The Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology offers a Crime Analytics Concentration at the master’s level. A sequence of courses will lead to a concentration in this growing area. Preparation includes a foundation in criminal justice, research methods, and criminological theory. It also includes specialized coursework in measuring crime, crime mapping, and analytic techniques for understanding crime and crime patterns. At the conclusion of the program, students will complete a crime analytics project to demonstrate their mastery of crime analytics.
Students entering the Concentration in Crime Analytics choose one of the two tracks:
- Crime Analytics Track
- Advance Crime Analytics Track
General Degree Information
The School of Social Welfare offers a master’s program of study in criminal justice and criminology. The program is designed to educate students for leadership positions in the field of criminal justice. The program also provides a strong foundation for students anticipating advanced study at the doctoral level. The curriculum is also designed to prepare Criminal Justice professionals to understand all aspects of criminal justice policy. Legal, organizational, political and behavioral frameworks are used to analyze the operation of the criminal justice system. Students are introduced to advanced knowledge on the nature and causes of crime, the justification and means of social control, the administration of the justice system, and the evaluation of criminal justice programs.
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
An applicant must meet all Graduate School requirements plus these program-specific requirements to be considered for admission:
- Undergraduate degree from an accredited university in criminal justice, a related social science, or other relevant educational background.
- Undergraduate cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.00.
- In addition, applicants with an undergraduate cumulative GPA between 2.75-2.99 may be considered for admission, but should address their lower cumulative GPA within their reason statement.
- Two letters of recommendation from persons who are familiar with the applicant’s academic record and suitability for graduate work.
- It is recommended that applicants have completed a research methods course and a statistics course at the undergraduate level prior to beginning the program.
- Applicants must also submit a brief narrative statement indicating reasons for interest in graduate study.
Application
Application must be made to the Graduate School. Applicants may be admitted to the program for Fall, Spring or Summer (note graduate course offerings are currently limited in the summer session). For further information regarding the application process, please contact the Criminal Justice & Criminology Department office at (414) 229-2392
.
Credits and Courses
The Master of Science in Criminal Justice consists of a minimum of 30 graduate credits:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Courses taken within the Criminal Justice program (24 credits) | ||
| Must include 15 credits of: | ||
| CRM JST 713 | Measuring Crime & Analyzing Crime Data | 3 |
| CRM JST 743 | Proseminar: Administration of Criminal Justice Systems | 3 |
| CRM JST 756 | Proseminar: Analysis of Criminal Justice Research | 3 |
| CRM JST 773 | Criminological Perspectives | 3 |
| CRM JST 920 | Criminal Justice Masters Capstone Seminar | 3 |
| Select an additional 9 credits of Criminal Justice Electives (4 courses) | 9 | |
| Select an additional 6 credit hours taken elsewhere in the School of Social Welfare or in other UWM departments with the prior consent of advisor. | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 30 | |
The student must pursue either Option A: Essay Option, or Capstone Option B: Non-Essay Option described below.
Option A: Essay Option
Students must complete the required proseminars and, as part of the 30 graduate credits required, must complete 3 credits of research and a graduate-level statistics course approved by the student’s faculty advisor. Students planning to go into doctoral programs are strongly encouraged to pursue the essay option.
Essay
An acceptable essay must be written on the student’s area of concentration.
Comprehensive Examination
The student must pass a final oral examination in defense of the essay.
Option B: Non-Essay Option
Students must complete the 30 graduate credits required, including the three proseminars and the criminal justice capstone seminar course.
Crime Analytics Track
Students who complete the Crime Analytics Track will be prepared to enter into crime analysis positions in law enforcement and in other criminal justice organizations. To complete this track, students will take the following series of courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CRM JST 520 | Analysis Oriented Technology: Spatial Data Analysis; Crime Mapping; ArcGIS | 3 |
| CRM JST 713 | Measuring Crime & Analyzing Crime Data | 3 |
| CRM JST 716 | Advanced Analytic Techniques for Crime Analysts | 3 |
| CRM JST 795 | Issues in Law Enforcement Practice and Policy | 3 |
| or CRM JST 850 | Issues in Correctional Practice and Policy | |
| CRM JST 910 | Methods and Practice Capstone for Crime Analysts | 3 |
| Total Credits | 15 | |
Students who complete the Crime Analytics track will also be required to complete the requirements of the master’s in Criminal Justice & Criminology, for a total of 33 credits. Students who completed CRM JST 520 at the undergraduate level can have another course substituted for CRM JST 520 with the permission of the department chair. Students who take CRM JST 910 will not need to take CRM JST 920. Students must receive a B or better in all the listed required courses in order to have the concentration posted on their transcripts.
Advanced Crime Analytics Track
The Advanced Crime Analytics track will be intensive in research methods and advanced statistical analysis. Students who complete the advanced track with be prepared for jobs as advanced analyst, to work with big data, and to conduct advanced predictive modeling. To complete this track, students will take the following series of courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CRM JST 520 | Analysis Oriented Technology: Spatial Data Analysis; Crime Mapping; ArcGIS | 3 |
| CRM JST 713 | Measuring Crime & Analyzing Crime Data | 3 |
| CRM JST 716 | Advanced Analytic Techniques for Crime Analysts | 3 |
| CRM JST 795 | Issues in Law Enforcement Practice and Policy | 3 |
| or CRM JST 850 | Issues in Correctional Practice and Policy | |
| SOC WRK 962 | Applied Multiple Regression Analysis | 3 |
| SOC WRK 963 | Measurement Methods and Related Multivariate Statistics | 3 |
| CRM JST 783 | Data Mining and Predictive Modeling for Crime Analytics | 3 |
| CRM JST 910 | Methods and Practice Capstone for Crime Analysts | 3 |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Students who complete the Advanced Crime Analysts track will also be required to complete the requirements of the Master’s in Criminal Justice & Criminology, for a total of 36 completed credits. Students who completed CRM JST 520 at the undergraduate level can have another course substituted for CRM JST 520 with the permission of the department chair. Students who take CRM JST 910 will not need to take CRM JST 920. Students must receive a B or better in all the listed required courses in order to have the concentration posted on their transcripts.
Additional Requirements
Major Professor as Advisor
The student must have a faculty advisor to advise and supervise the student’s studies as specified in Graduate School regulations. At the time of admission, the Graduate Program Director will assign each student to a faculty advisor. Students who begin to work closely with a particular faculty member with expertise in their area of interest may request that this faculty member serve as their advisor. Students who pursue the Essay Option must choose a faculty member to serve as their major professor.
Time Limit
The student must complete all degree requirements within seven years of initial enrollment.
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.