Dec 05, 2025  
2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
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2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Criminal Justice Major, BA/BS

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Criminal Justice Major, BA or BS and 

Criminal Justice Online Major, BA or BS 

________________________________________ 

Students majoring in Criminal Justice (via the traditional program or the Criminal Justice Online program) may pursue either a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts degree. Language proficiency, through the completion of four language courses, is required to obtain a Bachelor of Arts. 

The major includes 39 semester hours of ‘core’ coursework which emphasizes criminological theory, applied criminological analysis, and research methodology, and 21 semester hours of ‘concentration’ coursework which develops advanced knowledge in a specialized area of the discipline. 

Students can select a concentration based on their intended career path from our three offerings:  community-based corrections, forensic science, or social justice. The practicum (or field experience) course, taken toward the end of the core curriculum and serving as one of the program’s capstone experiences, gives students an opportunity to apply their concentration knowledge in a skills-based, real-world setting.  

The following academic requirements outline key conditions for successful progression and completion of the Criminal Justice major: 

  • To successfully matriculate through the Department of Criminal Justice, students must earn a grade of “C” or better in all core and concentration courses required for the major. 

  • Exceptions to, or substitutions for, the following major requirements are considered only through a formal process initiated with departmental recommendation. 

  • All students are required to enroll in CRJU 418: Senior Seminar in Criminal Justice during their senior year. This course must be completed in-person by students enrolled in the traditional (non-online) program. 

To earn a degree in Criminal Justice, students must complete 120 hours.  Of these 120 hours, 40-41 will be General Education Requirements, 6 hours will fulfill Institutional Requirements, and 13-14 will be Free Electives:  

General Education Requirements (40-41 semester hours)

NOTE: Courses numbered “100” or less in Communication Skills or in Mathematics are developmental courses and as such are not included in the 120-credit hour graduation requirement. These courses constitute additional semester hours beyond 120-hour requirement. 

English Composition (6 semester hours)

 

Arts and Humanities (6 semeser hours) - One course in each of two disciplines

DISCIPLINE COURSES: Philosophy, Speech, Theatre, Art, Music (except workshops), Modern Languages, Interdisciplinary African-American Studies.

  • ____ ____ Arts/Humanities Electives 3 Credits
  • ____ ____ Arts/Huamnities Electives 3 Credits

Social Science and Behavioral Sciences (6 semester hours)

Criminal Justice Majors must take Sociology 101

Must include 3 semester hours of African American History and 3 Semester hours Introduction to Sociology

Natural Science (7-8 semester hours) - Two science courses, at least one of which shall be a laboratory course

DISCIPLINE COURSES: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Physical Science.  Students may not take two courses from the same area, and a Biology course must have an associated lab.

  • ____ ____ Science 4 Credits
  • ____ ____ Science 3-4 Credits

Mathematics (3 semester hours) - One course in mathematics

 

Technology (3 semester hours) - one course in technology

DISCIPLINE COURSES: Business Information systems or Computer Science
 

Free General Education Elective (9 semester hours)

(Students select three General Education courses of their choice from the University’s General Education list). 

 

  • _______ General Education 3 or 4 Credits

  • _______ General Education 3 or 4 Credits 

  • _______ General Education 3 or 4 Credits 

Institutional Requirement (6 semester hours)

 

Note:

FRSE 101: Freshman Seminar is not required for transfer students entering with 12 or more semester hours. 

Transfer students who are exempt from taking the Freshman Seminar MUST SUBSTITUTE THREE (3) OTHER SEMESTER HOURS FOR THE REQUIREMENT TO ENSURE A TOTAL OF 120 HOURS AT GRADUATION. 

Criminal Justice Major Requirements

Core major requirements (39 Semester hours)

*All Criminal Justice majors must take each of these courses: 

Note:

The following required ‘core’ courses include specific enrollment conditions and expectations that students must fulfill in order to meet program standards: 

  • SOCI 400: SOCI / CRJU Practicum - ALL students are required to gain practical experience in their respective field by taking the SOCI 400 practicum in Criminal Justice prior to graduation.   

  • Students will work closely with the SOCI 400 Internship coordinator and BSU Career Services Office to identify internship and future employment opportunities.  

  • CRJU 418: Senior Seminar - ALL students in the major must enroll in this 3 credit Seminar in Criminal Justice during their senior year.  

  • This course is an in-person requirement for all students in the traditional (non-online) Criminal Justice program. 

Criminal Justice Concentrations

All Criminal Justice majors must select one of the following concentration areas as a requirement.

Forensic Science Concentration (21 hours)

Courses for Forensic Science concentration (Student must select five mandatory courses)

Community-Based Corrections Concentration (21 hours)

Courses for Community Based Corrections Concentration (Student must select seven courses)

Social Justice Concentration (21 hours)

Courses for Social Justice Concentration (Student must select seven courses)

Free Electives:13/14 hours

There are 13/14 Free Elective credits for Criminal Justice Majors.   

  • For students pursuing the Bachelor of Arts degree, twelve of the available Free Elective hours must fulfill Foreign Language requirements: 

  • FREN 101-102 First-Year French I and II (6 Credits) and                        

  • FREN 201-202 Second-Year French I and II (6 Credits)   or   
     

  • SPAN 101-102 First-Year Spanish I and II  (6 Credits) and 

  • SPAN 201-202 Second-Year Spanish I and II (6 Credits)  or    
                     

  • FREN 101-102 First-Year French I and II (6 Credits) and                        

  • SPAN 101-102 First-Year Spanish I and II  (6 Credits). 

 

  • Transfers students must take an additional 3 credits of Free Electives if they are exempt from the Freshman Seminar course. 

  • *There are two strongly recommended substitutions for the FRSE 101: Freshman Seminar course are: 

  • ENGL 361: Technical and Report Writing or  

  • SOCI 201: Writing for the Social Sciences. 

Sample Program

 

Year One

Semester One

Total: 15

 

Semester Two

Total: 16

 

Year Two

Semester One

Total: 15

 

Semester Two

Total: 15

 

Year Three

Semester One

Total: 15

 

Semester Two

Total: 15

 

Year Four

Semester One

Total: 15

 

Semester Two

Total: 15

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