Criminal Justice

Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice Program Overview The Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice provides students with knowledge about the nature and causes of crime and delinquency, law and the legal system for juveniles and adults in American society, and the decision processes of criminal justice agencies. A Criminal Justice major is broadly educated within a general education framework in the liberal arts and also provided with courses that directly apply to careers within the criminal and juvenile justice systems and the study of law. The baccalaureate degree in Criminal Justice provides the student with a suitable foundation for graduate study in criminal justice, criminology, public administration, and other graduate school programs. Admission Requirements For admission to this program, the student must meet the general admission requirements of the University. The minimum educational program, education background, and quality required are listed in the Admissions section of the University Catalog. In some instances, students may be admitted without having completed general education requirements. In such cases, those courses must be completed early in the junior year. If the student’s deficiencies are many, they may be required to complete additional courses to satisfy degree requirements. Degree Requirements The Criminal Justice curriculum leads to a bachelor of arts degree and requires a minimum of 120 credits. To earn the degree, students must complete all of the degree requirements of the University described in the Degree Requirements section of the University Catalog. The program for Criminal Justice consists of 27-30 credits of 3000/4000-level coursework. Students may apply CCJ 2002 (Law, Crime, and the Criminal Justice System) toward their 30 degree credits. Furthermore, students must successfully complete the statistics prerequisite (STA 2023) to be certified as completing the requirements for the Criminal Justice major. The remaining 30 credits may be taken from electives throughout the various colleges in the University. No more than 42 credits in the major may be counted toward the degree. Additionally, major courses must be completed with a grade of “C” or better. A grade of “C-“ or lower in major core courses does not satisfy any major requirement and does not count toward the 120 credits required for the degree. Elective courses in the major must be completed with a grade of “C-“ or better. A grade of D+ or lower in general elective courses does not satisfy any graduation requirement and will not count toward the 120 credits required for a degree. Finally, students must maintain a “C” average in all courses applied to the major. To earn a bachelor of arts degree from a state university in Florida, students must demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language at the college level. Earning college credit at the Language II level (courses such as FRE 1121 or SPN 1121) satisfies this mandate. Students meeting the FAU foreign language admission requirement with two years of high school language have not satisfied the graduation requirement. Students must demonstrate additional proficiency either by earning Language II-level college credit or by satisfying the requirement through other means, such as the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exam. Jumpstart Your Master’s Degree During Your Senior Year With our Master of Science in Criminology and Criminal Justice (MSCCJ) Combined Degree Program, you can complete up to 12 master’s level credits during your senior year at FAU. That’s more than a third of the total hours you need to earn your MSCCJ. See full details and how to apply. For any questions regarding the Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice degree program, please contact the College Advising Center at 561-297-2316. To make an appointment with your advisor, please log on to the Success Network/Starfish.