Boston University offers a 1-Year Master's of Criminal Justice (MCJ) with specialized courses in criminal law & justice, white collar crime, terrorism, forensics, and youth crime. Core courses cover the history, philosophy, politics, and social consequences of the American criminal justice system. The unique program is offered completely online and results in the same prestigious degree as the campus program at Boston University. The field of criminal justice is changing. Technological advancements, coupled with contemporary world events, have created an ever-increasing need for criminal justice professionals who have insight into the sociological, legal, theoretical, and practical arenas of law. Professors in the Master's of Criminal Justice program have extensive backgrounds in Law, Criminology, Sociology, Psychology, Urban Affairs, and Criminal Justice. A Boston University Criminal Justice student says: "I am quite impressed by the professional background of the CJ professors. I've taken several classes that were taught by a lieutenant in the BPD, a director of the Massachusetts sentencing committee, and a seasoned defense attorney. These professors brought their real world experience into the classroom. " - Anderson W. Louie About Boston University, Online An online degree from Boston University represents achievement of a high academic standard. BU's programs are accredited through the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, one of six nationally recognized accrediting agencies. In addition to academic rigor, a vital component of all Boston University Online programs is the availability of outstanding Student Services. The Office of Distance Education assures that Boston University Online students receive prompt and attentive assistance throughout their learning experience, from application and registration to technical support to graduation details. As a Boston University student, you will also have access to the same highly respected alumni network as campus students - over 250,000 world-wide. www.bu.edu Good Luck!
Boston University is a fantastic school, but I'm not a fan of their online CJ Master's degree for a few reasons; 1) The online program is administered by a private company in Florida. 2) It's pretty darn expensive ($2640 per course....$25K+ with books). 3) BU doesn't have a CJ department, the degree is offered through their "Metropolitan College" (continuing education), which uses mostly adjuncts. 4) Despite being in the heart of Boston, the program isn't approved for the police education incentive program in Massachusetts known as the "Quinn Bill", which has rigorous academic standards, especially in regards to the number of adjuncts vs. the number of full-time, doctoral qualified faculty; http://www.osfa.mass.edu/quinnbill/ In fairness to BU, I don't know if they even applied for approval, but it seems odd they wouldn't try to tap into that huge pool of potential students (police officers). As I said, BU is a great school, but I think there are far better options out there for a CJ Master's degree.
Thanks for the good points raised, Bruce. Interesting that BU is not linked with the BPD on this--my master's at Northwestern has an entire "public safety" concentration to tap into CPD and CFD students and also many suburban departments as well.
