Programs

The Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies offers a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies and a Minor in Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies.  The department currently does not have a graduate program.

The criminology and criminal justice studies curriculum examines the changing nature and content of law, the shifting public expectations of criminal and civil justice agencies, the implications of diversity along the lines of race, gender and class, and the reactions of agencies to social perceptions and political pressures. It trains students to use an interdisciplinary and multi-methodological academic approach in understanding the mechanisms of social control, resolutions of criminal justice problems, and accepted procedures and alternatives.  This general but all-important background serves as a base for the areas of emphasis that are of interest to the individual student. 

Impaction Status

CCJS is one of the most popular majors at Sonoma State University.  However, the increase in its student enrollment has not been matched with commensurate increase in department resources.  Thus, in January 2012, the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies declared impaction status to slow down the number of students seeking to declare a CCJS major or minor.  The department currently uses a 3.00 minimum cumulative GPA as its admission criterion to declare a CCJS major or minor.