Possible career paths for students in this degree are

• Law Enforcement:  Government agencies (Federal, State, Local)-- police officer, special agent, investigations, dispatcher, crime scene analyst 
• Court Workers: Prosecution or Defense Attorney, Judge, Restorative Justice mediator, Court reporter, Paralegal
• Corrections: Victim advocate, Case Manager, Probation/Parole officer, Restorative Justice Program Director,  Correctional Officer, Prison Counselor/Teacher
• Private Security- Loss prevention, fraud specialist, investigator 

Marketable Skills

Students will develop the following marketable skills:

1. Critical thinking: Analyze and evaluate issues in order to solve problems and develop informed opinions
2. Social responsibility: Act ethically and responsibly for the benefit of society and the public good
3. Social skills: Effectively use body language, verbal and non-verbal communication skills and personal appearance to communicate and interact with others
4. Writing: Be able to write in a clear and comprehensible manner to the reader

In addition, students will learn:

1. Compassion and understanding of social problems (child abuse/neglect, addiction, homelessness, mental illness) that may later contribute to legal problems and reasons why people commit crime
2. Understanding of the law and legal processes for suspects, defendants, and convicted persons
3. Ability to distinguish effective crime policies that control crime and/or reduce recidivism

General Requirements

For the ON-LINE BA in Criminal Justice the student must complete:

1. Complete a minimum of 120 semester hours, including at least 39 hours at the advanced (3000 or 4000) level. 
2. Fulfill the general education, block electives, and foreign language requirements for the Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Liberal Arts.
   1. Criminal Justice majors need to fulfill the mathematics requirement by taking MATH 1320 or its equivalent.

3. Complete six (6) credit hours of Spanish; pre-requisites may exist. Spanish is the only foreign language available as an online format. 

4. A minimum of 21 credit hours in the major must be taken at the advanced (3300-4300) level.

5.  Complete 18 hours of additional electives.  Elective credit cannot be used in meeting any other degree requirement, except requirement for the 39 advanced/upper level hours.  Students are encouraged to complete as many of these electives as possible in the area of Criminal Justice.

6. All students must complete electives as needed to bring the total semester hours of credit to 120.

Switching between UTEP Connect and on-campus Criminal Justice programs

Students having less than 24 hours of CRIJ major courses must go through a Change of Major Consultation with the UTEP Connect Advisor. On-campus undergraduate students who have completed 24 hours or more of CRIJ major course requirements are ineligible to change their major to the UTEP Connect Criminal Justice program. UTEP on-campus students may change their major to the online UTEP Connect Criminal Justice program one time only. Students wishing to return to the on-campus degree program (after having changed their major to the online UTEP Connect program) must appeal to the department chair in writing.

Current UTEP Connect undergraduate students wishing to change their major from the fully online major to the on-campus program must select and complete a minor. Any petitions for change of major from the fully online UTEP Connect program to the campus-based UTEP program are subject to approval by the department chair of the program receiving the student. UTEP Connect students may change their major to the campus-based Criminal Justice major one time only. Students wishing to return to the fully-online Criminal Justice degree program (after having changed their major to a campus-based program) must appeal to the Dean of Extended University in writing. All courses are offered on an intensive, 7 week online format for maximum scheduling flexibility for full-time, working students. This rigorous, but ultimately convenient undergraduate program can be taken on a full-time or part-time basis. 

Degree Plan

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Upper Division Hours
This degree plan requires completion of 39 upper-division hours.
Designated Core (All courses require a grade of C or better.)
Required Courses: 1
MATH 1320	Math for Social Sciences I
University Core Curriculum
Complete the University Core Curriculum requirements.		42
Criminal Justice Major
Required Courses (All courses require a C or better):
CRIJ 1301	Intro to Criminal Justice I	3
CRIJ 3300	Applied Research Methods in CJ	3
CRIJ 3313	Criminology	3
CRIJ 4312	Criminal Procedure	3
System CRIJ Electives (Select three from the following courses):		9
CRIJ 1306	Courts Systems and Practices
CRIJ 1310	Fundamentals of Criminal Law
CRIJ 2313	Correctional Systems & Practcs
CRIJ 2328	Police Systems and Practices
CRIJ Electives (Select 15 hours of the following with at least 12 being upper-division):		15
CRIJ 3308	Juvenile Justice
CRIJ 3309	Comm Corrections & Corr Cnslng
CRIJ 3311	Crime Control & Prevention
CRIJ 3321	Family Violence
CRIJ 3351	Crim Just on US-Mexico Border
CRIJ 3389	Criminal Justice Ethics
CRIJ 4300	Selected Topics - Crim Justice
CRIJ 4301	Readings in Criminal Justice
CRIJ 4302	Cyber Crime
CRIJ 4303	Crime, Criminal Justice & Film
CRIJ 4311	Immigration Law and Admin
CRIJ 4313	White Collar Crime
CRIJ 4314	Women in Criminal Justice
CRIJ 4315	Homicide
CRIJ 4316	Comp CJS & Transntl Crime
CRIJ 4317	Victimology
CRIJ 4318	Violence in America
CRIJ 4319	Street Gangs:Strctr,Act & Resp
CRIJ 4320	Crim Just Org and Management
CRIJ 4321	Organized Crime
CRIJ 4390	Adv Concepts in Crim. Justice
Additional Electives
Select eighteen additional hours of electives 2		18
Open Electives
Select additional hours to complete a total of one hundred twenty hours
Foreign Language
Select six credit of Foreign Language. All six credits must be in the same language sequence.		6
Only Spanish language courses are offered online.
Block Electives
Complete twelve upper-division hours from the blocks below, with three to six hours in each		12
Total Hours		120

