Criminal JusticeCriminal JusticeProfessors—Curtin, Vencill
Lecturers—Clavier, Koehler, Lynch, MacAllair, Matthews, Patterson, Walsh
B.A. in Criminal Justice
Minor in Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Research, is one of the most rapidly expanding careers in America-and this was projected before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack. In 1998 there were more than 350,000 students majoring in CJ at the graduate and undergraduate levels in the U.S. Now this discipline is more essential than ever, and our program offers a distinctly cross-disciplinary, international law approach to the field. CJ is the application of law, social and natural sciences to the social phenomenon of crime, terrorism and delinquency. The discipline covers definitions, causation, prevention, discovery procedures legal and Constitutional process and protections, treatment and rehabilitation, quantification, computer applications, and research in both criminal and civil aspects.
The Bachelor of Art allows students to pursue a rigorous, cross-disciplinary study for our justice system. The program is designed for students who want their primary scholarly emphasis placed upon a critical appraisal of law enforcement, the courts, jails and prisons, whether for the purpose of liberal arts, a Ph.D., a law degree, professional schooling, career advancement while on the job, or any combination of those aims.
The major includes legal writing, criminal statistics and profiling, comparative international criminal justice systems, terrorism, jails and prisons, ethics, transnational organized crime, cybercrime and intelligence operations.
The major includes work in three colleges and ten different co-related departments throughout our university. Related fields: sociology, human ecology, economics, psychology, international relations, political science, computer science, philosophy, accounting, and others.
We offer a rewarding and career-enhancing balance of theory, law, analysis, hand-on experience, internships and file study via our established, significant relationships with local police, the Police Academy, the District Attorney's Office, the Public Defender's office, juvenile justice programs, the jail administration, and Bay Area probation departments.
Students in the Criminal Justice Program will:
Identify and increase understanding of major social issues related to crime, criminals, terrorism, prevention and control, and victims.
A network of criminal justice agencies and personnel in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area serves as a powerful asset to students. Simultaneously, that network participates in the fulfillment of the urban mission of the university,. The curricular importance of that network is reflected in the fact that direct field study is an integral dimension of the curricula, and a partial requirement in most of our courses.
Our program is student friendly. Students work closely with knowledgeable and committed faculty. We encourage student transfers from community colleges. Many graduates from our program completed their degree requirements, including evening and weekend courses, while in service at their regular local law enforcement jobs. We have an active CJ Student Association which plans and implements charitable community service projects, provides a socializing opportunities, and acts as a valuable career networking resource. We actively seek and encourage women and minorities to complete our program and we provide topical courses, such as Women in Policing. We have individualized advising and student mentoring services provided by our faculty who help in job placement assistance or law school admission assistance upon graduation from our program.
On-line course descriptions are available.
| Program | Units | |
| Core Requirements | ||
| CJ 300 | The Criminal Justice System | 4 |
| Criminal Justice Systems—units selected from the following: | 8 | |
| CJ 320 | Literature in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 330 | Heuristics in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 335 | Seminar in Legal Writing (4) | |
| CJ 340 | Comparative Criminal Justice Systems (4) | |
| Political Economy—units selected from the following: | 6-8 | |
| ECON 515 | The Economics of Crime | |
| ECON 516 | Law and Economics | |
| HIST 428 | History of the U.S. Since 1945 | |
| HIST 471 | Legal and Constitutional History of the U.S. | |
| PLSI 551 | Judicial Power in Public Policy Making (4) | |
| PLSI 552 | Individual Rights in the Constitution (4) | |
| Interdisciplinary Options—units selected from the following: | 3-4 | |
| SOC 362 | Social Construction of Deviance and Conformity (4) | |
| SOC 451 | Criminological Theory (4) | |
| SOC 454 | White Collar Crime (4) | |
| SOC 455 | Punishment and Social Control (4) | |
| SOC 457 | Sociology of Law (4) | |
| SOC 459 | Criminal Law and Social Process (4) | |
| PHIL 335 | Law and Society | |
| PHIL 380 | Philosophy of Law | |
| AIS 310 | American Indian Religion and Philosophy | |
| AAS 300 | Asian Americans in California | |
| ETHS 665 | Asian American Community and Public Policy | |
| BL S 375 | Law and the Black Community | |
| BL S 376 | Government, the Constitution, and Black Citizens | |
| RAZA 415 | The Socio-economics of La Raza | |
| RAZA 430 | La Raza and the Law | |
| Total for core | 21-24 | |
| Administration of Justice—units selected from the following: | 8 | |
| CJ 400 | Police and Public Policy (4) | |
| CJ 401 | Criminal Profiling (4) | |
| CJ 405 | Organized Crime (4) | |
| CJ 420 | Community Policing (4) | |
| CJ 430 | Women in Policing (4) | |
| CJ 450 | Jails and Prisons (4) | |
| CJ 451 | The Architecture of Incarceration (4) | |
| CJ 455 | Incarceration Study (4) | |
| CJ 460 | Community Corrections and Sentencing (4) | |
| CJ 461/IR 361 | Terrorism and Covert Political Warfare (4) | |
| CJ 470/ SOC 452 |
Juvenile Justice (4) | |
| Legal Studies—units selected from the following: | 8 | |
| CJ 501 | Criminal Law (4) | |
| CJ 502 | Criminal Procedure (4) | |
| CJ 505 | International Criminal Law (4) | |
| CJ 515 | Extremism as Crime (4) | |
| CJ 520 | The Construction of Crime and Justice (4) | |
| CJ 540 | Classic Cinema in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 550 | Current Issues in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| Culminating Experience—units selected from the following: | 4 | |
| CJ 680 | Field Course in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 681 | Internship in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 685 | Special Projects in Teaching Criminal Justice (4) | |
| CJ 699 | Independent Study in Criminal Justice (4) | |
| Total for major | 41-44 | |
On-line course descriptions are available.
| Introduction | Units | |
| CJ 300 | Criminal Justice: A Cross-disciplinary Perspective | 4 |
| Substantive Core One course from each of the following 3 sets on advisement, with courses in at least 2 disciplines: |
||
| Criminology | 4 | |
| CJ 450 | Jails and Prisons (4) | |
| SOC 362 | Social Construction of Deviance and Conformity (4) | |
| SOC 451 | Criminological Theory (4) | |
| Legal Studies | 3-4 | |
| CJ 500 | Criminal Law (4) | |
| PHIL 380 | Philosophy of Law | |
| PHIL 335 | Law and Society | |
| PLSI 552 | Individual Rights in the Constitution (4) | |
| PLSI 561 | Jurisprudence (4) | |
| SOC 457 | Sociology of Law (4) | |
| SOC 459 | Criminal Law and Social Process (4) | |
| Administration of Justice | 4 | |
| CJ 400 | Police and Public Policy (4) | |
| SOC 455 | Punishment and Social Control (4) | |
| Electives One or more related course(s), chosen on the basis of individual interests with adviser approval |
3-4 | |
| Culminating Seminar and Field Activity | ||
| CJ 680 | Field Course in Criminal Justice | 4 |
| Total | 22-24 | |