The Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice degree is designed 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. Using an experiential learning approach, the criminal justice major 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 ensure justice.
Complete all courses listed below unless otherwise indicated. Also complete any corequisite labs, recitations, clinicals, or tools courses where specified and complete any additional courses needed beyond specific college and major requirements to satisfy graduation credit requirements.
University-Wide Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the University-Wide Requirements.
NUpath Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the NUpath Requirements.
Fundamentals
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to College | ||
| CRIM 1000 | Criminal Justice at Northeastern | 1 |
| Introduction to Crime, Law, and the Justice System | ||
What do we know about crime and justice? In these three courses successful students will develop a foundational understanding of three related phenomena: why crime exists, how our criminal justice system responds to crime, and the constitutional and legal oversight of this process. | ||
| CRIM 1100 | Introduction to Criminal Justice | 4 |
| CRIM 1110 | Criminal Due Process | 4 |
| CRIM 1120 | Criminology | 4 |
| Current Crime and Justice Issues | ||
These courses introduce students to topical issues related to crime and justice. | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| The Death Penalty | ||
| Human Trafficking | ||
| Corruption, Integrity, and Accountability | ||
| Crime, Media, and Politics | ||
| Digital Skills | ||
Successful students develop digital skills and master digital tools useful for careers related to crime and justice. Students choose one of two courses (each has a required lab). The computer science course introduces students to spreadsheets and databases. The data science course introduces students to programming with data. | ||
| Complete one of the following (and the appropriate lab): | 4 or 5 | |
| Computer Science and Its Applications and Lab for CS 1100 | ||
| Programming with Data and Data Science Programming Practicum (Social Science Practicum section) | ||
Criminal Justice Institutions and Systems
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding and Experiencing Criminal Justice Institutions and Systems | ||
How does justice work and for whom? These courses introduce students to the systems and institutions tasked with providing justice. Each includes experiential learning components in cooperation with local criminal justice institutions. | ||
| Complete two of the following: | 8 | |
| Courts: The Third Branch of Government | ||
| Youth Crime and Justice | ||
| Punishment in the Age of Mass Incarceration | ||
| Corporate Security: Securing the Private Sector | ||
| Policing a Democratic Society | ||
| Preparing for Co-op | ||
| EESH 2000 | Professional Development for Co-op | 1 |
Crime Problems and Justice System Challenges
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Creating Knowledge about Crime and Justice | ||
How do we know what we know about crime and justice—and how do we develop new knowledge? Harnessing data to learn about issues, identify solutions, and advocate for change. | ||
| CRIM 3600 | Criminal Justice Research Methods | 4 |
| CRIM 3700 | Analyzing and Using Data on Crime and Justice | 4 |
| Crime Problems | ||
The following courses offer students a deeper look at a range of crime problems. | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Criminal Violence | ||
| Global Criminology | ||
| Psychology of Crime | ||
| Organized Crime | ||
| Addiction and Recovery | ||
| Political Crime and Terrorism | ||
| Corporate and White-Collar Crime | ||
| Systemic Issues | ||
A consideration of systemic issues facing the criminal justice system. | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Gender, Crime, and Justice | ||
| Race, Crime, and Justice | ||
| Returning from Co-op | ||
Allows students the opportunity to reflect on their co-op experience and its connection to their ongoing coursework and future plans: | ||
| CRIM 3000 | Co-op Integration Seminar 2 (required after first co-op) | 1 |
Solutions and Reform
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Solutions and Reform | ||
How do we reinvent criminal justice institutions and their practice? The capstone experience is project-based and solution-oriented, drawing on knowledge gained in the classroom and through co-op and other experiences. | ||
| CRIM 4949 | Senior Capstone Seminar | 4 |
| Student-Generated Knowledge | ||
Opportunities for student research (optional): | ||
| Research | ||
| Junior/Senior Honors Project 1 (may serve as a substitute for the "Solutions and Reform" requirement) | ||
| Junior/Senior Honors Project 2 | ||
| Returning from Co-op | ||
Allows students the opportunity to reflect on their co-op experience and its connection to their ongoing coursework and future plans: | ||
| CRIM 4000 | Co-op Integration Seminar 3 | 1 |
| Criminal Justice Electives | ||
Rounding out knowledge of crime and justice. | ||
| Complete four additional criminal justice electives. Three must be from the 3000, 4000 or 5000-level. | 16 | |
Criminal Justice Sequence Requirements
Complete three courses from the same department, two of which must be numbered 2000 or above, or complete a minor.
Criminal Justice Credit Requirement
Complete 63 credit hours in the major.
Experiential Liberal Arts
All undergraduate students in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities are required to complete the Experiential Liberal Arts Requirement.
Program Requirement
128 total semester hours required
Four Years, One Co-op
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| CRIM 1000 | 1 | CRIM 1110 | 4 | Elective | 4 | Vacation | |
| CRIM 1100 | 4 | CRIM 1120 | 4 | ||||
| Current crime and justice issues course | 4 | Digital skills course and lab | 5 | ||||
| ENGW 1111 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| 17 | 17 | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| Systems and institutions course | 4 | Systems and institutions course | 4 | Elective | 4 | Vacation | 0 |
| CRIM elective | 4 | CRIM 3600 | 4 | ||||
| Sequence elective | 4 | CRIM elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 16 | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| CRIM 3700 | 4 | Co-op | 0 | Co-op | 0 | Elective | 4 |
| Crime problems elective | 4 | ||||||
| Systemic issues elective | 4 | ||||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| EESH 2000 | 1 | ||||||
| 17 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| CRIM elective | 4 | Solutions and reform course | 4 | ||||
| Sequence elective | 4 | CRIM elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Sequence elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| CRIM 3000 | 1 | ||||||
| 17 | 16 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 128 | |||||||
Four Years, Two Co-ops
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| CRIM 1000 | 1 | CRIM 1110 | 4 | Sequence elective | 4 | Elective | 4 |
| CRIM 1100 | 4 | CRIM 1120 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||
| Current crime and justice issues course | 4 | Digital skills course and lab | 4 | ||||
| ENGW 1111 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| 17 | 16 | 8 | 4 | ||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| Systems and institutions course | 4 | Systems and institutions course | 4 | Elective | 4 | Co-op | |
| CRIM elective | 4 | CRIM 3600 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||
| Sequence elective | 4 | CRIM elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| EESH 2000 | 1 | ||||||
| 16 | 17 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| Co-op | CRIM 3700 | 4 | CRIM elective | 4 | |||
| Crime problems elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| Systemic issues elective | 4 | ||||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| CRIM 4000 | 1 | ||||||
| 0 | 17 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| Solutions and reform course | 4 | ||||||
| CRIM elective | 4 | ||||||
| Sequence elective | 4 | ||||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| CRIM 4000 | 1 | ||||||
| 0 | 17 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 128 | |||||||