Online Certificates in Criminology & Criminal Justice

Online Certificate Overview

Make a difference in your workplace and your community.

Criminology and Criminal Justice Online offers three fully online undergraduate certificates designed for those interested in career change or advancement. With flexible online scheduling, the Criminology and Criminal Justice certificate programs afford current and aspiring criminal justice professionals the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and skill in key substantive areas:

• Advanced Crime Analysis
• Criminal Behavior
• Justice Studies

Criminology and Criminal Justice Online certificates are awarded by PSU’s College of Urban & Public Affairs, an affiliation signaling a high-quality, career-relevant education. The undergraduate certificates offered in CCJ Online are not offered through the CCJ campus-based program. 

Complete information about admission to a Criminology and Criminal Justice Online certificate program is available on the Criminology and Criminal Justice Online Pathway page. 

Advanced Crime Analysis Certificate

Crime analysis is a central feature of modern criminal justice agencies. Crime analysts use technology and research to identify and analyze information, data, trends, and patterns involved with crime and criminal behavior. Crime analysts use research, crime reports, crime mapping, statistics, arrest reports, police calls, geographic data, and other resources to identify patterns and help develop solutions.

The Advanced Crime Analysis Certificate represents a focused study of crime mapping and analysis tools that are valued across of range of crime and justice agency settings. This online certificate program is designed for working or aspiring criminal justice professionals who are seeking ways to help advance their career by gaining sought-after skills. This online certificate program give students hands-on experience coding, analyzing, interpreting, and presenting crime data and reports, as well as extracting relevant data from multiple sources including police homicide reports, FBI databases, corrections records, and survey data.

Students learn to utilize data, perform research, and create detailed crime mapping reports that can aid investigations, improve operations, and help prevent crime. They also gain valuable insight into the social and economic factors that influence crime location, along with value of using rigorous research methods to understand crime problems. Working with mapping software actually used in the field, students will gain the technical and analytical skills needed to successfully use various crime mapping software applications.

Advanced Crime Analysis Certificate Curriculum (24 credit hours)

Students complete all 6 courses (24 credits).

• CCJ 330 Crime Control Strategies (4 credits)
• CCJ 335 Understanding Crime Hotspots (4 credits)
• CCJ 336 Applied Crime Mapping (4 credits)
• CCJ 340 Crime Analysis (4 credits)
• CCJ 380 Criminal Justice Research (4 credits)
• CCJ 435 Crime, Grime, & Fear (4 credits)

Up to 4 transfer credits from a regionally accredited institution may be applied to towards the course requirements of the Advanced Crime Analysis Certificate. Transfer courses must have been taken for a letter grade, and the grade received must have been a “C” (2.0) or better. 

For all Oregon and some Washington community colleges, CCJ has pre-approved a set of criminology or criminal justice courses that automatically substitute for specific Criminology & Criminal Justice online program courses. Find the list of pre‐approved substitution courses from your Oregon or Washington community college.

This Criminology and Criminal Justice online certificate is issued by PSU’s College of Urban and Public Affairs, representing successful completion of the curriculum through CCJ Online.

Criminal Behavior Certificate

The online Criminal Behavior Certificate Program represents an engaging series of courses exploring the complex nature of crime and the factors that contribute to criminal behavior among different groups. This online certificate program introduces students to different perspectives on the pathways and motivations that lead to crime, as well as approaches to reducing criminal behavior. 

The online Criminal Behavior Certificate program focuses on the major theories that explain what causes crime, including the social, psychological, and economic factors related to individual criminality and to the places where crime happens. In addition, the certificate focuses on various criminal behavior within specific groups. Women and crime is explored, focusing on women involved in crime as criminals, victims, and as professionals in the criminal justice system. Special topics include female gang members, mothers behind bars, domestic violence, pregnancy and drug use. The origin and offending patterns among adolescents is another central focus. This includes the treatment and management of juvenile offenders, as well as delinquency theories, substance use, and school violence.

Focusing on crimes committed by traditionally respectable people with high social status, the history and current state of white collar crime is explored. Students will explore how the causes and consequences of “crimes of the powerful” (such as finance crimes, abuses of power, fraud and economic exploitation) compare to the violent and property crimes more typically processed through the criminal justice system.

Taken together, the online Criminal Behavior Certificate provide students with an understanding of how factors like community, culture, poverty, race, history, family, personality, mental illness, psychopathy, and biological factors contribute to the complexities of criminal behavior. This foundation helps equip students with the knowledge needed to support the development of crime control and prevention policy and practice innovations.

Criminal Behavior Certificate Curriculum

Students complete all 6 courses (24 credits).

• CCJ 303 Punishment and Corrections (4 credits)
• CCJ 305 Juvenile Justice Reform (4 credits)
• CCJ 312 Criminal Behavior (4 credits)
• CCJ 320 Theories of Crime and Justice (4 credits)
• CCJ 370 Women, Crime, and Justice (4 credits)
• CCJ 390 Crimes of the Powerful (4 credits)

Up to 4 transfer credits from a regionally accredited institution may be applied to towards the course requirements of the Criminal Behavior Certificate. Transfer courses must have been taken for a letter grade, and the grade received must have been a “C” (2.0) or better. For all Oregon and some Washington community colleges, Criminology and Criminal Justice has pre-approved a set of courses that automatically substitute for specific Criminology & Criminal Justice online program courses. Find the list of pre‐approved substitution courses from your Oregon or Washington community college.

