Department of Criminal Justice
The Department of Criminal Justice offers the following degrees:
ASSOCIATE IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE
ASSOCIATE IN GENERAL STUDIES
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE WITH A MAJOR IN:
BACHELOR OF ARTS WITH A MAJOR IN:
The Department of Criminal Justice provides an educational environment in which students receive individual attention as well as excellence in teaching. The Department offers programs leading to careers in criminal justice, mental health, and social sciences education, as well as a preparation for further professional training in law, public administration, psychology, history, and social service. The Department aims to prepare graduates to be productive early in their professional careers and to assume leadership roles in the public and private sector, while providing service to society.
Mission
The Department of Criminal Justice’s mission is to provide career-oriented higher education and to deliver quality teaching to students seeking to complete the Trine University General Education requirements as well as to meet the social sciences, humanistic, global and American perspectives required by the Common Ground component in General Education.
Outcomes/Objectives
Pre-law
Admission to an accredited school of law normally requires a bachelor’s degree. The Association of American Law Schools does not recommend a specific major, but students will be expected to have a broad academic background, a good scholastic record, and acceptable scores on the law school admission test. Usually that type of preparation is more beneficial for a prospective law student than is the specialized study of subjects closely related to law.
Any degree program that stresses the ability to communicate both verbally and in writing, encourages an understanding of human values, promotes understanding, reasoning and critical thinking, and fosters creativity is an excellent program for a student planning to pursue a law degree after graduation.
The Department of Criminal Justice offers a General Studies major with a Concentration in Pre-Legal Studies which is designed to prepare students for law school and is recommended for students intending to go to law school who do not have a strong interest in another undergraduate discipline. The department stresses that pre-law students should seek frequent, regular advice from their advisors and from the pre-law advisor located in this department.