Are you interested in criminal justice, the American criminal justice system or law enforcement? This is another area of the legal field which differs from traditional law practice and may require diving into a specialized criminal justice program before pursuing a career. Popular careers which criminal justice professionals may want to pursue are:
- Federal, state, county, and municipal law enforcement
- Homeland security and leadership development
- Private security and investigation
- Probation, parole and community corrections officers
- Law school*
*Please keep in mind that the only requirement to enter law school is a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university. Current law students may pursue criminal justice careers without a specific Criminal Justice degree.
Criminal Justice
- America’s overarching system of police, courts, and jails
- Focused on law enforcement and its procedural aspects rather than its impact on greater society (criminology)
- Includes government institutions aimed at upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime and sanctioning those who violate laws
- Lawyers may also be part of the criminal justice system in a wide range of law jobs
- State or federal prosecution
- Private criminal defense attorneys
- Police officers at local law enforcement agencies
- Correctional/probation officers
- Academic professors
- Degrees offer courses that build foundational skills in
- Management
- Personnel administration
- Program evaluation
- Research methods
BA in Sociology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, with a Concentration in Criminology, Deviance, and Social Control
- Sociology is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior, including rule making, breaking, and enforcement
- Can specialize in criminology and criminal justice through UHM Sociology's concentration in criminology, deviance, and social control
- Offers sixteen undergraduate courses on crime, criminal justice, and the law more broadly
- Faculty includes criminology and criminal justice scholars who explore social construction, regulation, and consequences of crime and deviance, including official and unofficial policing, court-processing, and punishment.
Contact:
Dr. Barbara Joyce
B.A. in Public Administration, Concentration in Justice Administration, University of Hawaii at West Oahu
- Learn to apply the principles of justice administration to local, state, and federal justice systems
- How to identify and evaluate problems, policy dilemmas and solutions
- Many students continue their education and go on to law school or pursue a master’s degree in criminal justice
Contacts:
Dr. Gary Helfand, Professor
(808) 689-2363
Dr. Michael Hallstone, Professor
(808) 689-2362
M.S. in Criminal Justice Administration, Chaminade University
- Offers tracks focused on either Correctional or Law Enforcement paths
- Hybrid track available for students interested in the inter-workings of the entire criminal justice system (both law enforcement and corrections)
- Most accommodating to those interested in the pursuit of a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice or seeking entry into law school
Contact:
Ronald Becker
Honolulu Police Department
- Independently performs a variety of law enforcement, crime prevention, investigative and other specialized police work
- Patrolling an assigned area on foot or in a mobile device
- Directing and controlling traffic
- Making arrests
- Responding to any type of emergencies
- Maintaining order
- Rendering first aid
- Preserves evidence
- Detains suspected violators of the laws
The Honolulu Police Department (HPD) recruits individuals and welcomes them to apply for police officer candidacy.
Minimum qualifications for a hopeful Honolulu Police Officer are:
- At least 20 years of age
- High school graduate or G.E.D.
- Valid State of Hawaii Driver’s License
- Must meet federal and state requirements for carrying firearms
- Citizen, national, or permanent resident alien of the United States. Non-citizen with unrestricted employment authorization from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may also apply
Thousands of applicants dive into the application cycle, which takes approximately 6-8 months to complete due to its many steps and requirements.
- Multiple-choice Civil Service exam
- Background checks
- Psychological exams
- Physical fitness test
- Comprehensive medical exams
- Truth verification
Criminology
- “The study of crime”
- Uses behavioral sciences to analyze and identify the causes of crime and devise methods for its prevention
- Criminal behavior as an individual’s specific behavior, but also as a broad social phenomenon
- Academic discipline
- Bears most resemblance to a sociologist – or, someone paid to do academic research on human social behavior
- Some of the skills used involve:
- Designing research projects to test theories about social issues
- Collecting data through observations, interviews, and other sources
- Preparing reports, articles, or presentations detailing their research findings
- Advising clients, policymakers, or other groups on research findings and sociological issues
According to the BLS, most criminology-related jobs are government or nonprofit researcher positions and postsecondary instructors or professors
- Predicts a 15% growth rate between 2012 to 2022
- Only about 400 new jobs over the 10-year period
- Very competitive job market
- Only about 400 new jobs over the 10-year period
- More on job outlook for sociologists