_{1. Although the UTEP choice is larger, these choices satisfy the requirements of both the core and the major.}

_{2. Selection of upper-division courses is highly recommended to facilitate meeting the requirement of forty-five upper-division hours.}

_{3. French and Spanish majors must fulfill this requirement in a language other than their major.}

University Core Curriculum

The department may make specific suggestions for courses which are most applicable towards your major.

All courses require a C or better

I. Communication (six hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on developing ideas and expressing them clearly, considering the effect of the message, fostering understanding, and building the skills needed to communicate persuasively. Courses involve the command of oral, aural, written, and visual literacy skills that enable people to exchange messages appropriate to the subject, occasion, and audience.
Select six hours of the following:		6
For students whose secondary education was in English:
COMM 1611	Written and Oral Communication
ENGL 1313	Writing About Literature
RWS 1301	Rhetoric & Composition I
RWS 1302	Rhetoric & Composition 2
RWS 1601	Rhetoric, Composition & Comm
For students whose secondary education was not in English:
ESOL 1311	Expos Engl Compos-Spkr Esl
ESOL 1312	Res & Crit Writng Spkr Esl
Total Hours		6

II. American History (six hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on the consideration of past events and ideas relative to the United States, with the option of including Texas History for a portion of this component area. Courses involve the interaction among individuals, communities, states, the nation, and the world, considering how these interactions have contributed to the development of the United States and its global role.
HIST 1301	History of U.S. to 1865	3
HIST 1302	History of U.S. Since 1865	3
Total Hours		6

III. Language, Philosophy & Culture  (three hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on how ideas, values, beliefs, and other aspects of culture express and affect human experience. Courses involve the exploration of ideas that foster aesthetic and intellectual creation in order to understand the human condition across cultures.
Select one of the following:		3
AFST 2300	Intro-African Amer Studies
CHIC 2302	Latina/o Presence in the U.S.
ENGL 2311	English Literature
ENGL 2312	English Literature
ENGL 2313	Intro to American Fiction
ENGL 2314	Intro to American Drama
ENGL 2318	Intro to American Poetry
FREN 2322	Making of the "Other" Americas
HIST 2301	World History to 1500
HIST 2302	World History Since 1500
PHIL 1301	Introduction to Philosophy
PHIL 2306	Ethics
RS 1301	Introduct to Religious Studies
SPAN 2340	Seeing & Naming: Conversations
WS 2300	Introduction to Womens Studies
WS 2350	Global Feminisms
Total Hours		3

IV. Mathematics  (three hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on quantitative literacy in logic, patterns, and relationships. Courses involve the understanding of key mathematical concepts and the application of appropriate quantitative tools to everyday experience.
Select one of the following:		3
MATH 1309	College Algebra
MATH 1310	Trigonometry and Conics
MATH 1319	Math in the Modern World
MATH 1320	Math for Social Sciences I
MATH 1411	Calculus I
MATH 1508	Precalculus 1,2
MATH 2301	Math for Social Sciences II
STAT 1380	Statistical Literacy
STAT 2480	Elementary Statistical Methods
1 A higher-level course in the calculus sequence can be substituted.
2 TCCN MATH 1314 will also satisfy this requirement.
Total Hours		3

