Criminal Justice

Grounded in the liberal arts and sciences, Elmira College’s Criminal Justice program is specifically designed to enhance a student’s critical thinking and preparation for a variety of options, from law school and graduate school, to employment upon graduation. To this end, the Criminal Justice program is interdisciplinary, offering students a wide variety of rotating criminal justice and law courses (i.e. Policing, Corrections, Criminal Law, Homicide Investigation, Gangs in America, the Death Penalty, Serial Offenders, etc.) as well as courses in Human Services, Politics, Psychology, and Sociology.

In preparation for future careers, students learn to apply social science research to the criminal justice system. Realizing that poor research may lead to poor public policy, our classes are designed to foster critical thinking and analytical skills.

Finally, students receive practical, career-related, experience while participating in various community service and internship opportunities. In the past, students have completed internships in agencies such as: federal, state, and local police departments; the offices of district attorneys or public defenders; probation and parole offices; and various courts.