Professor
Geoffrey P. Alpert, Ph.D., Washington State University, 1975
Michael Smith, Ph.D., Arizona State University, 1996, J.D., University of South Carolina, 1993

Associate Professors
John D. Burrow, Ph.D., Michigan State University, 1998, J.D., University of Wisconsin, 2001
Barbara A. Koons-Witt, Ph.D., Michigan State University, 2000, Graduate Director

Assistant Professors
Abigail Fagan, Ph.D., University of Colorado, 2001
Robert Kaminski, Ph.D., State University of New York at Albany, 2002
Jeffrey Rojek, Ph.D., University of Missouri-St. Louis, 2005
Eric L. Sevigny, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, 2006
Hayden P. Smith, Ph.D., University of Central Florida, 2007
Benjamin Steiner, Ph.D., University of Cincinnati, 2008
Emily Wright, Ph.D., University of Cincinnati, 2008

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Overview

The Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice offers programs leading to the M.A. degree with a major in Criminology and Criminal Justice and the Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice. Faculty research and teaching interests span a wide variety of crime- and criminal justice-related topics, including policing, courts, corrections, law and policy, macro- and microlevel criminological theory, sentencing, victimization, and program evaluation. Graduates from these programs are well-prepared to enter teaching, research, or policy-making positions in the criminal justice system.

Admission

Applicants must possess a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university. An undergraduate major in criminology, criminal justice, or a related social science is desirable. In addition to meeting all admission requirements of the University's Graduate School, applicants must submit scores obtained on the Graduate Record Examination (general test only), letters of academic reference, and a written statement outlining academic and/or professional objectives.

Admission to each program is competitive and is based primarily upon the following criteria: 1) undergraduate and graduate (if applicable) academic performance (expected minimum GPA of 3.00 on a 4.00 scale), 2) GRE scores (expected minimum score of 1000 points on the quantitative and verbal sections of the general test), 3) the strength of recommendation letters (two letters for admission to the M.A. program and three letters for admission to the Ph.D. program), and 4) the department graduate committee's assessment of students' interests and objectives. Criteria 1 and 2 should be viewed as general guidelines and not absolute requirements for admission to the program.

Degree Requirements and Regulations

Requirements for the M.A. degree in criminology and criminal justice include:

1. Core Courses: Fifteen hours of core courses, each of which must be completed with a grade of B or better: CRJU 701, 702, 703, 705, and 741.
2. Electives: 9 hours of courses with no more than two courses (6 credit hours) below the 700 level and no more than two courses outside the department.
3. Comprehensive Examination: Each student must successfully complete the general M.A. comprehensive examination, which will test students' knowledge of major philosophical, scientific, theoretical, and policy issues related to criminology and criminal justice. Students who fail the exam will be permitted to retake it one time.
4. Thesis: students must complete a 6-credit-hour thesis. Successful completion of the thesis will require an oral defense before the student's thesis committee.
5. Program Progress: Students who accumulate more than 6 hours of graduate credit below the grade of B will not be permitted to continue the program. No course may be repeated more than one time.
6. Audited Courses: Core courses may not be audited. Other courses may be audited, but students must remember that audited courses cannot be repeated for credit.
7. Transfer Credits: Students may transfer up to 6 credit hours from other programs and/or institutions provided they meet departmental requirements. Transfer credits may not be applied to core courses.

Requirements for the Ph.D. degree in criminology and criminal justice include:

Students Admitted with Master's (M.A./M.S.) or Law Degrees

1. Core Courses: 15 hours of core courses, all of which must be completed with a grade of B or better: CRJU 706, CRJU 810, CRJU 814, CRJU 821, and either CRJU 816 or CRJU 817. With approval of the graduate director, substantially equivalent courses from outside the department may be substituted for CRJU 706, CRJU 816, and/or CRJU 817.

2. Electives: 9 hours of courses, all of which must be at the 700 level or above. At least one, but no more than two, of these courses should be taken from outside the department.

3. Qualifying Examination: All students admitted to the Ph.D. program in criminology and criminal justice must successfully complete a qualifying examination prior to formal admission to candidacy.

4. Comprehensive Examination: Each student must successfully complete both a written and an oral Ph.D. comprehensive examination after completing all required course work. Students will be examined on their knowledge of research methods and design, data analysis, law and policy issues related to criminology and criminal justice, and their understanding of important issues related to criminological theory. If a student fails the Ph.D. comprehensive examination, the student will be permitted to retake the exam one time.

5. Dissertation Preparation and Defense: 12 hours of dissertation credit must be successfully completed to earn the Ph.D. degree. The dissertation is an original research project that advances scientific knowledge in the student's chosen area of interest. The dissertation must be orally defended by the student before the student's dissertation examining committee. The oral defense before the examining committee cannot take place until after the successful completion of the comprehensive examination.

