Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice
Meet Nasro Ali Ali ’11
Nasro hopes to work in international relations at the UN or become a prosecutor. Right now she's interning at Portland District Court.
In the news
Portland police officer and criminal justice alum Ray Ruby '05 created a "Shop With a Cop" in Maine's largest city.
Beyond the ‘cop shop’
Criminal justice major emphasizes sociology and social work, creating a well-rounded graduate that employers favor.
The major in Criminal Justice provides students with an academically sound understanding of crime, justice, and the criminal justice system. Students majoring in Criminal Justice receive a foundation in theory and research as well as opportunities for practical application through an internship within the field. This major is for students who may pursue careers over a wide range of criminal justice opportunities within city, state and federal jurisdictions - probation, parole, police, immigration and naturalization, and the FBI. The Bachelor of Arts major in Criminal Justice includes two semesters of foreign language study.
Learn what our criminal justice program has to offer you
Criminal Justice Minor
A minor in criminal justice is available and requires students to take 20 credit hours.
Out of the classroom experience
Students from the Department of Sociology & Criminal Justice, along with alumna Holly George, were part of a hostage negotiation training program hosted by the New England Crisis Negotiators Association (NECNA) at the Brunswick Naval Air Station.
In the field
For each of the last three years, the City of Westbrook, Maine, hired a graduate of the Saint Joseph's Department of Sociology & Criminal Justice for its police force. Officer Steven Goldberg ’07, Officer Ryan Close ’08 and Officer Brian Olson ’09 serve the community, as does the Chair of the Department of Sociology & Criminal Justice, Dale J. Brooker, a Westbrook resident and member of the city's Public Safety Committee and Human Relations Committee. Furthermore, Saint Joseph's criminal justice majors have not only worked as interns for the police department but as part of a service learning portion of their criminal justice course they have helped to develop and distribute community surveys that assess community-police relations. Lastly, the department chair is working on a program evaluation that looks at the Family Team Meeting process that addresses youth-related issues like delinquency, teen pregnancy and truancy. This engaging college-community relationship helps everyone and makes a Saint Joseph's College education worth even more.
Real-world experience
Stacy Burton ’10 of Westbrook, Maine, has done survey and statistics projects in both Portland and her hometown as part of service learning in the community. She will also be interning as a court recorder for the city of Portland.
