The doctoral program in criminology and justice policy at the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northeastern University seeks to prepare students for professional and research careers in criminal justice, criminology, and related fields by applying multidisciplinary and comparative social science to understand, predict, and explain crime and contribute to the development of public policy within urban communities. Using an active-learning approach, the school seeks to develop its students intellectually and ethically, while providing them with a keen appreciation for the complexities of crime and public and private efforts to make communities safer and to ensure justice.
The program is full time and is small and student centered. Students may enter the program with either a bachelor's degree or a master's degree. It is expected that students will be able to complete the program in four to five years, and students entering with a master's degree will be able to complete the program in three to five years.
Year one in the doctoral program offers students an opportunity to obtain a broad foundational knowledge in the discipline: one semester on theories of criminal justice process, two semesters of criminological theory, two semesters of statistics, and one semester of advanced research methods. To ensure that all students have mastered the foundational material emphasized across the required courses for the PhD program and can successfully integrate theory, research, and policy, all PhD students take a “foundations” qualifying examination at the end of their first year in the doctoral program.
After demonstrating mastery of the foundational knowledge in year one, students devote themselves to a more specific area of research in years two and three. Students demonstrate this commitment through the second and third qualifying examinations: an area exam and a publishable paper.
Following successful completion of the three qualifying examinations, and required and elective course work, the students proceed to a formal dissertation proposal defense.
Doctoral Degree Candidacy
A student achieves candidacy when they have successfully completed all course work (54 semester hours for students entering with a bachelor's degree or 42 semester hours for students entering with advanced standing), passed all three qualifying examinations, and deposited the final version of their dissertation proposal (approved by their full committee) with the school’s graduate program office. Candidacy is certified, in writing, by the college.
Bachelor's Degree Entrance
Complete all courses and requirements listed below unless otherwise indicated.
Milestones
Annual review
Three qualifying examinations—foundations exam, area exam, and publishable paper
Dissertation committee
Dissertation proposal
PhD candidacy
Dissertation defense
Core Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Pro-Seminar | ||
| CRIM 7001 | PhD Pro-Seminar in Criminology and Justice Policy 1 | 0 |
| CRIM 7002 | PhD Pro-Seminar in Criminology and Justice Policy 2 | 0 |
| Criminal Justice Process | ||
| CRIM 7203 | Theories of Criminal Justice Process | 4 |
| Criminological Theory | ||
| CRIM 7710 | Criminology and Public Policy 1 | 4 |
| CRIM 7711 | Criminology and Public Policy 2 | 4 |
| Analysis & Methods | ||
| CRIM 7713 | Advanced Research and Evaluation Methods | 4 |
| INSH 7400 | Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| INSH 7500 | Advanced Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| Practicum | ||
| CRIM 7706 | Practicum in Writing and Publishing | 2 |
| CRIM 7700 | Practicum in Teaching | 0 |
Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete 28 semester hours in the following ranges. Courses in additional disciplines with PhD program director approval. | 28 | |
CRIM 6000 to CRIM 7999 | ||
INSH 6000 to INSH 7999 | ||
POLS 6000 to POLS 7999 | ||
PPUA 6000 to PPUA 7999 | ||
SOCL 6000 to SOCL 7999 | ||
Dissertation
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Exam Preparation | ||
| Students register for CRIM 8960 when they have completed required coursework but are still taking qualifying exams, and for CRIM 8986 when they have passed qualifying exams and are working on proposals. | ||
| Exam Preparation—Doctoral | ||
| Research | ||
| Dissertation | ||
| Dissertation Term 1 | ||
| Dissertation Term 2 | ||
| Dissertation Continuation | ||
| Following completion of CRIM 9990 and CRIM 9991, registration in the following class is required in each subsequent semester (including the summer if the dissertation is submitted in summer) until the dissertation is completed: | ||
| Dissertation Continuation | ||
Program Credit/GPA Requirements
54 total semester hours required
Minimum 3.500 GPA required
Advanced Degree Entrance
Complete all courses and requirements listed below unless otherwise indicated.
Milestones
Annual review
Three qualifying examinations—foundations exam, area exam, and publishable paper
Dissertation committee
Dissertation proposal
Candidacy achieved
Dissertation defense
Core Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Pro-Seminar | ||
| CRIM 7001 | PhD Pro-Seminar in Criminology and Justice Policy 1 | 0 |
| CRIM 7002 | PhD Pro-Seminar in Criminology and Justice Policy 2 | 0 |
| Criminal Justice Process | ||
| CRIM 7203 | Theories of Criminal Justice Process | 4 |
| Criminological Theory | ||
| CRIM 7710 | Criminology and Public Policy 1 | 4 |
| CRIM 7711 | Criminology and Public Policy 2 | 4 |
| Analysis & Methods | ||
| CRIM 7713 | Advanced Research and Evaluation Methods | 4 |
| INSH 7400 | Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| INSH 7500 | Advanced Quantitative Analysis | 4 |
| Practicum | ||
| CRIM 7706 | Practicum in Writing and Publishing | 2 |
| CRIM 7700 | Practicum in Teaching | 0 |
Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete 16 semester hours in the following range. | 16 | |
CRIM 6000 to CRIM 7999 | ||
INSH 6000 to INSH 7999 | ||
POLS 6000 to POLS 7999 | ||
PPUA 6000 to PPUA 7999 | ||
SOCL 6000 to SOCL 7999 | ||
Dissertation
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Exam Preparation | ||
| Students register for CRIM 8960 when they have completed required coursework but are still taking qualifying exams, and for CRIM 8986 when they have passed qualifying exams and are working on proposals. | ||
| Exam Preparation—Doctoral | ||
| Research (Exam Preparation) | ||
| Dissertation | ||
| Dissertation Term 1 | ||
| Dissertation Term 2 | ||
| Dissertation Continuation | ||
| Following completion of CRIM 9990 and CRIM 9991, registration in the following class is required in each semester (including the summer if the dissertation is submitted in summer) until the dissertation is completed: | ||
| Dissertation Continuation | ||
Program Credit/GPA Requirements
42 total semester hours required
Minimum 3.500 GPA required