Criminal Justice, BS

Criminal Justice, BS

Level:

Bachelor's Degree

Major credits:

60 credits

Cost per credit:

$405 *

Next start date:

January 5, 2026

Uphold Justice, Security, and the Rule of Law

Help ensure society maintains peace and order by understanding the criminal justice system. You will learn the realities and concerns of society through the lens of political science, psychology, history, and sociology. Criminal justice is a rapidly expanding field with an extensive list of career paths. By understanding the law and how it plays out among people, you will be able to choose a career that keeps the peace.

The faculty are working professionals or retired from various criminal justice fields. They are able to teach from real-world experience, helping students connect the dots between course material and application. The course covers current methods and technologies in the criminal justice field. 

Some of the courses include criminal law, policing, crime scene processing, forensic science, child abuse and neglect, and more. Through USU Online, the majority of students are able to complete the degree in two years.

The First Step is a Conversation. Talk to Bailey.

Bailey Longhurst

Bailey Longhurst

Academic Advisor
(435) 797-3883
bailey.longhurst@usu.edu

College: College of Arts & Social Sciences

Department: School of Social Sciences

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Career Outlook

Criminal justice graduates have a wide variety of career paths in areas like law enforcement, courts, criminalistics (crime labs and investigations), law, juvenile law, and corrections. The field is growing rapidly and there a lot of careers available, such as becoming a police officer, correctional officer, law clerk, paralegal, juvenile detention, and more.

Criminal Justice Sample Courses

This course covers the juvenile system emphasizing Utah law and procedure. It distinguishes between juvenile and adult systems, function of probation, youth corrections, family services and the community.
This course covers ethical issues in the United States criminal justice system. Various ethical theories are covered, and how these theories can be applied to situations that arise as an employee in the criminal justice system.
This course provides an overview of social research methods. It covers the formulation of research questions, usage of theory to inform research design, common data collection methods, basic techniques of analyzing that data, and ethical considerations for conducting research.
A history of the United States criminal justice system is a history of race relations in America. No aspect of the American criminal justice—from policing to the courts to corrections—is untouched by issues tied to race. This course will examine one of the most persistent and divisive issues in criminal justice—racial and ethnic incarceration disparity in the United States. In particular, the class will focus on examining the potential sources of this disparity—differential involvement, bias in administration, and bias in policy—and assessing what historical and contemporary evidence exists to support each explanation. In addition, this course will look at the social and political consequences of disproportionate minority involvement in the criminal justice system.

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* Actual program costs may vary due to differential tuition or course fees.