2006 - 2007 Justice Studies (JUST)

Program Objectives | Requirements | Academic Major | Academic Minor | Course Descriptions

Director: Allan Patenaude

Program Objectives

The cornerstones of the academic enterprise of justice studies are the capacity for critical thinking and effective communications. Justice Studies provides students with skills to effectively practice, think about, and contribute to the work of criminal and social justice, students must be prepared for challenges of justice at the national and international levels. The Justice Studies program accordingly locates its curricula within a broad-based liberal arts education, grounded in the principle that equal portions of its classes shall focus on American and international criminal justice. Students completing the degree program in Justice Studies will have been introduced to the core knowledge that describes the field, and will also have been acquainted with the cultural, social, political, ethical, and psychological contexts from which issues of justice emerge. Justice Studies is a writing-intensive program at Westminster College.

Program Requirements

The Justice Studies program offers a Bachelor of Science in Justice Studies as an academic major and provides for an academic minor in Justice Studies. The Justice Studies academic major requires completion of 67 semester hours of credit selected from Justice Studys coursework and related classes in the social sciences and selected other coursework. Thirty-two of those hours must be in Justice Studies and related courses numbered 300 or above. Students must maintain a cumulative 2.5 GPA or better in the academic major and minor.

For course prerequisites, please refer to the course description.

Academic Major

Liberal Education Courses	Credit Hours
The following courses, which fulfill LE requirements, are required for the Justice Studies major. MATH 150 Elementary Statistics, LE PHIL 206 Introduction to Ethics, LE	4 3

Requirement Description		Credit Hours
I.	Foreign Language Requirement	8
	Justice Studies majors must complete eight credit hours in a single foreign language (Spanish recommended).	8
II.	Lower Division Courses	16
	JUST 101 Introduction to Justice Studies JUST 110 Police and Society JUST 220 American Judicial Process JUST 230 Corrections	4 4 4 4
III.	Upper Division Courses	16
?	JUST 301 Criminological Theories JUST 350 Criminal Law JUST 440 Internship JUST 498 Thesis I JUST 499 Thesis II	4 4 4 2 2
IV.	Electives	16
	Sixteen upper division credit hours from justice studies or justice studies-related coursework (see list below for suggested coursework)	16
V.	Required Courses from Other Programs	11
	MATH 150 Elementary Statistics, LE PHIL 206 Introduction to Ethics, LE PSYC/SOC 390 Quantitative Research Methods (4) or SOC 391 Qualitative Research Methods (4)	4 3 4
TOTAL HOURS FOR THE ACADEMIC MAJOR		67

Justice Studies Related Coursework

ANTH	355	Indian Peoples in the United States, LE
COMM	310	Professional Writing
COMM	360	Communicating Race, Class and Gender
PHIL	206	Introduction to Ethics (required for the major)
PLSC	303	Public Administration and Bureaucracy
PLSC	355	Constitutional Law
PSYC	301	Child Development
PSYC	305	Adolescent Development
PSYC	316	Social Psychology
PSYC	362	Abnormal Psychology
SOC	305	Contemporary Issues
SOC	350	Gender in Society
SOC	372	Race, Ethnicity, and Class

Academic Minor

To fulfill the requirements for an academic minor in Justice Studies, students must complete a minimum of 20 semester hours in Justice Studies or related coursework. Twelve of these hours must be in coursework numbered 300 or above.

Requirement Description		Credit Hours
I.	Required Courses	12
	JUST 101 Introduction to Justice Studies JUST 110 Police and Society JUST 350 Criminal Law	4 4 4
II.	Electives	8
	Additional Justice Studies or related coursework (numbered 300 or above)	8
TOTAL HOURS FOR THE ACADEMIC MINOR		20