This Criminology and Criminal Justice Online certificate is issued by PSU’s College of Urban and Public Affairs, representing successful completion of the curriculum through CCJ Online.

Justice Studies Certificate

The online Certificate in Justice Studies is designed for students who are interested in the concepts of fairness and justice in the context of the American criminal justice system. Whether viewed from the perspective of crime victims, arrested suspects, convicted felons, families of justice-involved individuals, or whole communities, the overall effectiveness of the criminal justice system in producing "justice" is a matter of significant controversy. Even those who work within the criminal justice system (such as police, prosecutors, judges, and correctional officers) regularly call for reforms to increase equity, reduce crime, and minimize the harm done by efforts to control it. Through examination of contemporary crime problems from a variety of perspectives, students will explore the complexity of defining and furthering "justice" in a large, diverse democratic society. 

The Justice Studies certificate focuses students on questions fundamental to the function of the American criminal justice system. How can we hold individuals accountable for their behavior while also taking into account the social conditions that create significant pushes and pulls towards criminal behavior? How can we create conditions that effectively balance the need to control crime and violence with the rights of individuals and communities to be free from harmful over-policing? Given the long history of racial and ethnic bias in the criminal justice system (against both victims and suspects), how can we reshape our policies, practices, and criminal justice institutions to consistently produce both fair treatment and equitable outcomes?   

In the Justice Studies certificate, students will build the knowledge and skills needed to effectively advocate for change through the use of reliable data, high-quality research evidence, and systematic policy analysis. Using pressing crime problems and specific criminal justice settings as illustrations, the program identifies valuable tools, tactics, and strategies available to students who seek a career in serving the cause of justice and producing meaningful change.  

Justice Studies Certificate Curriculum (22 credit hours)

Students complete all 7 courses (22 credits).

• CCJ 301 Policing in America (4 credits)
• CCJ 317 Race, Crime and Criminal Justice (4 credits)
• CCJ 365 Crime & Social Justice (4 credits)
• CCJ 399 Mass Shooting in America (2 credits)
• CCJ 399 American Jails (2 credits)
• CCJ 399 Crime and the Media (2 credits) 
• CCJ 410 Defense, Prosecution and Justice (4 credits)

Up to 4 transfer credits from a regionally accredited institution may be applied to towards the course requirements of the Leadership in Criminal Justice Certificate. Transfer courses must have been taken for a letter grade, and the grade received must have been a “C” (2.0) or better. For all Oregon and some Washington community colleges, CCJ has pre-approved a set of criminology or criminal justice courses that automatically substitute for specific Criminology & Criminal Justice online program courses. Find the list of pre‐approved substitution courses from your Oregon or Washington community college.

This Criminology and Criminal Justice online certificate is issued by PSU’s College of Urban and Public Affairs, representing successful completion of the curriculum through CCJ Online.

Course Calendar and Descriptions

Criminology and Criminal Justice Online is a year-round program, meaning that certificate students may need to take some courses in the summer in order to complete their program. The schedule for all courses is released at least one year in advance to help students plan for upcoming terms. 

Since they are only open to admitted Criminology and Criminal Justice Online students, courses in CCJ’s online programs cannot be found in PSU’s Schedule of Classes. Registration for Criminology and Criminal Justice Online courses takes places through a separate, customized process. Schedules and registration information is provided directly to CCJ’s online students each term, along with individual advising to assist each student in registering for the mix of courses that best suits their interests while satisfying their program requirements. CCJ Online makes space for each of its students to register for any course offered by their online program. This means that online program students don’t have to worry about losing the opportunity to register for a Criminology and Criminal Justice Online course because it’s already full.

Visit Criminology and Criminal Justice Online course page for course descriptions and Criminology and Criminal Justice Online course calendar.

Getting Started and Getting Help

Criminology and Criminal Justice Online students are provided consistent support and specialized advising to assist them with completing their fully online program. Students are proactively assisted in each phase of the program with a wide variety of matters, including course planning, registration, connecting with academic resources, understanding and navigating university processes, and preparing for graduation.

Prospective and new students are provided exceptional advising and support by CCJ Online's Enrollment Advisor Chelsey Huff. Chelsey works with prospective students exploring the CCJ Online program options, incoming CCJ Online students who have started the PSU application process, and new CCJ Online students getting ready for their first term. Chelsey can answer a wide variety of questions about admissions requirements, transfer credits, financial aid, Criminology and Criminal Justice course content, career opportunities, PSU resources, and more. 

CCJ Online's Enrollment Advisor can be reached at CCJO@pdx.edu or by completing our information request form at the bottom of this webpage.   

For established students, CCJ Online's Academic Advisor is Angela Barrett, CCJ’s resident expert on successfully guiding online students through PSU and CCJ’s fully online programs. Angela is a former PSU student herself and has been working with CCJ’s online students for a decade. Angela can be reached at abarrett@pdx.edu and (503) 725-5131.

General advising and university information is posted in the Criminology and Criminal Justice Online Advising Center.