two students walking outside a building on campus

Master of Criminal Justice (MCJ)

MCJ Degree Requirements

  • Thesis Option: The completion of 36 hours of course work, which includes CJ 699 Thesis.
    Capstone Option: The completion of 36 hours of course work, which includes CJ 693 Capstone.
  • Complete all required coursework while maintaining no less than a “B” (3.0) average.
  • No more than two grades of “C” in the plan of study will count for credit. If a student receives more than two grades of a “C,” the student must form a plan of completion, to include regularly scheduled performance check-ins with the MCJ Program Coordinator.
  • At least 85% of the semester hours required for the degree must be earned at Washburn University.
  • Maintain continuous enrollment each regular semester (fall and spring). A minimum of one (1) semester hour of graduate work will constitute continuous enrollments.
  • Unless an earlier deadline is stipulated by the instructor of the course, incompletes must be completed by the end of two consecutive semesters which excludes the summer session, otherwise a grade of “F” will be recorded. Incompletes in the capstone or thesis course will remain I’s until the capstone or thesis project is completed.
  • Complete all program requirements within seven (7) years of the date of entry into the MCJ degree program.

Program Requirements

Thesis Option (36 Hours)

Students pursuing the “Thesis” option must complete 18 hours in the core curriculum, 12 hours of elective courses, and 6 hours of Thesis.

Core
CJ 600Seminar in Criminal Justice Systems3
CJ 602Criminal Justice Research3
CJ 603Issues in Criminal Procedure3
CJ 610Corrections in the United States3
or CJ 620 Role of Law Enforcement in the United States
CJ 625Seminar In Criminological Theory3
Subtotal15
Electives
Elective courses15
Subtotal15
Thesis6
Thesis
Subtotal6
Total Hours36

Capstone Option (36 Hours)

Students pursuing the “Capstone” option must complete 15 hours in the core curriculum, 18 hours of elective courses, and 3 hours for the Capstone course. The Capstone course is typically offered once per year in the spring semester.

Core
CJ 600Seminar in Criminal Justice Systems3
CJ 602Criminal Justice Research3
CJ 603Issues in Criminal Procedure3
CJ 610Corrections in the United States3
or CJ 620 Role of Law Enforcement in the United States
CJ 625Seminar In Criminological Theory3
Subtotal15
Electives
Elective courses18
Subtotal18
Capstone
CJ 693Capstone Experience3
Subtotal3
Total Hours36

Electives 

CJ 604Seminar in Criminal Justice Organization and Management3
CJ 605Ethics in Criminal Justice3
CJ 630Seminar in Correctional Administration3
CJ 635Organized and White Collar Crime3
CJ 640Seminar in Legal Issues in Law Enforcement3
CJ 645Comparative Criminal Justice Systems3
CJ 650Seminar in Community Corrections3
CJ 655Seminar in Juvenile Justice And Delinquency3
CJ 660Seminar in Operational and Staff Planning3
CJ 670Seminar in Correctional Law3
CJ 675Problems & Practices in Judicial Administration3
CJ 680Seminar in Staff Development3
CJ 685Special Topics - Criminal Justice1-3
CJ 690Directed Readings - Criminal Justice1-3
CJ 692Analytical Research and Statistics3