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The Criminal Justice and Criminology Department offers students the opportunity to analyze and interpret systems of social control that are applied through the criminal justice system and throughout society. The major develops skills in critical thinking, communication and conducting and evaluating research to promote evidence-based decision-making. Inclusive learning environments require students to become knowledgeable and culturally competent individuals. As such the major emphasizes community engagement and service to prepare students for the jobs and leadership opportunities that will allow them to engage with the broader community and for their role as future change agents.
Quick facts
Official name
Bachelor of arts in criminal justice and criminologyCampus
Program type
Bachelor's degreeAcademic home
School of Humanities and Social Sciences | Department of Criminal Justice and CriminologyDelivery mode
100% onlineAccreditation
Higher Learning CommissionCredit hours
120Estimated cost
$51,252.00Transfer credit hours
60Transfer estimated cost
$25,626.00*This cost is for illustrative purposes only. Your hours and costs will differ, depending on your transfer hours, your course choices and your academic progress. See more about tuition and financial aid.
Career prospects
CJC students find employment in many fields within the criminal justice system and beyond. From careers in law enforcement, the courts, or corrections, to those in advocacy, counseling, victim services and community organizing, CJC graduates create their own path toward justice. In addition to preparing graduates for employment after graduation, a CJC degree is fantastic preparation for continued education in graduate school or law school.
Program structure
Delivery of this program is 100% online: no campus visits are required. Courses are semester-based. Students typically take five classes each semester and finish in four years.
Course work includes
- Structure and functioning of the criminal justice system
- Theories of crime and deviance
- Understanding and conducting research on crime and justice
- Trauma, crisis intervention, and advocacy
- Critical analysis of race, class and gender in the criminal justice system
Delivery
100% onlineCalendar system
SemesterTypical program length
4 yearsTypical course load
5 courses per semesterAccreditation
The University of Missouri-Kansas City is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, one of six regional institutional accreditors in the United States.
Faculty spotlight
Dr. Sexton's interests lie at the intersection of criminology and sociolegal studies, with a specific focus on prisons, punishment and the lived experience of penal sanctions. Her research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Justice, the University of Missouri Research Board and the Fletcher Jones Foundation. She recently co-authored a book with Dr. Kristi Holsinger, entitled Toward Justice: Broadening the Study of Criminal Justice, which is designed as a reader for CJC Capstone courses. Toward Justice encourages students to engage critically with conceptions of justice that go beyond the criminal justice system, in order to cultivate a more thorough understanding of the system as it operates on the ground in the imperfect world—where people aren’t always rational actors, where individual cases are linked to larger social problems, and where justice can sometimes slip through the cracks.