V. Life & Physical Sciences  (six hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on describing, explaining, and predicting natural phenomena using the scientific method. Courses involve the understanding of interactions among natural phenomena and the implications of scientific principles on the physical world and on experiences.
Select one of the following:		1-4
ASTR 1107	Astronomy Lab I
ASTR 1307	Elem Astronomy-Solar System
ASTR 1308	Elem Astr Stars & Galaxies
BIOL 1103	Introductory Biology Lab
BIOL 1104	Human Biology Laboratory
BIOL 1107	Topics in Study of Life I
BIOL 1108	Organismal Biology Laboratory
BIOL 1203	Introductory Biology
BIOL 1304	Human Biology
BIOL 1305	General Biology
BIOL 1306	Organismal Biology
BIOL 2111	Human Anat/Physio Lab I
BIOL 2113	Human Anat/Physio Lab II
BIOL 2311	Human Anat/Physiology I
BIOL 2313	Human Anat/Physiology II
CHEM 1105	Laboratory for CHEM 1305
CHEM 1106	Laboratory for CHEM 1306
CHEM 1107	Intro General Chemistry Lab
CHEM 1108	Intro Organic & Biochem Lab
CHEM 1305	General Chemistry
CHEM 1306	General Chemistry
CHEM 1307	Intro to General Chemistry
CHEM 1308	Intro Organic & Biochemistry
ESCI 1101	Environmental Sci. Lab
ESCI 1102	Non-major Lab for ESCI 1301
ESCI 1202	Intro to Environment Science 2
ESCI 1301	Intro to Environmental Sci
GEOG 1106	Laboratory for GEOG 1306
GEOG 1306	Physical Geography
GEOL 1103	Lab for GEOL 1313
GEOL 1104	Lab for GEOL 1314
GEOL 1111	Principles of Earth Sci - Lab
GEOL 1112	Laboratory for Geology 1212
GEOL 1211	Principles of Earth Sciences
GEOL 1212	Principles of Earth Science
GEOL 1230	The Blue Planet
GEOL 1231	Natural Hazards
GEOL 1313	Intro to Physical Geology
GEOL 1314	Intro to Historical Geol
HSCI 2302	Fundamentals of Nutrition
HSCI 2303	Wellness Dynamics
MICR 2330	Microorganisms and Disease
PHYS 1403	General Physics I
PHYS 1404	General Physics II
PHYS 2120	Laboratory for PHYS 2320
PHYS 2121	Laboratory for PHYS 2321
PHYS 2320	Introductory Mechanics
PHYS 2321	Introductory Electromagnetism
Total Hours		6

VI. Political Science  (six hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on consideration of the Constitution of the United States and the constitutions of the states, with special emphasis on that of Texas. Courses involve the analysis of governmental institutions, political behavior, civic engagement, and their political and philosophical foundations.
Required Courses:
POLS 2310	Introduction to Politics	3
POLS 2311	American Gover & Politics	3
Total Hours		6

VII. Social and Behavioral Sciences  (three hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on the application of empirical and scientific methods that contribute to the understanding of what makes us human. Courses involve the exploration of behavior and interactions among individuals, groups, institutions, and events, examining their impact on the individual, society, and culture.
Select one of the following:		3
ANTH 1301	Intro-Phys Anth/Archeolog
ANTH 1302	Intro-Cultural Anthropology
ANTH 1310	Cultural Geography
ANTH 2320	Intro to Linguistics
CE 2326	Econ for Engrs & Scientists
CHIC 2311	Intro to Chicano Studies
ASIA 2300	Asian American Studies
COMM 2350	Interpersonal Communication
COMM 2372	Mass Media and Society
ECON 2303	Principles of Macroeconomics
ECON 2304	Principles of Microeconomics
EDPC 1301	Introduction to Ed Psychology
EDU 1342	Action Research in Classrooms
ENGL 2320	Introduction to Linguistics
GEOG 1310	Cultural Geography
LEAD 2300	Leadership in Action
LING 2320	Introduction to Linguistics
LING 2340	Lang. Inside & Out: Sel Topics
PSYC 1301	Introduction to Psychology
SOCI 1301	Introduction to Sociology
SOCI 1310	Cultural Geography
Total Hours		3

VIII. Creative Arts (three hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Courses in this category focus on the appreciation and analysis of creative artifacts and works of the human imagination. Courses involve the synthesis and interpretation of artistic expression and enable critical, creative, and innovative communication about works of art.
Select one of the following:		3
ART 1300	Art Appreciation
ARTH 1305	History of Art I
ARTH 1306	History of Art II
CHIC 1311	Chicana/o Fine Arts Appreciat
DANC 1304	Introduction to Dance
FILM 1390	Intro-Art of Motion Pict.
MUSL 1324	Music Appreciation
MUSL 1327	Jazz to Rock
MUSL 2321	Music, Culture, and Society
THEA 1313	Introduction to Theatre
Total Hours		3

IX. Component Area Option (six hours)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
a. A minimum of 3 SCH must meet the definition and corresponding Core Objectives specified in one of the foundational component areas. b. As an option for up to 3 semester credit hours of the Component Area Option, an institution may select course(s) that: (i) Meet(s) the definition specified for one or more of the foundational component areas; and (ii) Include(s) a minimum of three Core Objectives, including Critical Thinking Skills, Communication Skills, and one of the remaining Core Objectives of the institution's choice.
BUSN 1301	Intro to Global Business
COMM 1301	Public Speaking
COMM 1302	Business/Profession Comm
CS 1310	Intro-Computational Thinking
CS 1320	Computer Programming Sci/Engr
EL 1301	Eng Innovation and Leadership
ENGR 1302	Engineering Design Experience
ENGR 1303	Applied Engineering Analysis
LEAD 1300	Introduction to Leadership
SCI 1301	Inquiry in Math & Science
SPLP 1312	Comm. Var. Across the Lifespan
UNIV 1301	Seminar/Critical Inquiry
Total Hours		0