Both departments collaboratively offer a program designed to provide students with theoretical and practical exposure to evolving professional practice in the field of criminal justice.
Admission Requirements
Application Deadlines
Application deadlines vary by program, please review the application deadline chart for specific programs. Other important dates and deadlines can be found by using the One Stop calendars.
Admission
Students are admitted to both graduate programs separately and admission requirements are consistent with those specified by the UWM Graduate School, the MS in Criminal Justice & Criminology and the MPA program.
Credits and Courses
Students accepted into this MS/MPA program complete the following courses:
MS in Criminal Justice & Criminology
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required | ||
| CRM JST 773 | Criminological Perspectives | 3 |
| CRM JST 743 | Proseminar: Administration of Criminal Justice Systems | 3 |
| CRM JST 756 | Proseminar: Analysis of Criminal Justice Research | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select 12 additional credits within the criminal justice & criminology program | 12 | |
| Select 12 additional credits with the consent of the student’s advisor | 12 | |
| Total Credits | 33 | |
Master of Public Administration
Students entering the MPA program will be placed, at the discretion of the MPA Director in one of two tracks (A or B) within the core. The minimum degree requirement is 39 credits for Track A and 42 for Track B.
Track A
Students with significant public or nonprofit sector work experience may, at the discretion of the MPA Director, have PUB ADM 921 waived. Students seeking placement in this track will need to meet with the MPA Director to discuss this possibility and will be required to provide documentation of current public or nonprofit sector work experience.
Track B
Students with no significant public or nonprofit sector work experience are required to enroll in and successfully complete PUB ADM 921. As part of the requirements for this course, Track B students are required to obtain, with the assistance of the MPA Director, one or more internships in either the public or nonprofit sector while enrolled in the MPA program.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Core | ||
| BUS ADM 738 | Human Resource Management | 3 |
| PUB ADM 763 | Scope and Dynamics of Public Administration | 3 |
| PUB ADM 769 | Analyzing and Evaluating Public Policies and Programs | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Predictive Analytics for Managers | ||
| Decision-Making for Nonprofit and Public Organizations | ||
| Proseminar: Analysis of Criminal Justice Research | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Diversity in Organizations | ||
| Special Topics in Human Resources Management: | ||
| Managerial Decisions and Negotiations | ||
| Capstone | ||
| PUB ADM 959 | Capstone Seminar in Public Administration 1 | 3 |
| General Public Administration | ||
| Select three of the following: | 9 | |
| Accounting for Nonprofit Organizations | ||
| Ethics and Responsibility in Public Administration | ||
| Budgeting and Finance in the Public Sector | ||
| Public Administration Risk and Analysis | ||
| Seminar in Intergovernment Relations | ||
| Seminar in Public Administration: | ||
| Municipal Management | ||
| Concentration | ||
| Select 12 credits in CRM JST | 12 | |
| Internship | ||
| PUB ADM 921 | Public Service Administrative Internship 2 | 3 |
| Total Credits | 42 | |
- 1
Every student will be required to take the capstone seminar, PUB ADM 959. The course requirements will include the completion and written and oral presentation of a project on a topic selected with the assistance of the instructor. This course will also be devoted to coverage of special issues and problems of the public administration profession, including administrative ethics.
- 2
An internship is mandatory for students with no public sector work experience.
Total Degree Credits for Master of Public Administration: 48-51 cr
The total credits for the coordinated program would typically be completed in both programs at the same time, rather than one program after the other. A student not completing the requirements for the coordinated degree program would need to complete all requirements for an individual program in order to receive a degree.
Additional Requirements
Time Limit
Students in the coordinated MS/MPA degree program must complete all degree requirements within seven years of the first enrollment semester as a degree student.
Criminal Justice and Criminology MS Learning Outcomes
Students graduating from the MS in Criminal Justice & Criminology Program will be able to:
- Explain the relationship between criminal justice organizations, administration, and policy. They will be able to critically assess current criminal justice policies and organizational practices.
- Explain and critically assess criminological theories to patterns of behavior. They will be able to articulate how criminal justice policies were developed in relation to these theories.
- Explain social science research methods and basic statistical applications. They will be able to apply social science research methods and statistics to criminal justice and criminology problems, including the ethical treatment of research subjects.
- Analyze and synthesize empirical research, and construct analytically synthesized written academic papers and responses.
- Develop and implement a strong research project in a substantive area of interest within criminal justice and criminology, tying together the components of theory, methods, and policy.