Georgia State Offers New Online Master’s Degree: M.I.S. in Criminal Justice Administration
Media Contact
Jennifer Ellen French
Public Relations Manager
Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
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ATLANTA—Public safety and criminal justice professionals in police departments, the U.S. military, Homeland Security and other federal, state and local organizations can earn an advanced degree in criminal justice administration online beginning this fall.
Georgia State University’s new Master of Interdisciplinary Studies in Criminal Justice Administration (M.I.S. in C.J.A.) is designed to strengthen core leadership abilities and broaden knowledge of strategies necessary to addressing emerging areas that include cybercrime, terrorism, community engagement and conflict resolution.
The M.I.S. in C.J.A. will offer graduate-level courses in criminal justice and criminology along with those in public management. Faculty in Georgia State’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies will teach with other criminal justice and criminology professionals who work internationally.
“The need for criminal justice administration professionals and emergency management directors in the Southeast alone is projected to grow nearly 10 percent in the next five years,” said Volkan Topalli, professor of criminal justice and criminology. “Jobs for first-line supervisors of correctional officers, police and detectives are expected to grow nearly as quickly.
“Our new degree will produce graduates ready to help develop and manage well-functioning, forward-thinking and humane justice systems in the U.S. and anywhere in the world. They will acquire the strong leadership knowledge and flexible skills necessary to promote the best practices in our profession.”
The degree concentration will combine content on substantive issues in criminal justice and criminology with managerial principles and practice for public management. The curriculum will include courses in areas such as crime and the criminal justice system, cybercrime and cybersecurity, public finance and budgeting, ethics, leadership and organizational behavior, and public service and democracy. The online program will be structured like a traditional master’s degree program with 30 credit hours. Tuition will be the same for in-state and out-of-state students.
“No peer program in the Southeast—and few programs anywhere in the country—offer a similar interdisciplinary focus on criminal justice administration,” said John C. Thomas, professor of public administration and policy. He designed the degree program with Topalli.
“Graduates of Georgia State’s new M.I.S. in Criminal Justice Administration,” Topalli said, “will produce systems that further advance the goals of public safety by preventing and reducing the harmful effects of criminal and delinquent behavior on victims and societies. Some will focus on providing victims and defendants with a judicial system that is fair, effective and efficient, while others will advance correctional systems that protect civil society while also thoughtfully and effectively reintegrating former offenders back into society.”
July 15 is the application deadline for fall 2017 semester.
Featured Faculty
Volkan Topalli
Professor
Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology
Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
Volkan Topalli's scholarly research addresses violence in urban settings, with a particular focus on the decision-making of street criminals. To pursue these interests he employs a multi-method approach that includes experimental, quantitative, and qualitative (interview-based) methodologies with active, noninstitutionalized hardcore street offenders (robbers, carjackers, drug dealers). He has conducted roughly 400 interviews with offenders in New Orleans, St. Louis, and Atlanta over the past 12 years.
John Thomas
Professor
Department of Public Management and Policy
Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
With four books and more than sixty articles in print, John Thomas is known internationally for his research on various aspects of public management and public policy. Much of that research focuses on how citizens connect with their governments and how those connections can be improved.