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doctorate in criminal justice.

The doctoral program in criminal justice is organized around five components:

A core of courses in theory and research on the criminal justice system and the nature of crime

A core of required courses on research methods and statistical analysis

Elective courses in criminal justice and related fields

Comprehensive examinations

Dissertation.

The Ph.D. in criminal justice requires a minimum of 93 graduate hours beyond the baccalaureate degree. This includes up to 30 hours earned in a master's degree. Satisfactory completion of a teaching practicum also is required. For more complete information about the doctoral program please read the Doctor in Philosophy Criminal Justice Student Handbook (in WordPerfect format).

admission requirements.

Admission to the program will be governed generally by the requirements specified by the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Graduate College. In addition to the basic requirements established by the Graduate College, the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice will require the following:

An earned Master of Arts or Master of Science degree in criminal justice from an accredited institution will be required for unconditional admission into the program.

Applicants with a Master's Degree in an allied field (sociology, political science, public administration, etc.) and who lack substantial course work in criminal justice may be granted provisional admission. They will be granted unconditional admission upon successful completion of 18 hours of criminal justice courses from the core curriculum.

Outstanding applicants who have completed a baccalaureate and wish to be considered for the doctoral program may be provisionally admitted but must first complete the requirements for the master's prior to unconditional admission into the Ph.D. program.

A combined score of at least 1,000 on the verbal and quantitative portions of the Graduate Record Examination is required. Students demonstrating exceptional academic potential may be considered with a GRE score of less than 1,000. For additional information on the GRE, please visit their website at http://www.gre.org.

Applicants must present at least two letters of reference from academics.

Applicants must present a statement of intent, not exceeding five typewritten, double-spaced pages, describing the applicant's prior education, relevant professional experience, career goals, and the specific relationship of the Ph.D. degree to the achievement of these goals.

International students seeking admission to the program must meet UNO Graduate Faculty requirements governing the admission of international students. In addition to these requirements, all ESL students are required to submit scores from the "ILETS" or the "Internet TOEFL" (the paper TOEFL will not be accepted). Minimum required scores are as follows:
     "ILETS" -- minimum score of 7.5 is required and we prefer an 8.0, (OR)
     "Internet TOEFL" -- minimum score of 21 in each of the four areas and a minimum of a score of 95 overall.

All ESL students will be required to take a proficiency assessment examination upon admission. That assessment will be used to determine if further assistance is required.

curriculum.

All students will be required to complete all courses listed in the two core areas. Students also will take elective courses in criminal justice or a related field.

Core Area I = 15 credit hours
Core Area II = 15 credit hours
Specialty Area/Electives = 43 credit hours
Dissertation = 20 credit hours
Minimum Total Hours Beyond Bachelor's Degree = 93 credit hours

degree requirements.

The following section gives the details of course work for the Ph.D. in criminal justice:

core area I.

Theory and Research on the Criminal Justice System and the Nature of Crime
Required Courses (15 credit hours)

8010 Seminar on the Nature of Crime
8020 Seminar on the Administration of Justice
9010 Seminar on Law and Social Control
9020 Seminar on the Theories of Crime
9030 Seminar on Minorities and the Criminal Justice System

core area II.

Research Methods and Statistical Analysis
Required Courses (15 credit hours)

8030 Research Methods in Criminal Justice
8950 Statistical Applications in Criminal Justice and Public Affairs (also listed as PA 8950)
9080 Advanced Statistical Applications (also listed as PA 9080)
9700 Teaching Criminal Justice at the College Level
9800 Advanced Research Design (also listed as PA 9800)

specialty area/elective courses (43 credit hours).

8040 Seminar on Police and Society
8050 Seminar on Corrections
8060 Seminar on the Criminal Court System
8070 Seminar on Law and Criminal Procedure
8080 Seminar on the Juvenile Justice System
8090 Seminar on Theoretical Criminology
8100 Criminal Justice Organization and Management
8110 Criminal Justice Planning and Change
8120 Independent Study in Criminal Justice and Criminology
8200 Special Problems in Criminal Justice and Criminology
9040 Comparative Criminology and Criminal Justice Systems
9090 Special Problems in Research Methods
9100 Special Problems in Statistical Analysis
9110 Seminar on Police Organization and Management
9120 Seminar on Police Effectiveness
9130 Advanced Research Topics in Policing
9150 Special Topics in Criminal Justice Research
9160 Seminar on Community Based Corrections
9170 Seminar on Institutional Corrections
9180 Seminar on Court Processing and Sentencing
9200 Seminar on Violent Crime and Criminal Behavior
9980 Directed Readings in Criminal Justice

public administration courses.

8090 Organizational Theory and Behavior
8300 Seminar on Policy Design and Implementation
8320 Seminar on Public Policy Evaluation 
9000 Foundations of Public Administration
9050 Seminar on Ethics in Public Affairs 
9300 Knowledge Development and Use in Public Service Professions (also listed as PA 9300)
9320 Seminar on Policy Analysis
9350 Computer Applications in Criminal Justice and Public Affairs
9400 Environment of Public Administration
9420 Organizational Dynamics
9600 Seminar in Advanced Management Theory
9700 Public Budgeting and Financial Theory

dissertation (20 credit hours).

A 20-credit-hour dissertation will be required of all students. The dissertation must reflect original scholarship and contribute to the body of knowledge on criminal justice. The dissertation topic must be approved by the student's supervisory committee, which consists of a chair and four other members. One committee member must be from outside criminal justice. The dissertation prospectus and the dissertation itself must be approved by the supervisory committee. An oral defense of the prospectus will be scheduled after students have passed their written comprehensive examinations. An oral defense of the completed dissertation also is required.

forms.

Recommendation for Graduate Admission

for more information.

For more information about the application process and requirements visit the Graduate College website.

For answers to individual questions, please contact Dr. Robbin Ogle, Director of Graduate Studies,
(402) 554-2610..