Completion Requirements

 

 

          Students entering the Department of Criminal Justice's Masters degree program will be asked to choose from two degree options.  Plan A students will be expected to write a thesis in addition to 30 units of graduate coursework.  Plan B students will not be expected to write a thesis, but will be required to complete 33 units of graduate coursework.  In addition to these requirements, the following guidelines must be followed. 

 

          1.  Completion of the required graduate study units at the 700 and 600  levels.  A maximum of 9 credits of 600 level coursework is allowed, with a maximum of 6 credits of Thesis Preparation to be applied towards the required graduate unit load. 

 

          2.  Required courses are CRJ 740, CRJ 750, CRJ 785, and CRJ 788, one graduate level course in Statistics and one graduate level course in Research Methods (these classes are to be selected from the department approved list).  At least nine additional credit hours selected from courses numbered 700 and above are also required.

 

          3.  Students may elect to pursue a maximum of 6 units of approved graduate study in other social and behavioral sciences or in graduate programs formally approved by the Graduate Student Coordinator. 

 

          4.  For those students required to write a thesis, the thesis will be written under the direction of a committee of three graduate faculty, approved by the department and chaired by a member of the faculty in Criminal Justice. 

 

          5.  Upon completion of the coursework and the thesis (if applicable), an  oral examination related to the thesis and the general field of criminal justice will be required of all students and will be administered by a committee chosen by the student and approved by the Graduate Student Coordinator.  The oral examination is based on the idea that quality graduate education requires that students be able to draw from a wide repertoire of knowledge, and to apply their knowledge to a particular area of study.  Therefore, the oral examination will assess (1) the student's competency in the defense of the substantive, theoretical, and methodological topics covered in their core coursework and thesis (if applicable); and (2) their more general knowledge, including the ability to integrate topics covered by core and elective criminal justice classes, and to apply core fundamentals to important issues.  To pass the oral examination, the student must demonstrate a satisfactory knowledge regarding both the general and thesis components of the examination.  Any student unable to demonstrate a satisfactory level of knowledge within areas1 or 2 listed above must retake that component the following semester. Any student receiving two unsatisfactory decisions may be dismissed from the program.

 

          6.  Consistent progress toward the degree and maintenance of a cumulative 3.0 average are required for continuation in and completion of the program.

 

          7.  In addition to these requirements, graduate students must abide by the policies and regulations set by the Graduate School of the University of Nevada. These include, but are not limited to: continuous enrollment, residence, and timely filing of proper paperwork and forms.  Graduate Students in the Department of Criminal Justice are encouraged to become familiar with all of these requirements, and to follow them completely.