Ph.D. in Criminal Justice

This is an archived copy of the 2022-2023 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.shsu.edu.

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Criminal Justice is designed to produce students of crime and justice who possess: (1) a thorough understanding of criminal justice and criminological issues, (2) the intellectual and methodological skills necessary for the continuing process of discovery and understanding of crime- and justice-related issues, (3) the capacity for integrative and analytical thinking, (4) competency at transmitting knowledge, (5) problem-solving skills, and (6) the ability to disseminate research findings through published scholarship.

The Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology has a faculty of diverse scholars committed to the study of a broad-range of crime and justice issues. The curriculum includes courses that provide theoretical and applied knowledge of the phenomena of crime and criminal justice. In addition to the demonstration of excellence in the classroom, students are expected to engage in research in accordance with personal specialized interests beyond specified courses.

Through the combined efforts of faculty and students, the Doctor of Philosophy program in Criminal Justice produces students capable of making contributions to criminal justice and criminology through the academic and applied components of the discipline. The curriculum is designed to ensure that graduates are well equipped to participate in criminological positions emphasizing research and statistics, theory, and administration