Criminal Justice

Why study Criminal Justice?

Students of Criminal Justice seek to understand one of today’s most important problems: how to increase public safety while maintaining justice and protecting human freedom. The study of Criminal Justice includes the examination of institutions that identify, apprehend, adjudicate, incarcerate and treat individuals who threaten peace and order as well as those factors that encourage and support criminal activity.
 
A degree in Criminal Justice prepares students for careers in areas as diverse as the protection of personnel and property for international businesses, the enforcement of international law and treaty obligations, immigration policy and anti-terrorism, local and regional law enforcement, the practice of law and public administration and the teaching of justice theory and practice.

 
In addition to careers in law, security management and law enforcement, students of criminal justice will be well prepared for many other careers, as they learn to think creatively and critically, to value engagement in community life and to practice the skills of effective communication and decision making.
 

The Criminal Justice Major at Heidelberg

Criminal Justice at Heidelberg is an interdisciplinary major that incorporates ideas and methods from a number of academic areas. From psychology and sociology, the criminal justice major takes into account explanations of human actions; from public administration, it studies the institutions of public authority; from economics and political science, it examines conflicts over resource allocation; and from philosophy, it considers the value of security, order, freedom and privacy.
 
This interdisciplinary approach allows students to examine a variety of aspects and levels of security arrangements, from local to international. Such an approach offers students a broad range of knowledge and skills to apply to the problems of social justice and community safety.
 
Students, therefore, are prepared to work with individuals from diverse backgrounds, cultural perspectives and skill sets. Criminal Justice majors also benefit from instruction by practitioners, people “out in the field,” many of whom are Heidelberg alumni, as well as those who have studied aspects of criminal justice from a theoretical perspective.
 
Criminal Justice majors at Heidelberg are required to complete an internship; faculty members will work with you to find the right experience to further not only your professional, but also your personal and intellectual, development. This internship may be completed through the Washington Semester  program, which allows for the study of law and justice issues in Washington, D.C.
 
While the primary focus of the program will be on preparing students for career opportunities at the national and international levels, faculty members will work individually with students to explore their goals and interests for employment or further educational opportunities.