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Department of Criminology

Curriculum

The Ph.D. in Criminology requires a minimum of 90 hours beyond the B.A./B.S.* In addition, doctoral students are required to complete comprehensive examinations, a prospectus, a prospectus defense, a dissertation, and a dissertation defense.

Shelly

The 90 hours required for the Ph.D. are as follows:

  1. 21 core hours:
    • CCJ 6050 Pro Seminar in Criminology
    • CCJ 6605 Theoretical Approaches to Criminal Behavior
    • CCJ 6705 Research Methods in Criminology
    • CCJ 6706 Quantitative Analysis in Criminology I
    • CCJ 6707 Quantitative Analysis in Criminology II
    • CCJ 6708 Quantitative Analysis in Criminology III
  2. 12 to 15 elective hours.
  3. Either CCJ 6709 Qualitative Research Methods in Criminology or CCJ 6716 Evaluation Research in Criminology
  4. 24 dissertation hours.

Up to 33 hours transferred from MA/MS

*Students entering the program with an M.A./M.S. from outside the department or USF may transfer up to 30 hours of credit. Students entering the program with an M.A. in Criminology from USF may transfer up to 33 hours of credit.

Students may petition to have core courses waived if they have taken the class as part of the course of study for their Master’s degree. A written application requesting a waiver must be given to the Director of the Graduate Program. The application must provide specific evidence that the materials covered in the course for which the waiver is requested are equivalent to the department’s requirement. Such information includes a syllabus from the course, course title, title(s) of required books, and the instructor’s name, address, and phone number. Waivers for specific courses, especially those in the statistics sequence, may require that the petitioner pass a written examination. The waiver is given for specific class requirements, and does not exempt the student from completing the 90 hour minimum.

Class

Beyond course work and required hours, the additional requirements for the Ph.D. include:
1. Completion of Doctoral Comprehensive Examinations
2. Prospectus and prospectus defense
3. Dissertation and dissertation defense