Many things. While the major has a clear substantive focus, it has deep connections with many important ideas and social institutions. It therefore does not narrowly define a graduate's professional opportunities.
Some of these connections are:
Law Enforcement: In the past few years, about half our graduating seniors become Police Officers in Minnesota. Most enter a town or city Police Department. A few of the best students are hired by the Minnesota Highway Patrol. A small number go to work for the Division of Natural Resources. Another three to five find law enforcement positions in other states, including Georgia, Arizona and California. One or two every year enter one of the various Federal Law Enforcement services, such as the United States Marshall Service, the Border Patrol, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Customs Bureau.
Corrections: Many students enter the huge field of corrections as probation officers, and counselors in private, county and state corrections facilities. Many of our graduates are leaders in Minnesota Corrections today. A few are nationally recognized.
A little known fact is that there is as much employment in corrections today than in law enforcement.
Legal practice: A few graduates most years go to law school. The just elected prosecutor for Clay county is one of our graduates. These lawyers are scattered around the country doing all types of legal work (criminal, business and policy formation).
Social Science: A few graduates every year go to graduate school in Sociology, Psychology, Criminal Justice or Political Science. A few of our graduates now teach college. Some do research for government agencies.
Other: The Criminal Justice major at Minnesota State University Moorhead emphasizes a broad Liberal Arts education. Our graduates are therefore well prepared for a very broad range of opportunities outside the criminal justice system and, indeed, outside the social sciences. Some students have established rewarding careers in Social Services, Hospital Social Services and various types of Youth Work in churches. A very few are working among the poor in foreign nations.
We study the many aspects of the Criminal Justice System: the Criminal Courts, the Police, Probation, and Parole. There are classes dedicated to each of these topics. We also have classes that study the law making process and the many ways that social events impact law making.
We teach senior seminars that examine questions like victim rights, sexual assault, citizen perception of crime, hostage taking and hostage negotiation. Seminars are in-depth treatments of faculty research into these topics. Several are offered each year and students select one or more that are of interest to them.
The Criminal Justice major leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree, unlike many other colleges. Our classes emphasize connections between the Criminal Justice System and other areas of social life. The Criminal Justice System is changing rapidly today and will likely change significantly in the next decade. The most successful justice workers are those who have the understanding needed to learn the new skills necessary for tomorrow's system. That is, the most successful workers will be those educated in the Liberal Arts tradition.
A broad liberal arts education and critical thinking are the foundation of Criminal Justice skills of today -- and those of tomorrow. Citizens who will be have the most fulfilling careers will be those who most rapidly learn the successive skill sets they will require over a career. Therefore, we retain the liberal arts orientation and its emphasis on critical thinking.
The faculty self consciously aim to develop citizens who are thoroughly professional, independent, thoughtful and knowledgeable about their chosen area. Put differently, we seek to maintain a learning environment within which students develop into thoughtful and resourceful citizens, adaptable to the inevitable changes of their society and chosen field.
The easy answer: establish a solid High School academic record. *Pay attention in your American History classes. Soak it up. The story of the United States (history should not be taught as dates and battles!) is the story of why we are the nation we are and why our Criminal Justice System has the shape and practices it does. *Learn basic math. You don't need analytic geometry and pre-calculaus in this field, but you need to read basic social science research. *Learn the foundations of American Government.
Try to define your career interests by visiting Criminal Justice Agencies, such as the police, the criminal court or a probation office. Criminal courts are open to the general public. If you call the Clerk of the Court, someone will tell you when various criminal hearings are scheduled. If you think Criminal Justice is a good career choice, get as familiar with working Criminal Justice agencies as you can. Many prisons conduct tours for citizens. Some jails will allow county residents to tour. Many police and sheriff departments do "ride alongs" for interested citizens. Call and ask. Almost all court hearings are open to the public and all you need to do is call the Court administrator (usually called the "Clerk of Court") to get the schedule. One of your teachers will probably be willing to vinvite a probation officer to a class or to a small group meeting to talk about what they do.
If you are uncertain about your career interests, you have some very good company. Do not panic! None of the current MSUM CJ faculty figured out what to do "when we grew up" until after we had completed college. Many of our current majors sit in our offices at some point and worry aloud about what they will do when they graduate. There is nothing wrong with uncertainty (unless you are still uncertain at age 35).
A college degree has three parts. A good education requires attention to all three. The student who thinks carefully about the opportuntities each part offers and who consults with their advisor will receive as good an education at Minnesota State University Moorhead as they will at any institution in the nation.
Let us look briefly at each component
Liberal studies is a set of classes spread over many disciplines. This is the part of every student's education that is broad and exposes the student to many of the most important ideas in Western Civilization. It is the part of one's education that contributes to critical thinking and that should make one an informed citizen.
The Justice major is described in the campus catalog. The purposes of the major are:
Much disparaged and underappreciated, free electives are the most exciting part of a college career. How these are used determine whether a degree is a certificate of narrow accomplishment or an indicator of a real education.
A student should control some part of his or her college education. This is the purpose of ``free electives.'' A student may do anything they wish with these credits. While ``basket weaving'' is not actually offered (big surprise), a student can waste these precious credits with "sluff" courses.
These credits can be used to learn skills that make you more employable (e.g., accounting, various computer skills, counselling, management, etc).
These credits can be used to pursue a second major or minor. A significant number of Criminal Justice majors complete double majors in Sociology, Political Science or Psychology.
These credits can be used to explore ideas and issues about which the student is simply curios. Think about this: Once you begin a career and start a family, you will have little time to explore your curiousities. Only at retirement will you gain back some of this leisure. College is the tiny window in your life to explore the social, intellectual, cultural world.
Transfer students from either two or four year schools usually have fewer free electives than students who attend for four years. This is due largely to differences in Liberal Studies requirements. Important advise: if you plan to transfer to Moorhead State, you should complete and AA degree before the transfer. An AA degree from a Minnesota Community College satisfies the MSU Liberal Studies requirment.
This is the part of a college student's career can makes one's education rich and rewarding.
This page is the Bulletin description of graduation requirements from MSU.