Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice
Masters Degree in Criminology & Criminal Justice
Admissions Requirements
Students interested in applying
to the MA program in Criminology and Criminal Justice should
submit the following materials
directly to the Graduate School:
 University application
through the Graduate
School website (online at:
http://gradschool.sc.edu/
apply.htm.)
 Personal statement (500
words).
 Two letters of recommendation from faculty members or other persons
qualified to evaluate applicant’s abilities to undertake graduate level studies.
The Department of Criminology and Criminal
Justice at the University of South Carolina offers graduate programs leading to a Masters of
Arts and Doctorate of Philosophy in Criminology and Criminal Justice. Our Columbia campus is centrally located in South Carolina’s capital city, which provides graduate students access to a wide array of state and federal agencies and abundant opportunities for work and
research. Faculty research and teaching interests span a wide variety of crime- and criminal
justice-related topics, including policing, courts,
corrections, law and policy, macro- and microlevel criminological theory, sentencing, victimization, and program evaluation. Graduates
from these programs are well prepared to enter teaching, research, or policy-making positions in the criminal justice system.
NON-THESIS TRACK OPTION
Degree requirements for the Non- Thesis Track
M.A. program in Criminology and Criminal Justice include the following:
 Either MAT or GRE scores
(GRE-both verbal and
quantitative sections of
the general exam).
Core Classes: 15 credit hours of classes,
each of which must be completed with a
grade of B or better (CRJU 701, 702, 703,
705, and 741).
 Official grade transcripts
from all previous institutions.
Electives: 15 credit hours of courses with
no more than three courses (9 credit hrs.)
below the 700 level.
For More Information Contact:
Dr. Robert Kaminski
Graduate Program Director
Dept. of Criminology & Criminal
Justice
1305 Greene Street
Columbia, SC 29208
Phone: 803-777-1560
Fax: 803-777-9600
Email: [email protected]
Comprehensive Exam: each student in the
Non-Thesis track must successfully complete a policy paper (which would include
a separate executive summary) in order to
satisfy the comprehensive requirement.
Students selecting this option would be
required to select one of three available
topics. The Non-Thesis comprehensive
exam is given once during the fall semester and once during the spring semester
and should be taken during the last semester of coursework. Students who fail
the exam will be permitted to retake it
one time.
THESIS TRACK OPTION
Degree requirements for the Thesis Track M.A.
program in Criminology and Criminal Justice
include the following:
Core Classes: 15 credit hours of classes,
each of which must be completed with a
grade of B or better (CRJU 701, 702, 703,
705, and 741).
Electives: 9 credit hours of courses with
no more than two courses (6 credit hrs.)
below the 700 level.
Comprehensive Exam: each student must
successfully complete the general M.A.
comprehensive examination, which tests
students’ general knowledge of major
philosophical, scientific, theoretical, and
policy issues related to criminology and
criminal justice. Students who fail the
exam will be permitted to retake it one
time. Students satisfy the comprehensive
requirement by orally defending their
thesis proposal typically the first three
chapters) before their thesis examination
committee (2 faculty members).
Thesis: students must complete a 6 credit
hour thesis.
Successful completion of the thesis will
require an oral defense of the completed
thesis before the student’s thesis examination committee (2 faculty members).