Undergraduate List of Courses
Undergraduate Course List
CRIJ 1301 Introduction to the Criminal Justice System
This course provides a historical and philosophical overview of the American criminal justice system, including the
nature, extent, and impact of crime; criminal law; and justice agencies and processes.
CRIJ 1306 Court Systems and Practices
The study of the structures, procedures, practices, and sources of law in American courts.
CRIJ 1307 Crime in America
Examination of American crime problems in historical perspective. Topics may include social and public policy factors affecting crime, crime impact and trends, and the prevention of crime.
CRIJ 1310 Fundamentals of Criminal Law
Study of criminal law, its philosophical and historical development, major definitions and concepts, classifications and elements of crime, penalties using Texas statutes as illustrations, and criminal responsibility.
CRIJ 1313 Juvenile Justice System
An overview of the nature of juvenile delinquency; the theory and practice of juvenile courts; juvenile case law; juvenile crime prevention; treatment of juvenile offenders; and juvenile justice system.
CRIJ 2313 Correctional Systems and Practices
This course is a survey of institutional and non‐institutional corrections. Emphasis will be placed on the organization and operation of correctional systems; treatment and rehabilitation; populations served; Constitutional issues; and current and future issues.
CRIJ 2328 Police Systems and Practices
This course examines the establishment, role, and function of police in a democratic society. It will focus on types of police agencies, their organizational structure, police‐community interaction, police ethics, and use of authority.
CRIJ 3303 Criminology
Examination of theories and perspectives in criminology. The course surveys historical, philosophical, and theoretical ideas pertaining to crime causation, justice, and social control. The course will evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, impacts and the practical and policy implications of the theories and perspectives.
CRIJ 3304 Criminal Justice Research Methods
Examination of quantitative and qualitative research designs. The course covers the steps in the research process, from data collection to analysis.
CRIJ 3305 Statistical Applications in Criminal Justice
Examination of the use and application of statistics in Criminal Justice. Topics may include descriptive and inferential statistics, measures of central tendency, probability theory, and tests for statistical significance. Prerequisite: Any MATH course in the Core Curriculum with a minimum grade of C.
CRIJ 3310 Constitution and Criminal Law
Examination of the U.S. and Texas constitutions as they pertain to criminal law. Topics may include constitutional
foundations of criminal law, substantive and procedural rights, search and seizure, due process, incriminating evidence, the exclusionary rule, and rights at trial.
CRIJ 3316 Criminal Evidence and Proof
Examination of constitutional and legal issues pertinent to the acquisition of evidence and presentation of evidence in court. Topics may include forensic evidence, rules for admission of evidence, and the exclusionary rule.
CRIJ 3322 Juvenile Delinquency and Justice
Examination of causes of delinquency and the juvenile justice system. Topics may include patterns in delinquency;
individual and collective forms of delinquency; and the history, development, and philosophy of the juvenile justice
system.
CRIJ 3325 Violent Crime and Offenders
Examination of the historical, theoretical, disciplinary foundations of violent human behavior; types of violent crimes; violent offenders; and the contexts of violence and violence facilitators. Emphasis will be on the incidence, volume, trends, and patterns of violent crimes. Topics may include national and international cases, media coverage and societal responses to violent crime.
CRIJ 3327 Family Violence
Intimate partner abuse is studied from an interdisciplinary perspective. The cycle of violence, dominance, and control are among the issues covered sociologically and psychologically. The legal perspective includes discussion of proactive arrest policies, restraining orders, and anti‐stalking legislation that have emerged across the United States. Key factors associated with recognition of family violence and pertinent research focusing on the subject are also examined.
CRIJ 3331 Legal Aspects of Corrections
Examination of the legal problems and principles from conviction through release. Topics may include sentencing and sentencing guidelines, probation, incarceration, conditional release, post‐conviction remedies, and prisoners' and probationers' rights.
CRIJ 3341 Probation and Parole
Examination of the philosophy, history, principles, and practices of probation, parole and other community‐based
treatment programs. Topics may include trends, research on probation and parole, types of probation, alternative
sentencing, and pre‐sentence investigation.
CRIJ 3344 Gender, Crime and Justice
Examination of gender as it relates to criminality, victimization, punishment, and justice. Social ideologies about race, class, and gender are examined as to their relevance in shaping and defining crime, criminology, and the socio‐legal treatment of offenders, victims, and professionals.
CRIJ 3345 Race, Crime and Justice
Examination of race and ethnicity in the historical context of the Criminal Justice system. The course explores the social construction of crime; the treatment of racial minorities as victims and offenders by law enforcement, courts and corrections; and current issues.
CRIJ 3350 Social Justice
Examines the historical and philosophical development of the concept of justice. The course provides an overview of distributive, retributive, transformative, environmental/ecological, indigenous/postcolonial and postmodern forms of justice; and examines the nexus of criminal justice and social justice.
CRIJ 3352 Immigration Law, Policies and Practices
Provides an overview of central issues in Immigration law in the United States. The course reviews the history of
immigration laws beginning in the British North American colonies; the inception of the United States and systemic
racism; immigration in the nineteenth and twentieth century; and contemporary law, policies and practices.
CRIJ 3353 Human Trafficking
Provides an in‐depth survey of the forms of human trafficking and contemporary slavery; examines the global context of human trafficking; the trafficking process and its victims; and national and international efforts for combatting trafficking.
CRIJ 3354 War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity
Examination of theories, typologies, methods, developments, structures and operations of war, war crimes, crimes
against humanity, politicized justice/mass murder, and human rights abuse by governments and their agents.
