Criminal Justice - AS
Criminal Justice ASHEGIS Code 5505
Career Opportunities
Criminal Justice graduates earn top dollar in secure positions. JCC's criminal justice degree leads to professional employment as a police investigator, corrections officer, crime lab technician, probation officer, or dozens of other jobs. Employers at the local, state, and federal level range from Sheriff's Departments and State Police to Military Police, Border Patrol, FBI, and Secret Service. Specialties include homicide, arson, cyber-crime, drug enforcement, K-9 and SWAT teams.
The Program
Whether individuals are just finishing high school or 20-year law enforcement veterans, JCC's criminal justice degree challenges them to sharpen essential skills and make informed judgments. In today's fast-paced world, professionals must communicate clearly, analyze situations, and apply proven tactics. Our criminal justice degree includes solid grounding in criminal evidence, criminal administrative procedures, technical writing, psychology, sociology, and American government. Students also choose between criminology and juvenile delinquency while completing requirements in laboratory science and mathematics. There are plenty of electives to choose from including community corrections, sex-crime investigations, interviews/interrogations, and hundreds of classes in other subject areas.
Approximately 60% of our criminal justice graduates choose to continue their education. Popular transfer institutions include SUNY Oswego, Canton College of Technology, SUNY Potsdam, Syracuse University, Le Moyne College, Rochester Institute of Technology, and other institutions across the United States.
The field of Criminal Justice is widely varied, containing many diverse job descriptions and opportunities. Many skills will be obtained in this course of study, which are applicable to both transfer students and those seeking employment immediately upon graduation. Students graduating from the Criminal Justice programs with either an AS degree or a certificate will be able to achieve the following outcomes:
- Prepare written material in a criminal justice setting;
- Read, understand and interpret written information;
- Apply written information in the form of laws, policies, procedures, directives, etc., to situations that are similar to experiences faced in the criminal justice system;
- Communicate effectively; and
- Understand the organizational structure of criminal justice agencies.
Assessment of competence in these areas will be measured through the use of examination questions.
Degree Requirements
All degree requirements and courses listed are effective Fall of 2010 and are subject to change.
| Credit Hours | |
|---|---|
| English (6 Credit Hours): | |
| ENG 101: Research and Composition | 3 |
| ENG 218: Technical & Professional Writing | 3 |
| Humanities (3 Credit Hours): | |
| STA Elective or Foreign Language Elective |
3 |
| Social Science (15 Credit Hours): | |
| SOC 144: Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| PSY 133: Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| POL 121: Introduction to American Government or POL 122: State and Local Government |
3 |
| SOC 244: Social Problems or SOC 245: Criminology or SOC 246: Juvenile Delinquency |
3 |
| PSY 235: Abnormal Psychology | 3 |
| Mathematics and Sciences (10–11 Credit Hours): | |
| MTH 144: Elementary Statistics or any higher Mathematics course (except MTH 148 or MTH 149) | 3 |
| Lab Science Elective | 4 |
| Lab Science Elective or Mathematics Elective |
3–4 |
| Criminal Justice (21 Credit Hours): | |
| CRJ 101: Introduction to Criminal Justice | 3 |
| CRJ 102: Criminal Administrative Procedures | 3 |
| CRJ 110: Criminal Evidence | 3 |
| Criminal Justice Electives | 12 |
| Liberal Arts Elective | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 |
| Physical Education | 2 |
| TOTAL | 63–64 |
The curricula offered by the College require certain Liberal Arts core courses in the area of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Science or Mathematics. The following indicates areas of study acceptable in meeting these requirements.
| Humanities | American Sign Language, Art, English, Journalism, Modern Languages, Music, Philosophy, Speech, and Theater Arts |
|---|---|
| Social Sciences | Anthropology, Economics, Geography, History, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology |
| Science and Mathematics | Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Physics, Science, and Mathematics |
Transfer Opportunities
As a graduate of Jefferson, you will have many transfer opportunities to consider and be able to choose from a wide variety of upper division Colleges and Universities to pursue your baccalaureate degree. Jefferson has partnered with some selected College and Universities to develop agreements that help students transfer smoothly.
For More Information
For further information regarding this program, please contact any of the following faculty:
Cynthia Shelmidine, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
315-786-2441 cshelmidine@sunyjefferson.edu
Paul Alteri, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
315-786-2442 palteri@sunyjefferson.edu
For application and admissions information please contact:
admissions@sunyjefferson.edu
Admissions Office 315-786-2277 (or Toll Free 1-888-435-6522. Ask for Admissions.)
Jefferson Community College
1220 Coffeen St.
Watertown, NY 13601
www.sunyjefferson.edu
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