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Criminology

Graduate with more than just a degree—graduate with a holistic understanding of crime and justice and a set of practical skills that will prepare you for a successful career engaging and transforming the criminal legal system. Design and stack your major with certificates, courses, minors, and other majors to meet your career goals. Your job creating a more just and equitable world starts here.

Join a community dedicated to equitable and restorative systems of law and justice.  Our distinct program connects you with a close-knit community of students, faculty and professionals who are passionate about work in community and social services, protective services and public safety, legal occupations, and policy work and public administration.  Together we will shape the future of justice.  

View our Criminology and Restorative Justice minor

  • Distinctives

    The criminology major is 32 SH and works as a stand-along major and can also complement a second major to build broader competencies. As an interdisciplinary major in an evolving field, the major is designed to integrate seamlessly with political science, psychology, spanish language and hispanic studies, business administration, and peacebuilding.  Students looking to transfer to EMU receive one-on-one support from a faculty member to map out an individual degree completion plan for a streamlined pathway to career success.

  • Outcomes

    EMU faculty and alum have a long history of helping to inspire efforts to humanize and reform justice systems worldwide.  Members of the EMU community have been recognized in their work to offer a vision of criminal justice that seeks healing over punishment, restoration over retribution, and peace over violence.  Students have the opportunity to learn from those who have helped to shape policies and practices to better address the needs of victims, offenders, and communities.

  • Internships, Research, and Job Outcomes
    See below.
  • Affordability
    • 99% of undergrads receive financial aid
    • The average assistance package is over $37,000
    • Over $21 million in aid is awarded each year

    Financial aid packages often include:

    Learn more by contacting  EMU's Financial Assistance Office or checking out our net price calculator.

 

Criminology Faculty

Jenni Holsinger
Associate Professor

Jenni Holsinger

Courses Taught: Research Methods, Urban Sociology, Stratification, Environmental Justice

Areas of Interest: Demography and migration, environmental sociology, race and ethnic relations, urban sociology

Learn More aboutJenni Holsinger
Gaurav Pathania
Assistant Professor

Gaurav Pathania

Courses Taught: Theories of Social Change, Social Movements, Sociology of Health, Community Organizing and Social Action

Areas of Interest: Ethnographic research, cultural sociology, caste, class and racial discriminiation, identity movements

Learn More aboutGaurav Pathania
Hilary Moore
Adjunct Faculty

Hilary Moore

Courses Taught: Criminology, Criminal Justice

Areas of Interest: Consumer credit and bankruptcy, family law, insurance and medical malpractice defense, workers' compensation defense, mass torts, expert witness preparation, homicides and sexual offenses prosecution

Learn More aboutHilary Moore

Career Options

The above data was drawn from ONet and is intended for informational purposes only.

Additional Career Options

The criminology major prepares students for careers working with justice-involved populations in a diverse range of roles and settings.  Students develop the knowledge and skills to excel as a:

  • Mediator
  • Mitigation Specialist
  • Court Services, Probation, or Parole Officer (adult or juvenile)
  • Victim, Witness, or Survivor Advocate
  • Restorative Justice Coordinator
  • Policy Analyst
  • Community Organizer
  • Skill-based/Gang Intervention Mentor
  • Correctional Counselor
  • Park Ranger

Research Opportunities

All criminology majors receive one-on-one research mentorship by a faculty member for their Junior Year Research Project. Sample research topics include:

  • the effectiveness of community-based rehabilitation programs 
  • the effects of mass surveillance and predictive policing algorithms
  • protections for LGBTQ+ rights in correctional facilities
  • the effects of criminalization of immigration on families
  • the effect of trauma-informed policing practices in reducing re-traumatization of crime victims
  • the barriers to reintegration or the mechanisms of disenfranchisement for formerly incarcerated individuals
  • the efficacy of mental health, drug, or other problem-focused courts
  • the criminalization of poverty through cash bail
  • the effectiveness of body cameras on police accountability
  • the roles of community trust in policing
  • the pathways through which childhood trauma or collective trauma contributes to violent offending
  • human rights and policy reform in immigrant detention centers
  • the impact of zero-tolerance policies on minority youth
  • the impact of historical legislation on current criminal justice practices
  • social justice implications of the war on drugs
  • the effect of trauma-informed substance abuse treatment programs on recidivism

Internship Placements

Gain practical experience and develop networks for future employment through an internship in a professional workplace.   Work closely with a faculty member to shape this practical experience around specific career interests and identify opportunities in a home community, near EMU’s campus, or at the Washington Community Scholars’ Center in Washington, D.C.  

Past Internship Placements (*of sociology majors with a concentration in criminal justice):

  • Blue Ridge Legal Services
  • Central Shenandoah Criminal Justice Training Academy
  • Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services
  • Fairfax County Police Department 
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • Rockingham County Sheriff's Office