Admission
Any student with a declared major in criminal justice is eligible for the criminal justice courts and law concentration.
Program Requirements
A minimum total of 120 credit hours is required for the BS in criminal justice with a concentration in courts and law. In addition to meeting the requirements of the WSU General Education Program and the requirements of Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, students must meet the following requirements:
The criminal justice major requires a minimum of 39 credit hours in criminal justice courses with 18 credit hours in six required core courses and 21 credit hours in seven criminal justice electives. For the concentration in courts and law, students must complete all graduation requirements for the BS in criminal justice, taking at least 12 credit hours of law-related courses as follows.
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education | ||
| Select courses to meet General Education requirements 1 | 34-35 | |
| College Requirements | ||
| Select courses to complete all LAS Competency Areas 1 | 24 | |
| Additional Requirements | ||
| ENGL 210 | Composition: Business, Professional and Technical Writing | 3 |
| SPAN 212 | Spanish for Law Enforcement | 5 |
| In lieu of SPAN 212 students may take another world language through 204. | ||
| Major Core Courses | ||
| CJ 191 | Introduction to Criminal Justice | 3 |
| CJ 305 | Professional Responsibility in a Multicultural Society | 3 |
| CJ 320 | Criminal Procedure | 3 |
| CJ 407 | Introduction to Research Methods | 3 |
| CJ 493 | Crime Causation and Criminal Justice Policy | 3 |
| CJ 598 | Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice (recommended to be taken in the final year prior to graduation) | 3 |
| Courts and Law Concentration Courses | ||
| CJ 394 | Courts and Judicial Systems (required gateway course) | 3 |
| Select 9 credit hours from the following law-related courses | 9 | |
| Criminal Law | ||
| The Victim in Criminal Justice | ||
| Criminal Evidence: Mock Trials | ||
| Forensic Victimology | ||
| Criminal Justice Electives | ||
| Select 9 credit hours of electives from the following. Any of the remaining five gateway electives may also be used towards these elective hours. | 9 | |
| Gateway Electives | ||
| Criminalistics and Scientific Crime Detection | ||
| Criminal Mind and Behavior | ||
| Corrections | ||
| Law Enforcement | ||
| Intelligence Process | ||
| Courts and Law | ||
| Criminal Law | ||
| Criminal Evidence: Mock Trials | ||
| The Victim in Criminal Justice | ||
| Forensic Victimology | ||
| Law Enforcement and Investigations | ||
| Special Investigations | ||
| Cybercrime | ||
| Homicide Investigation | ||
| Crime Gun Intelligence: Intervening and Investigating Violent Crime | ||
| Crime Analysis | ||
| Terrorism | ||
| Corrections | ||
| Juvenile Justice and Delinquency | ||
| Correctional Administration | ||
| Criminal Intelligence | ||
| Crime Analysis | ||
| Digital Investigations | ||
| Technology in Criminal Justice | ||
| Fundamentals of Criminal Intelligence | ||
| Open-Source Intelligence | ||
| Crime Intelligence Analytics | ||
| Crime Scene Investigation | ||
| Human Osteology | ||
| Forensic Photography | ||
| Crime Scene Reconstruction | ||
| Basic Bloodstain Pattern Analysis | ||
| Crime Causation | ||
| Violent Crime | ||
| Sex Crimes | ||
| The Psychology of Homicide | ||
| Forensic Psychiatry | ||
| Open Electives | ||
| Select enough electives to reach 120 credit hours | 14-15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120 | |
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Required major courses may also count towards General Education and/or LAS Competencies. Students will need to select additional electives to reach 120 credit hours required for graduation with assistance from an advisor.
Applied Learning
Students in the BS in criminal justice - concentration in courts and law program are required to complete an applied learning or research experience to graduate from this program. The requirement can be met by successfully completing CJ 407 Introduction to Research Methods.
Students in the traditional course have a hands-on experience serving or benefiting a community agency. Research questions are developed in conjunction with the agent of the agency identified at the beginning of each semester.
Students in the online course learn how to apply the course concepts thus far. Each student identifies four research study ideas directly linked to their everyday lives.