Welcome
to the Department of Criminal Justice Administration Website! The criminal justice major
was established at BSU
over 30 years ago, and is one of the largest undergraduate programs in the Northwest United States.
Currently, we offer an Associate of Arts degree, a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor
of Science degree, and a Master of Arts degree in Criminal Justice Administration.
For the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degrees, students are
required to take courses providing a comprehensive overview of
the Criminal Justice system. They select an emphasis area in Law Enforcement,
Courts/Law, Corrections/ Counseling, or Research based on their career or graduate school
interests. Although the program is academic in focus, students complete a 300 hour
Field Practicum in an agency setting to gain practical knowledge and theoretical insights
into the criminal justice career of their choice. Additional internship experiences are
available to students based on their interests.
The Master of Arts
degree in Criminal Justice Administration is designed to provide a foundation in applied
research and theory. We offer seminars in these areas and in substantive areas of
criminal justice activity, and focused scholarship on issues of importance in Idaho.
Additionally, both undergraduate and graduate students may choose to
become members of one or all of the student organizations in Criminal Justice (the Criminal Justice Association,
Lambda Alpha Epsilon, or Alpha Phi Sigma). The Criminal
Justice Association is a club open to all those interested in criminal justice, while
Alpha Phi Sigma is the National Criminal Justice Honor Society and carries a GPA
requirement for membership. Both organizations work together on service and social
projects, and are very active on campus and in the community.
The faculty and students of the Department of Criminal Justice
Administration also are active in the Academy of Criminal
Justice Sciences (ACJS), the flagship, national criminal justice organization which
meets yearly in locations across the country. Faculty and students also are active
in the Western and Pacific Association of Criminal Justice Educators, a regional affiliate
of ACJS, which meets yearly in the Western United States.
