Criminology

Why do some people break the law? The University of Saint Mary’s Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminology attempts to answer this question and many more. Criminologists measure the characteristics of criminals, crimes, and victims using a variety of methods. As an applied discipline, criminology is a unique combination of sociology, psychology, law, social work, and science that analyzes how laws are created, why laws are created, why laws are broken, and reactions of society to broken laws. As a criminology student at the University of Saint Mary, you will gain the expertise necessary to enter a highly competitive, demanding, yet rewarding career.

Program Learning Outcomes

The criminology program seeks to prepare graduates who demonstrate:

An understanding of the field of criminology, including the ability to discuss victim, offender, practitioner, and environmental perspectives;

The ability to discuss the relationship between criminology theory and the components of the criminal justice system;
An ability to synthesize criminology theory, data analysis, and academic research to create responses to crime problems;

An understanding of personal and professional ethical issues in the criminal justice system, criminology research, and society.

Graduates with a major in criminology find many and varied career opportunities. Indeed, job opportunities are reported to be growing exponentially, with a need for graduates to fill positions in criminal justice, criminal justice administration, corrections, law enforcement, and advocacy at the local, state, and federal levels.

On-ground students may choose between three concentrations: General Criminology, Criminal Behavior, and Policing. The choice of Criminal Behavior or Policing concentrations should be made as early as possible as six semesters may be required to ensure that all required courses are completed.

39 credit hours in criminology are required: 18 credit hours in core requirements, 15 credit hours in the selected concentration, and 6 credit hours of approved upper-level electives.

Online Degree Completion in Criminology

The requirements for the online degree completion program are the same as the traditional Bachelor of Science in Criminology degree for transfer students, although it is recommended that students have earned an associate’s degree prior to enrolling in the completion program. Courses are offered online in an 8-week format with six terms each academic year.

The General Criminology and the Criminal Behavior concentrations are available through the online program. The Policing concentration is not available through the online program.

Students entering the degree completion program need to have completed the following courses or a qualified equivalent course with a grade of C- or above prior to starting the program:

CR 280 Introduction to Criminal Law
PY 150 Introduction to Psychology
SO 110 Introduction to Sociology

Experiential Learning Assessment

The criminology program accepts experiential learning credits. Those credits can be demonstrated in two ways:

Police Academy Credits: Twelve (12) upper level criminology elective hours are awarded for completion of a state certified policy academy. A copy of the policy academy graduation certificate and a copy of class curriculum must be received to award policy academy credit. The curriculum must indicate a minimum of 560 hours to receive credit.
- Credit hours may also be offered for completion of a corrections officer academy. The credit hour assessment will be based on the number of training hours completed. A graduation certificate and training curriculum must be provided.
Experiential Learning Portfolio: Students may submit an experiential learning portfolio for up to 16 credit hours specific to the criminology major. Credit hours may be awarded for the following:

Advanced training credits: Up to 12 credit hours for general or specific criminology electives courses may be awarded for completion of additional training courses identified as courses that meet post-certification requirements. Credit will be awarded based on the number of training hours completed using ACE guidelines. Basic and advanced courses may be combined to increase the number of credits awarded.
Specialized assignment credits: Up to 4 credit hours may be awarded for work experience in a specialized assignment (e.g., gang unit, task forces, etc.). Credit it awarded at one (1) credit hour for each assignment, up to 4 credit hours. Advanced training credits and special assignment credits may be combined.

Experiential learning portfolios must be submitted in accordance with the guidelines outlined. Students should consult with their program advisor/evaluator prior to any portfolio submission,