The University of Maryland, College Park's (UMD) Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJS) is a national and international leader in research and criminal justice education. The CCJS department offers a Bachelor of Arts degree. Students enrolled in the CCJS major are expected to meet the following learning outcomes:
- Students will demonstrate understanding of the three pillars of our criminal justice system - courts, policing, and corrections
- Students will demonstrate understanding of the major theories that are used to explain criminal behavior
- Students will demonstrate understanding of how crime and criminal justice are products of political, economic, social structures and examine how they intersect with systems of oppression
- Students will demonstrate competency in the ability to read, interpret, and synthesize (in writing) important research related to criminological theory and the criminal justice system
- Students will demonstrate understanding of the research methods used in the study of criminology and criminal justice
- Students will demonstrate competency in applying quantitative skills to criminological concepts
The major requirements for the degree are listed below. The CCJS major is comprised of 36 credit hours of coursework in the CCJS department and either MATH 107 or STAT 100. A calculus class (MATH 120, 136, or 140) with a grade of C- or higher may be substituted for MATH 107 or STAT 100. The requirements below are in effect for all students who matriculated into the UM system Fall 2015 or later and for students who are currently changing their major to CCJS.
Required CCJS Courses:
CCJS 100 - Introduction to Criminal Justice
CCJS 105 - Introduction to Criminology
CCJS 200* - Statistics for Criminology & Criminal Justice
CCJS 230 - Criminal Law in Action
CCJS 300 - Criminological and Criminal Justice Research Methods
*Students may substitute equivalent advanced statistics course (e.g. PSYC 200, BMGT 230, SOCY 201, ECON 230)
2 CCJS Criminal Justice Courses
(Select two from the following three classes)
CCJS 340 – Policing
CCJS 345– Courts and Sentencing
CCJS 342– Corrections
1 CCJS Criminology/Theory Course
(Select one from the following three classes)
CCJS 450 – Advanced Juvenile Delinquency
CCJS 451 - Crime and Delinquency Prevention
CCJS 454 - Contemporary Criminological Theory
4 CCJS Courses of Choice
Two CCJS Courses of Choice must be at the 400 level
(Completed using one or a combination of the followings ways)
- Complete additional CCJS courses that are not required (i.e., CCJS 325, 360, 418)
- Complete 1 Independent Study (CCJS 399) for credit (max 3 credits)
- Complete 1 Internship (CCJS 359) for credit (max 3 credits)
- Students must have a total of 12 credits of CCJS Course of Choice classes
- Students cannot overlap (double count) courses fulfilling CCJS major requirements with the CCJS Courses of Choice requirement (e.g. CCJS451 cannot fulfill both the Criminology requirement and the 400-level CCJS Course of Choice requirement)
- CCJS 386 and CCJS 332 will not fulfill CCJS Course of Choice requirements
Total CCJS Credits: 36 Credits
Additionally students must complete one of the following math courses for the CCJS LEP gateway requirements:
Choose one of the following:
MATH 107 - Introduction to Math Modeling and Probability
STAT 100 - Elementary Statistics and Probability
*A calculus class, MATH 120, 136, or 140, with a grade of C- or higher may be substituted
Total Credits for the CCJS Major: 39 Credits
Bachelor of Arts - Gen Ed Major Card
Please keep the following information in mind:
- No grade lower than a C- may be used toward the major
- Students must achieve a combined grade point average of a 2.0 in the CCJS major
