Online Associates, Bachelors & Masters in C.J.

Post your links to 100% online and regionally accredited Associates, Bachelors and Masters degrees in Criminal Justice. I'll start:

• Associates or Bachelors in Public Safety from St. Petersburg College. It's part of Florida's State University system and the tuition is dirt cheap.
  
  Masters in Criminal Justice from Florida State University. It's part of Florida's State University system. Everybody loves FSU.
  
  Masters in Criminal Justice from University of Massachusetts (at Lowell). I had to post this one because it's from my home state and it's part of the Massachusetts State University system.

Here's a comprehensive list of schools that offer CJ degrees online:
http://www.angelfire.com/ma4/cjdegrees/degrees.html

[Mod 418]

I'm stickying this thread to stay at the top because a lot of SSO employees are trying to get degrees and these links are a good resource for them.

Hodges University

Click here to see online degree offerings in:
MPA
BS & MS in management
BS & MS in MIS

Anyone who's received or is working on this, I have 2 questions for you:

1) How long did it take you to complete the coursework, and

2) Did you have any prior college credits upon admission or did you "start from scratch"?

Thanks!

1) How long did it take you to complete the coursework?

This isn't in regard to the SPJC program for a Bachelors in Public Safety. I haven't seen how that program works, except that I know it's an outstanding program because it's part of Florida's state university system. The fact that it's online is amazing because it allows public safety officers to do their coursework 24/7/365, regardless of their work schedule. For example, if you're working nightshift and if it's your day off and if you can't sleep at 0300 hours, you can STILL log-in to do your school work. Awesome!

Some of the programs are "accelerated" for a couple of reasons:

• Students who enter with an AA degree have already met all of their lower division coursework, so they can immediately start on their upper division coursework. The college or university accepts all the AA coursework. That's good.
  [/*:m:3nk7kv7s]
• Some of these schools offer shorter terms or semesters (or whatever it's currently being called). The number of hours remains the same, but instead of spreading it out over 16 or 20 weeks (the traditional way), it's condensed into a 6 or 8 week period. For example:
  a) Old way: MWF from 0800-0850 over 16 weeks.
  b) New way: T & Th from 1800-2200 over 6 or so weeks.
  c) Newer way: online! (a lot of universities are using something called "blackboard")[/*:m:3nk7kv7s]

Did you have any prior college credits upon admission or did you "start from scratch"?

If you're starting from scratch with zero college credits, then it will take you a looooooong time, especially if you're working full-time. There are some colleges that will let you "test out" of some classes. That means that all you have to do is take a test and if you pass it, then you get full credit for having taken the entire class. Just buy a study guide and prep for it before you take the test. Colleges that do this by "distance learning" include Thomas Edison State College, Excelsior College and Charter Oak State College. If you start "testing out" of classes, then you can get a degree pretty quick, even if you're starting from scratch. If you can pass the test, then why sit through 20 weeks of lecture?

Bachelors in Police Science from George Washington University .... this degree choice is ok, but this college will only let you take the core classes with them. After those classes are completed with GWU you have to take the General classes with another college.

IMO Hodges University is probably the best way to go because they:
- Accommodate us
- If we miss a class, they offer 2 more days with the same class
- Accelerated degree completion
- 30% (?) off for cops
- Good off-site locations: Bradenton MCC & NPPD
- Grant money from the State of Florida for their wheels/semesters (you don't have to pay it back because it's not a loan).

All these online classes are good, but they are harder than the in-resident classes. People don't know that until they actually sign up for one. It's almost like the college/university is making up for the convenience of being online by make it a lot harder.

USF Online

The University of South Florida now has a Bachelors degree-completion program that is 100% online. If you already have an AS degree, then you can complete the rest of your Bachelors degree completely online. USF now offers several concentrations for a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science, to include Criminology.

If you have an AS degree and want to complete your degree from USF 100% online, then please contact:

Jennifer Boyer
863-667-7058 (direct line)
jacreece@lakeland.usf.edu

Hodges has great classes online for Bachelors and Masters. You really have to be disciplines to set time aside a week to lock yourself away but its a good program and you can go quick or slow pending on your work load.

Capella University

The School of Human Services at Capella University offers degree programs in criminal justice that prepare professionals to understand and effectively deal with the complex issues surrounding criminal activity, emphasizing key social and clinical issues and development of counseling skills and competencies needed when working with individuals in the criminal justice system. Capella offers the following online criminal justice degrees:

* MS in Human Services / Criminal Justice
The specialization in Criminal Justice is designed for professionals who have a bachelor's degree in psychology, sociology or related social sciences majors. These include caseworkers, probation and parole officers, juvenile specialists, family service specialists, police officers, sheriffs, marshals, federal government agents, and others who wish to advance their careers in corrections, criminal justice or as officers of the court. This program is also appropriate for individuals with a bachelor's degree who are preparing for entry-level positions in corrections or criminal justice.

* PhD in Human Services / Criminal Justice
The specialization in Criminal Justice is designed for professionals with a master's degree in human services, psychology, sociology, social work or a related social sciences field. These are individuals who desire advanced study and research in the field and wish to advance their careers to academic, supervisory or administrative levels. Although this program is offered in a directed study format, most courses can be taken in an online format.

PhD programs require 1 week residencies per year, for three years. Undergraduate and graduate courses in business are also available.

Capella University is regionally accredited and is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.