Bachelor of Arts in Criminology

Criminology is the study of crime and criminal behavior. Because crime is a core societal issue, criminologists examine society’s response to crime and the role of the state in crime prevention and enforcement. It is not always easy to understand why people commit crimes, what an appropriate punishment may be or how laws impact the prevention of crime. Criminologists study all of these issues and more. Criminology is an interdisciplinary degree that borrows from the disciplines of sociology, law, political science, history and psychology, among others.

Careers in Criminology

Police officers and federal agents, corrections and probation officers, crime data analyst investigators and victim advocates — these are among the varied career paths that can be pursued with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology degree. Local, state and federal justice agencies hire people with degrees in criminology. As with any professional field, a graduate degree can lead to even higher-level careers in law enforcement, corrections, courts and human services.

The University’s Career Center is an important resource for students pursuing their career. Licensed counselors are available to provide strategies for mastering job interviews, writing professional cover letters and resumes and help students connect with campus recruiters.

Marketable Skills

Review the marketable skills for this academic program.

Criminology at UT Dallas

The mission of the criminology program at UT Dallas is to examine the causes and consequences of crime and crime control policies by providing a program of study involving a variety of perspectives, approaches and social science disciplines. Faculty members are dedicated teachers and scholars who have published their work in the most prestigious journals in the field. They are committed to expanding the knowledge of the discipline and preparing students to be leaders in influencing society’s response to crime.

Students must complete 120 hours to graduate: 42 hours from the University’s core curriculum and 42 specific hours in the major, including courses in criminological theory, criminal justice, theories of justice, comparative justice systems, research methods (including a senior research seminar) and statistics. In addition, students must also take elective hours.

Criminology at UT Dallas is also offered as a minor and requires 18 credit hours.

Fast Track

The Fast Track program enables exceptionally gifted UT Dallas students to include master’s level courses in their undergraduate degree plans. Students who meet the requirements for admission to graduate school and the minimum GPA requirement for their major can take up to 15 hours of graduate level coursework that can apply toward their undergraduate and graduate level coursework. To take graduate courses in the Fast Track program upper-division undergraduates must have completed 90 semester credit hours and petition their associate dean for permission to take graduate courses.

About the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences

Every new generation inherits a world more complex than that of its predecessors, which prompts a need for new thinking about public policies that impact people’s daily lives. In the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences (EPPS), we examine the implications of innovation and change for individuals and communities. The social sciences are where the world turns to for answers to the important issues of today and the future such as education and health policy, financial crises, globalization, policing, political polarization, public management, terrorism, and the application of geographical information sciences to study social, economic and environmental issues.

As an undergraduate in EPPS, you will have the opportunity to work with professors who are probing issues that will affect your future. You will develop the vital skills you need to thrive in a rapidly evolving, highly competitive job market. EPPS will prepare you for careers in government, non-profits and the private sector that enable you to make a real difference in the world of today and tomorrow. EPPS is at the forefront of leadership, ethics and innovation in the public and nonprofit sectors. Our students and faculty look forward to new opportunities to study and address the complex and evolving issues of the future. Research informs much of the instruction. The school has four centers of excellence:

  • Center for Global Collective Action
  • Texas Schools Project
  • Institute for Urban Policy Research
  • The Negotiations Center

Degrees Offered

Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts: Criminology, economics, geospatial information sciences, international political economy, political science, public affairs, public health, public policy, sociology

Master of Science: Applied sociology, criminology, economics, geospatial information sciences, international political economy, social data analytics and research

Master of Arts: Political science

Master of Public Affairs: Public affairs

Master of Public Policy: Public policy

Doctor of Philosophy: Criminology, economics, geospatial information sciences, political science, public affairs, public policy and political economy

Certificates

EPPS offers the following 15-hour graduate certificates, which generally can be completed in one year of part-time evening classes:

  • Economic and Demographic Data Analysis: focusing on the understanding and application of quantitative analysis of demographic and economic data.
  • Geographic Information Systems (GIS): focusing on the application of GIS in government, private sector and scientific areas.
  • Geospatial Intelligence: focusing on the application of geospatial ideas and techniques to national security and other intelligence activity.
  • Local Government Management: designed to broaden knowledge of important issues and approaches employed by professional local public administrators.
  • Nonprofit Management: designed to provide an overview of the nature and context of nonprofit organizations and develop competencies needed by nonprofit managers.
  • Program Evaluation: designed to provide students the opportunity to gain competencies in the design and implementation of program evaluations in fields such as education, health care, human services, criminal justice and economic development.
  • Remote Sensing: focusing on remote sensing and digital image processing.
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Contact Information

EPPS Advising
EPPSadvising@utdallas.edu
School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences
The University of Texas at Dallas
800 West Campbell Road GR 31
Richardson, TX 75080-3021

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