Nov 21, 2024  
Fall 2024 - Summer 2025 Academic Catalog 
    
Fall 2024 - Summer 2025 Academic Catalog

Justice Studies A.S.


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School: Business and Professional Careers
Academic Dept: Criminal Justice and Paralegal
HEGIS: 5505
 

Important Note about Program Requirements

The requirements listed below are for students entering into this program from Fall 2024 to Summer 2025. Students who entered the program during a prior semester will find their specific requirements listed in the Catalog under which they entered. Archived Catalogs are accessible through the dropdown menu above.

Program Description


The Justice Studies A.S. program at Westchester Community College is designed to prepare students to work in a broad range of justice-related vocations, as well as directly transfer to a four-year bachelor’s degree program. In recognizing the importance of developing our students to be instruments of positive structural change in institutions directly impacting our communities, the curriculum is designed to nurture and strengthen critical thinking skills and enrich the body of knowledge that justice studies students acquire in the discipline.  

Program Learning Outcomes


Upon successful completion of this program, a student will:

  1. Evaluate social forces, including criminal justice institutional processes, which define, develop, and respond to crime.
  2. Categorize and appraise theories and constructs of criminality.
  3. Identify and resolve problems by selecting and applying information resources and critical thinking methodologies.
  4. Demonstrate familiarity with research design.
  5. Value diversity and apply ethical and objective considerations to cross-cultural social issues.
  6. Demonstrate competency in communicating ideas effectively in writing.

Program Requirements


61 credits are required for the degree:

  • General Education - 31 credits
  • Required Degree Courses - 30 credits

General Education Requirements - 31 Credits

Where specific courses are not listed within the categories above, courses must be selected from the list of all general education courses 

Required Degree Courses - 30 credits

Program Map


The program map is a recommended semester-by-semester schedule of courses based on degree requirements and serve as a general guideline to help students complete their program in two years. Although designed for full-time enrollment, these are easily adaptable for part-time study. For additional, individualized guidance, students should review Degree Works and consult an Academic Counselor or Faculty Advisor to ensure they are on track to complete their program.

 

Semester 1

Course Credits
ENG 101 Writing and Research   3
World Languages Gen. Ed. Course   3
CJ 101 - Intro to the Criminal Justice System in the U.S.   3
PSYCH 101 - Introduction to Psychology   3
SOC 101 - Introduction to Sociology   3
Semester Total Credits 15

Semester 2

Course Credits
ENG 102 Writing and Literature   3
CJ 111 - Introduction to Criminology   3
MATH 140 - Statistics   4
HIS 112 - 20th Century United States History   3
SOC 206 - Race and Ethnicity in the U.S.  OR HSERV 200 - Diversity & Social Justice   3
Semester Total Credits 16

Semester 3

Course Credits
SOC 103 - Social Problems   3
CJ 202 - Juvenile Delinquency - Treatment and Control   3
CJ 205 - Research Methods in Criminal Justice   3
POL 211 - Basic Criminal Law and Procedure   3
CHEM 127 - Introduction to Forensic Science (and Lab)  OR POL 203 - Principles of Investigation   3
Semester Total Credits 15

Semester 4

Course Credits
CJ 120 - Global Terrorism   3
CJ 221 - Criminal Justice Seminar   3
CJ 130 - Comparative Criminal Justice    
PHIL 160 - Ethics   3
BIOL 155 - Environmental Studies   3
Semester Total Credits 15

Minimum Total Credits: 61

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