues. Get hands-on training for making evidence-driven arguments. Acquire concrete skills and research tools that employers look for on your resume!