Master’s in Criminal Justice Programs in North Carolina

What Can I Do With My Master’s in Criminal Justice in North Carolina?

If you’re interested in high-level positions in this industry, a master’s degree may be the way to get your foot in the door. Contact local schools to learn more about earning a master’s in criminal justice in North Carolina.

North Carolina has been in the news lately for a major new piece of legislation that was just voted and approved. House Bill 280 would allow a 16- or 17-year-old who commits certain crimes to be tried as a juvenile – not as an adult. Lawmakers hope that passing this law will help reduce crime in the state, like it has when other states have passed similar piece of legislation. It has been found that juvenile offenders are less likely to commit crimes after their sentence is complete if they served their time in the juvenile, rather than adult, prison system. With a master’s degree your expertise could be crucial to the continuation of criminal justice reform within the state.

A master’s degree in criminal justice in North Carolina can help you move up in your current field or open entirely new career paths to you. Statewide demand for correctional supervisors is predicted to decrease by 9% through the year 2026, and professionals in this field earn an average of $50,270 per year (CareerOneStop, 2017).

Job openings for private detectives may jump 14% in this timeframe; the average salary for a private detective is $48,240 per year (CareerOneStop, 2017).

What Will It Take to Earn My Criminal Justice Graduate Degree in North Carolina?

To earn your graduate degree in criminal justice you will need to earn at least 30 credits, at a minimum. The average credit-requirement for a criminal justice master’s degree in North Carolina is 36 credits. Assuming you attend school year-round and maintain a full-time course load, you may be able to graduate in two years.

North Carolina tuition rates are determined by your resident status. The range of tuition costs goes from $565 per credit to $2000 per credit. Local associations, including the North Carolina Correctional Association, set aside funds for criminal justice scholarships.

Although specific course names are different from school to school, general learning outcomes and class topics tend to be very similar across North Carolina. You may enroll in courses like these ones:

• Criminal Justice Policy: An analysis of how policies and laws affecting criminal justice are created
• Nature and Theory of Crime: Factors that lead to crime and theories regarding the prevention of crime
• Research in Criminal Justice: A summation of recent research in criminal justice and how it is used in major industry decisions
• Criminal Justice and the Law: How the industries of law and criminal justice work together for the same common goals
• International Criminal Justice: Criminal justice systems in other countries, the treatment of offenders from other countries, and international policies
• Victims and the Criminal Justice System: The treatment of victims within the system and avoiding the re-victimization of those who come forward

Upon completion of your master’s degree in criminal justice in North Carolina, you may choose a thesis option or a non-thesis option. The non-thesis option requires you to pass a rigorous criminal justice examination.

Your future career begins with the proper training. Make your move and request information from criminal justice schools in North Carolina.