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In the criminal justice system, expertise is crucial for those who want to excel professionally and make a meaningful impact on their community.
By specializing in a particular area, you can gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and issues faced and become a valuable asset to your organization. To achieve this level of expertise, you need to choose a master’s program that allows you to tailor your education to meet your specific career goals.
At UC Online, we’re proud to offer a Master of Science in Criminal Justice program with three concentration areas and certifications that can be earned alongside your degree without the additional investment of time or money. Concentrations/certifications are selected at the beginning of the program to help guide and focus your studies in an area of criminal justice that is most relevant to you. This structure allows you to optimize your time in the program and graduate with the specific skills you need to advance in your chosen area.
Master of Science in Criminal Justice
The Master of Science in Criminal Justice program at UC Online is ranked 9th in the country for 2023, as per the U.S. News & World Report.
Designed for professionals looking to take their criminal justice careers to the next level, this program provides hands-on learning, best practices and theoretical frameworks to apply to real-world situations — drawing insights from sociology, criminology, psychology and law. Plus, three focused graduate certifications allow you to tailor your education to your area of expertise, making you stand out in an increasingly competitive job market.
Graduate Certificate in Analysis of Criminal Behavior
The Graduate Certificate in Analysis of Criminal Behavior aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the origins and patterns of criminal behavior at an individual level, with particular emphasis on modern-day issues like white-collar crime and cybercrime.
By the end of this program, you’ll have gained conceptual knowledge and analytical abilities relevant to identifying patterns of individual criminal behavior and responding to them effectively.
Upon graduation, students can:
- Identify and explain major individual and aggregate-level criminological theories.
- Identify and critically analyze the respective strengths and weaknesses of major criminological theories.
- Identify the distinguishing characteristics of certain crime types (cybercrime, white collar crime), offenders (serious and life-course-persistent offenders) and victims.
- Analyze data on different types of criminal offending and make cogent presentations of those analyses.
- Describe and evaluate efforts to prevent various types of criminal offending.
Graduate Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention
The Graduate Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention provides a comprehensive understanding of the complexities and fundamentals of law enforcement and crime prevention.
With evidence-based policing infused into the curriculum, you’ll have the opportunity to examine various crime prevention and policing strategies, assessing their effectiveness and limitations.
Upon graduation, students can:
- Articulate the “mechanics” and theory underlying the implementation of various crime prevention and policing strategies.
- Critically analyze the evidence regarding the effectiveness and/or limitations of various crime prevention and policing strategies.
- Organize and manage various types of crime data.
- Perform analyses to identify important patterns in crime data.
- Identify interventions that have a reasonable chance of reducing crime.
- Assess the impact of crime reduction strategies.
Graduate Certificate in Correctional Rehabilitation
The Graduate Certificate in Correctional Rehabilitation is ideal for individuals pursuing careers in corrections who want to positively change the lives of convicted men, women, and adjudicated juveniles.
Offering a more comprehensive understanding of the risk, need and responsivity model of offender treatment, it covers the theoretical and philosophical frameworks of corrections, the practice of community corrections, and the latest developments in offender rehabilitation.
Upon graduation, students can:
- Describe the nature of the rehabilitative ideal and how it shaped American corrections.
- Analyze the research evidence on competing theories of corrections and individual treatment of offenders.
- Apply methods for studying and evaluating alternatives to incarceration.
- Identify and analyze components of effective correctional treatments, policies, and strategies.
- Apply various approaches to correctional assessment and understand how to implement the principles of effective intervention.
Take Your Career to New Heights at UC Online
The University of Cincinnati distinguishes itself by presenting a comprehensive Master of Science in Criminal Justice program, offering three concentration areas and the added advantage of pursuing certifications alongside your degree.
This approach ensures that you maximize your time within the program, enabling you to graduate with a specialized skill set perfectly aligned with your career goals.
Are you ready to learn more? Explore our online program to discover how you can customize your UC Online degree to fit your future. Or take the first step in advancing your career by speaking to an Enrollment Services Advisor today.