CRIJ 4312 Principles of Law Enforcement and Supervision
Examination of the administration and supervision of law enforcement personnel. Topics may include principles of
leadership, morale, discipline, grievances, and budgeting.
CRIJ 4313 Current Issues in Law Enforcement
Examination of contemporary issues in law enforcement, with a focus on the integration of established scientific
knowledge with practical police experiences in various law enforcement issues.
CRIJ 4314 Private Security and Loss Prevention
Examination of private and industrial security systems; the historical development of private security to the present; trends, patterns, structure(s), theories, and rationale(s); and modes of operations of the private security industry. This course also explores sources of conflict and cooperation with law enforcement; public perceptions of private security; Intra/inter‐state levels (interstate compact) private security; and loss prevention.
CRIJ 4316 Environmental Crime and Justice
Examination of environmental crimes and justice; bodily and property harms and crimes from local, regional, and global environmental problems; point source and non‐point source pollution; structural violence; environmental victimology; governmental and non‐governmental responses; environmental laws and regulations; environmental justice and racism, at‐risk/disadvantaged populations; anti‐environmental backlash to regulations and laws.
CRIJ 4320 Criminal Justice Organization and Management
Examination of theories and concepts of management, organization, and administration of criminal justice systems. The course explores social trends, issues and concerns that impact criminal justice administration.
CRIJ 4321 White‐Collar and Organized Crime
Examination of white‐collar and organized crime. Topics may include the nature and types of elite deviance such as
corporate deviance, political corruption, crimes of the government, and human rights' violations. The course explores the links between the upperworld and organized crime, as well as the various crime syndicates which operate globally.
CRIJ 4322 Terrorism
Examination of the causes and forms of terrorism at the domestic and international levels. Topics may include political, economic, religious, social, and national differences among people and their implications for terrorism; major terrorist incidents and groups; and counterterrorism.
CRIJ 4335 Restorative and Community Justice
Examination of principles and ideas of restorative and community justice as an alternative justice paradigm. The
historical foundation, practices/interventions, perspectives, and the future of restorative justice; and community justice are explored in the context of crime repair. Other issues include rebuilding communities, creating positive community sentiments, and improving the capacity of communities to prevent and respond to crime.
CRIJ 4341 Correctional Casework and Counseling
Examination of the role and techniques of casework and counseling in corrections and rehabilitation, with an emphasis on integrating responsibilities and procedures. Topics may include therapy techniques and processes; and service delivery programs tailored to the needs of the offenders.
CRIJ 4343 Current Issues in Corrections
Examination of current issues in corrections. The course examines and evaluates contemporary correctional systems; evidence‐based practices; recent research on correctional institutions. Topics may include administrative issues and the systemic treatment of offenders.
CRIJ 4350 Peace, Nonviolence and Justice
Examination of theories and conceptions of peace, nonviolence, and justice. The course examines the nature of peace and war; conflict between individuals and groups; methods for nonviolent social protest; social movements; and elements and methods for achieving peace and justice.
CRIJ 4353 Gangs
Examines the development of street and prison gangs from a historical perspective; examines gang structures,
organization, and characteristics; and official responses to gang problems.
CRIJ 4355 Current Issues in the Courts
Examination of contemporary issues in the federal and state courts. Topics may include service delivery to victims,
defendants, and the community; the changing role of courts in society; specialized courts such as drug courts and
juvenile courts; and prosecution.
CRIJ 4356 Law and Society
Examination of the interrelationships between and among legal, social, and ethical issues. Topics may include the legal system, justice, human rights, jurisprudence, and perspectives from the social sciences and the humanities.
CRIJ 4357 Crime Prevention Techniques
Examination of the theory, practice, and techniques of crime prevention, including the resources, strategies and
techniques that are mobilized to prevent crime and reduce the fear of crime at the micro and macro‐levels of society. Impact of opportunity‐based and situational crime prevention theories and approaches will be critically evaluated. Emphasis will be on the socio‐cultural and physical surrounding of crimes; and finding ways to reduce the amount and spatial clustering or hot spots of crime.
CRIJ 4361 Comparative Criminal Justice Systems
Examination of the philosophy, theory, method, and operation of comparative criminal justice. The course reviews the major legal systems of the world: Common, Civil, Islamic, Socialist and hybrid law systems. Focus is on the impact of historical, social, political, religious, and cultural factors, and structures and operations of the criminal justice systems.
CRIJ 4362 Special Topics in Criminal Justice
Designed to give advanced undergraduate students the opportunity to study contemporary issues in crime and criminal justice. Topics will vary. May be repeated for additional credit as topic varies. A total of 9 credits can be earned.
CRIJ 4364 Field Internship
Placement in a criminal justice agency or related experience for a minimum of 120 hours of practical experience. Course requires evaluation of student, agency critiques, daily logs, and meetings with the intern coordinator.
CRIJ 4365 Independent Studies in Criminal Justice
Designed for advanced students who are capable of independent study and research to examine an issue or project of specific interest. This course requires the approval of the Chair of the Department of Criminal Justice and the professor directing the course.
CRIJ 4370 Senior Seminar on Policy Issues
Examination of the criminal justice system and the policies which have impacted the development of current systems. The course will provide an overview of policy applications in all facets of the criminal justice system in the United States. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice Major with 90 completed hours (36 hours in Criminal Justice).
CRIJ 4399 Criminal Justice System Capstone
Examination of all facets of the criminal justice system in the United States including philosophy, history, functions, and development of criminal justice institutions; current issues and future trends. Prerequisite: Criminal Justice Major with 90 completed hours (36 hours in Criminal Justice).