Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice

About

The Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice Program is designed to help you become an educated citizen, as well as prepare for a career. In addition to the core courses, you will complete social science foundation courses. As you get ready to graduate, you will also be given the opportunity to specialize in one of three areas: law enforcement, pre-graduate criminology, or social justice.

Curriculum Map

Interested in going to Law School? Learn more about the 3+3 Pre-Law Degree Path with Gonzaga University.

Curriculum & Requirements

Criminal Justice Major, Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Note: two years of a single high school foreign language or one year of a single college-level foreign language is required.

Required courses in the following program may have prerequisites. Reference the course descriptions for clarification.

Required Introduction Course
CRIM 300INTRODUCTION TO THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM5
Foundation Courses
CRIM 330SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH METHOD5
or SOCI 357 METHOD FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH
SOCI 301SURVEY OF CRIMINOLOGY5
SOCI/CRIM 356INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL STATISTICS5
or CSBS 320 STATISTICS FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
Disciplinary Core Courses
CRIM 340ETHICS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE5
or PHIL 212 INTRODUCTORY ETHICS
PSYC 302ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY5
Recommended Electives–choose 40 credits approved by a department advisor.40
SURVEY OF ALCOHOL/DRUG PROBLEMS
CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS AND DEVELOPMENT
FORENSIC INQUIRY
SPECIAL TOPICS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE
WOMEN IN PRISON
VICTIMOLOGY
CRIMINAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION
FORENSIC IDENTIFICATION
CRIME AND MEDIA
COMPARATIVE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS
PEACEMAKING CRIMINOLOGY
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
HOMELESSNESS AND JUSTICE
PENOLOGY
POLICE SYSTEMS AND PRACTICES
INTERNSHIP
CRITICAL GIS
CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
JURISPRUDENCE
BASIC CONCEPTS OF CRIMINAL LAW
CHILD AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT
CARE AND CUSTODY OF FEMALE OFFENDERS
DRUGS AND BEHAVIOR
PSYCHOLOGY AND THE LEGAL SYSTEM
SOCIOLOGY OF DEVIANCE
JUVENILE DELINQUENCY
CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY
Required Capstone
CRIM 490CRIMINAL JUSTICE SENIOR CAPSTONE (a UGR–senior capstone)5
Total Credits75

Catalog Listing

Program Learning Outcomes

Students who successfully earn a BA in Criminal Justice from EWU should be able to do the following:

  • be able to engage in critical inquiry of criminal justice institutions, practices and policies which explores their benefits and consequences for social justice and equity;
  • be able to understand and apply various methodological and theoretical approaches for conducting research and evaluation with regard to criminal justice practices and policies;
  • demonstrate an awareness of the systems, processes and relationships between components which comprise the criminal justice system (courts/ law, law enforcement and corrections);
  • demonstrate mastery of theories of criminology and deviance, a strong understanding of the correlates of crime and be able to make clear links between theoretical and applied contexts.

Sample Courses

PSYC 323. DRUGS AND BEHAVIOR. 5 Credits.

Pre-requisites: PSYC 100 recommended.
An introduction to the action, use, and abuse of psychotropic agents from analgesics to hallucinogens. Special attention given to drug abuse.

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CRIM 340. ETHICS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE. 5 Credits.

In this course, we will explore major ethical theories with an emphasis on their application to components of the criminal justice system. We will analyze current issues and ethical dilemmas that criminal justice professionals deal with. We will examine the complex process of moral and ethical decision making in the criminal justice system.

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CRIM 360. WOMEN IN PRISON. 5 Credits.

Cross-listed: GWSS 360.
In this course, we examine the socio-structural relationships between women’s lives and women’s crimes and explore how race, class and gender assumptions shape the experiences of female correctional officers and female inmates. In addition, we analyze how the prison rules and regulations that girls and women have to abide by are deeply gendered. Since the 1980s, the number of women and girls incarcerated has increased drastically. Yet, we know very little about female criminality.

Catalog Listing

POLI 302. CRIMINAL PROCEDURE. 5 Credits.

This course in an examination of the philosophic and legal bases for the protection of the rights of the criminally accused, with emphasis on Supreme Court decisions on the 4th, 5th, and 6th amendments and on the due process clause of the 14th amendment.

Catalog Listing