Program Description

The graduate program in Criminal Justice focuses on theoretical and applied issues in law enforcement, corrections, administration, and public law. Its goal is to further critical thinking about significant issues in crime and criminal justice. All program courses are taught by full-time expert professors, many with experience in the field.

Program Objectives

The primary purpose of this Master’s Degree program is to further develop the following:

• Theoretical thinking- the ability to interpret problems and solutions using comprehensive theoretical knowledge
• Productive thinking-analysis and application of management and administrative techniques related to criminal justice
• Analytical thinking-the ability to critically think in terms of research and evaluation.
• Practical thinking- to consider what should be done and to synthesize ideas to generate different solutions to criminal justice issues.
• Comprehension- the ability to understand and evaluate the interrelationship of research, ideas, and theories presented throughout their coursework and to apply their knowledge to unique situations and settings.

Graduate students are required to complete 33 graduate credit hours and a comprehensive examination, or 30 credits and a capstone, or 27 graduate credit hours and a six-hour thesis. For all three tracks, there are four required courses: Criminological Theory I , Research Methods , Administrative Theory of Criminal Justice , and Statistics . Each student is assigned an advisor who will assist in selecting courses and, if undertaking a thesis, a thesis advisor. Thesis advisors are members of the graduate faculty.

Admissions Requirements

In order to be considered for admission to the program, a complete application must be presented for review, including:

• Official transcripts indicating a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
• Bachelor’s degree with a major or minor in any of the social sciences with a 2.7 GPA or a 3.0 for the last two years of undergraduate studies, class ranking will also be considered;
• Three professional or academic letters of reference;
• While not required, GRE or MAT scores can strengthen a candidate’s application.
• A narrative statement about your professional goals, academic experience, factors which support your future endeavors.

Criminal Justice 4+1

Westfield State University offers our undergraduate criminal justice students an accelerated pathway to complete their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in just 5 years. These students will have the opportunity to enroll in graduate-level criminal justice courses in their senior year and 6-credits will count towards both the bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal justice. This 4+1 program allows students enrolled in this option to obtain their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal justice in less time than it would be to take them separately.

Program Requirements