Justice Comes to Rutgers-Camden

Rutgers University’s Camden campus has admitted its first applicants to a new graduate program in criminal justice. According to Dr. Margaret Marsh, dean of the Rutgers-Camden Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School, 11 students -- all drawn from the justice community in South Jersey -- will begin classes in September.

The master of arts degree in criminal justice offers a 30-credit curriculum that is designed to prepare graduates for senior-level positions in crime control or justice-related agencies, says Dr. Drew Humphries, a Rutgers-Camden professor of criminal justice who will direct both the new graduate and existing undergraduate programs.

“If you work in criminal justice and want to take on administrative responsibilities, this program is for you,” says Dr. Jane Siegel, an assistant professor of criminal justice. “It equips students with the necessary knowledge and skills to move into administration.”

Through courses in public and human resource management, budgeting and finance, students will acquire a broad understanding of the criminal justice system, including the contemporary issues affecting it and the analytical skills required to conduct and apply research, and to assess public policy. Students also will choose electives from the offerings in public administration, history, and law.

The incoming class of students works in federal, state and county agencies ranging from law enforcement to corrections, says Humphries. They are part-time students, who take classes at night. “Given the mix of experience in law, investigation, enforcement, parole and so on, seminars ought to challenge everyone involved.”

“We see this program as yet another way Rutgers University is fulfilling its mission to provide educational opportunities in South Jersey and the metropolitan region,” Marsh says. The popularity of the undergraduate criminal justice program, which started in the fall of 1998, helped spark the creation of the graduate program, she says.

Humphries says the criminal justice department contacted a consultant from the law enforcement community about a year ago. They began working with local police chiefs to survey police departments in South Jersey in order to develop a program that responds to law enforcement needs and discovered there is a demand for management training opportunities, Humphries says.

Nancy Rosoff, assistant dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, says: “As the newest program in the state, we wanted to make sure that the curriculum reflected the educational needs of law enforcement and leaders in other agencies.”

For more information on the graduate program in criminal justice, contact Humphries at (856) 225-6073 or humphri@camden.rutgers.edu.

More information on the degree can be found here.

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Author: Press Release-Rutgers University