6. Foreign Language: The foreign language requirement established by The Graduate School can be satisfied either by passing a reading proficiency examination in one of the foreign language areas or by completing the research methods sequence (CRJU 706, CRJU 814, and CRJU 816 or CRJU 817) with a grade of B or higher in each course. English is accepted as satisfying this requirement for those students whose native language is not English.

7. Residency Requirement: Doctoral residency is established by enrolling in a minimum of 18 graduate credit hours over the course of three consecutive semesters (excluding summers). While not necessary to satisfy the residency requirement, any graduate credit hours taken during summer terms (including May session) will count toward the 18 graduate hours needed for residency.

8. Program Progress: Students who accumulate more than 6 hours of graduate credit below the grade of B will not be permitted to continue the program. No course may be repeated more than one time.

9. Audited Courses: Core courses may not be audited. Other courses may be audited, but students must remember that audited courses cannot be repeated for credit.

10. Transfer Credits: Students may transfer up to 6 credit hours from other programs and/or institutions provided they meet departmental requirements. Transfer credits may not be applied to core courses.

Students Admitted with Baccalaureate Degrees Only

1. Master's-Level Course Work: 24 hours of course work, to include: CRJU 701, 702, 703, 705, 741, and three (9 credit hours) additional elective courses. No more than two elective courses (6 credit hours) below the 700 level may be applied to the program. Students who accumulate more than 6 hours of master's-level graduate credit below the grade of B will not be permitted to continue the program. No course may be repeated more than one time.

2. Core Courses: 15 hours of core courses, all of which must be completed with a grade of B or better: CRJU 706, CRJU 810, CRJU 814, CRJU 821, and either CRJU 816 or CRJU 817. With approval of the graduate director, substantially equivalent courses from outside the department may be substituted for CRJU 706, CRJU 816, and/or CRJU 817.

3. Electives: 9 hours of courses, all of which must be at the 700 level or above. At least one, but no more than two, of these courses should be taken from outside the department.

4. Qualifying Examination: All students admitted to the Ph.D. program in criminology and criminal justice must successfully complete a qualifying examination prior to formal admission to candidacy.

5. Comprehensive Examination: Each student must successfully complete both a written and an oral Ph.D. comprehensive examination after completing all required course work. Students will be examined on their knowledge of research methods and design, data analysis, law and policy issues related to criminology and criminal justice, and their understanding of important issues related to criminological theory. If a student fails the Ph.D. comprehensive examination, the student will be permitted to retake the exam one time.

6. Dissertation Preparation and Defense: 12 hours of dissertation credit must be successfully completed to earn the Ph.D. degree. The dissertation is an original research project that advances scientific knowledge in the student's chosen area of interest. The dissertation must be orally defended by the student before the student's dissertation examining committee. The oral defense before the examining committee cannot take place until after the successful completion of the comprehensive examination.

7. Foreign Language: The foreign language requirement established by The Graduate School can be satisfied either by passing a reading proficiency examination in one of the foreign language areas or by completing the research methods sequence (CRJU 706, CRJU 814, and CRJU 816 or CRJU 817) with a grade of B or higher in each course. English is accepted as satisfying this requirement for those students whose native language is not English.

8. Residency Requirement: Doctoral residency is established by enrolling in a minimum of 18 graduate credit hours over the course of three consecutive semesters (excluding summers). While not necessary to satisfy the residency requirement, any graduate credit hours taken during summer terms (including May session) will count toward the 18 graduate hours needed for residency.

9. Program Progress: Students who accumulate more than two grades below a B in their final 24 hours of graduate course work will not be permitted to continue the program. No course may be repeated more than one time.

10. Audited Courses: Core courses may not be audited. Other courses may be audited, but students must remember that audited courses cannot be repeated for credit.

11. Transfer Credits: Students may transfer up to 6 credit hours from other programs and/or institutions provided they meet departmental requirements. Transfer credits may not be applied to core courses.

J.D./M.A. Joint Degree Program

The Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, in cooperation with the University of South Carolina School of Law, offers a combined degree program which permits a student to obtain both the Juris Doctor and the Master of Arts in Criminal Justice degrees in approximately four years. Through the combined program, the total course load may be reduced by as many as 15 credit hours from that required if the two degrees were earned separately, since 6 hours of electives toward the M.A. degree may be taken in law courses and 9 hours of electives toward the J.D. may be earned in the M.A. program.

Prior to obtaining admission to the combined degree program, a student must be admitted to both the School of Law and the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Upon admission to the combined degree program, the student will be assigned courses to be elected in both programs.

Financial Assistance

Applicants requesting graduate assistantships and fellowships should contact the department. Applicants requesting all other types of financial assistance should apply to the director of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208.

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Course Descriptions (CRJU)