2024-2025 College Catalog 
  
    Feb 26, 2025  
2024-2025 College Catalog

Criminal Justice, A.S.

Location(s): Main Campus, Internet Academy


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HEGIS: 5505

SUNY CODE: 1100

The Criminal Justice A.S. program prepares students to transfer to a four-year college or university to major in criminal justice and related social science disciplines. Building on a solid foundation of required courses focusing on law, criminology, criminal justice and private security, the curriculum allows students to take elective coursework in such areas as policing, juvenile justice, corrections and security to suit their own professional interests. In addition, students take a variety of courses in such areas as forensic science, math and social science.

The goals of this program are to:

  • provide students with philosophical and historical background of the criminal justice system as well as a working knowledge of the NYS penal and criminal procedure law;
  • introduce students to the theories of crime, crime causation, crime prevention, as well as a general understanding of criminal justice ethics and resolution of those issues; and
  • provide students with a foundational knowledge of various theories of punishment, the philosophy of corrections, and the major components of the adult and juvenile correctional system, and how racial, ethnic, gender, and class issues affect policies and operations within these systems.

Successful graduates from this program will be able to:

  • identify and analyze the impact of the philosophical and historical foundations of the CJ systems, and identify and apply selected statutes in the NYS penal law and criminal procedure law.
  • analyze theories and compare and contrast the validity of various theories and the theory application; identify common CJ ethical issues as well as resolutions to those issues.
  • identify the main parts and functions of the adult and juvenile corrections system and how racial, ethnic, gender, and class issues affect policies and operations within these systems.

Transfer Information

Graduates go on to four-year colleges and universities such as SUNY Brockport, SUNY Oswego, SUNY Albany, SUNY Plattsburgh, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Utica University and Rochester Institute of Technology.

Program of Study


1st Year


Subtotal: 16

2nd Semester


Subtotal: 15

Mathematics Elective: MA 124  or higher.

2nd Year


3rd Semester


  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Criminal Justice Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • English/Humanities Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Laboratory Science Elective Credit Hour(s): 4
  •  

  • US History and Civic Engagement Selective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • OR

  • World History and Global Awareness Selective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Physical Education Activity Credit Hour(s): 1
Subtotal: 17

Western Civilization Selective: This must be a Social Science course.

EN, HU, or FL Elective: Student must select one (1) course from the following categories: The Arts, Other World Civilizations or Foreign Language.

Laboratory Science Elective: Student should select from the following: SC 125 , SC 150  or other laboratory science elective.

4th Semester


  • Criminal Justice Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
     
  • English Selective Credit Hour(s): 3
    OR
  • Foreign Language Selective Credit Hour(s): 3
    OR
  • Humanities Selective Credit Hour(s): 3
     
  • Information Science Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
    OR
  • Mathematics Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
     
  • Science Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Social Science Elective Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Physical Education Activity Credit Hour(s): 1
Subtotal: 16

English/Foreign Language/Humanities Selective: Student must select a course from one of the following categories - Arts, Foreign Language or Other World Civilizations

Mathematics Elective: MA 124  or higher

Social Science Elective: Student must select from the following: SS 164 , SS 225 , SS 227  or SS 246  

Total Credit Hours: 64


This program may be completed entirely online. For more information access Herkimer College’s Internet Academy website: www.herkimer.edu/ia

For more information, contact the Academic Division at (315) 866-0300, ext. 8240 or toll free 1-844-GO-4-HERK, ext. 8240.

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