Upon acceptance into the criminal justice program, each student is assigned a faculty adviser who assists in formulating career goals and planning a field of study in accordance with those goals.
Through core courses, students are exposed to the widest possible range of perspectives from which to view crime and the nature of criminal justice administration, thus broadening their career options.
During the junior and senior years, with faculty guidance, students select professional electives in a specific area of interest from courses offered within the program, within the college or in any of RIT’s other seven colleges.
Criminal Justice faculty offer concentrations in criminology, law enforcement, law corrections, and security. Other concentrations, planned in accordance to students' individual career goals, may include courses in computer science, management, photography, liberal studies, and social work.
Career Opportunities
Program alumni have entered a variety of careers in the criminal justice system directly following graduation or after completing graduate studies. Many graduates are engaged in law enforcement careers in agencies at all levels of government. A substantial number are employed by the Rochester Police Department, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, and suburban departments throughout the area.
At the state and federal level, graduates are pursuing careers in such agencies as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Secret Service, Marshall’s Service, Naval Intelligence Service, Customs, Border Patrol, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Centers for Disease Control, Department of the Interior, and National Park Service, among others. A number have advanced in rank to positions of command, including several chiefs and deputy chiefs.
Other alumni work as correctional officers, counselors, probation officers, and parole officers, and some have advanced to administrative positions. A significant number have completed law school and entered the legal profession as prosecutors, public defenders, in private practice, or in the state or the U.S. attorney generals’ offices. Others serve the legal profession as investigators or paralegals.
Consistent with the liberal arts/social science nature of the program, some graduates have attained advanced degrees in related areas and are teaching at the secondary and college level. Others have become psychologists, social workers, drug and alcoholism counselors, youth service specialists, and victim assistance and rape crisis counselors. Some have completed advanced degrees in business, public policy, public administration, criminology, and criminal justice.
Note: Below are links to several Government Departments and Agencies that may provide useful information and further career opportunities:
Bureau of Justice Statistics Includes the:
Federal Justice Statistics Resource Center
Court Papers Cases and comments from the chambers of the Hon. Andrew V. Siracuse
(N.Y. State Supreme Court, 7th District, Rochester).
GPO Access on the Web Includes US Code, CFR, Congressional Record,
Federal Register, and Public Laws.
INTERPOL Includes a list of members, most wanted and missing children info. and International Crime Statistics...
The U.S. National Central Bureau is the U.S. link.
Law Enforcement Agencies on the Web (part of Cecil Greek's website)
Monroe County (NY) Assigned Counsel Program Contains information about the program
and requirements, as well as a list of law related links.
New York State Government Resources on the Internet Including:
The Division of Criminal Justice Services, and
The NYS Police Dept.
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Justice Including links to Justice Dept. agencies, such as the:
Drug Enforcement Administration, the
Federal Bureau of Prisons, the
National Institute of Justice, the
FBI, the
Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), and the
Immigration & Naturalization Service among others.
U.S. Dept of the Treasury includes the:
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms, and the
U.S. Customs Service among others.
U. S. Supreme Court
Prelaw Study
The criminal justice curriculum prepares students for law school by combining a broad liberal arts background with intensive study in criminal justice. Students work closely with a faculty adviser in selecting appropriate professional and liberal arts electives.
During their senior year, prelaw students spend 10 weeks, 30 hours per week, as interns working with attorneys in the office of the district attorney, public defender or state attorney general; private law firms; or in any number of public or private organizations dealing with litigation.
Also, The Prelaw Association, comprising interested RIT students, publishes student research papers each year in "The Journal of Social and Legal Research at RIT", which was the first undergraduate prelaw journal in the country.
Note: Below are links to several Law Schools Attended By RIT Graduates.
>>Cornell Law School
>>Stanford University Law School
>>University of San Francisco
>>George Washington University Law School
>>Berkeley School of Law
>>University of Maryland
>>University of Chicago
>>Boston College Law School
>>Boston University School of Law
>>Albany Law School
>>Franklin Pierce Law Center
>>SUNY at Buffalo School of Law
>>Syracuse University College of Law
>>University of Florida College of Law
>>Washington & Lee University School of Law
>>University of Detroit Law School
>>Cleveland Marshall College of Law
>>Tulane University Law School
>>New York University School of Law
>>Brooklyn Law School
>>Fordham University School of Law
>>Northeastern University School of Law
>>Emory University School of Law
>>Western New England College of Law
>>Mercer University School of Law
>>Benjamin Cardozo School of Law
>>Yeshiva University Chicago-Kent College of Law
>>Rutgers University School of Law- Newark
>>CUNY Law School at Queens College
>>New England School of Law
>>St. John's Law School
>>University of Baltimore School of Law
>>University of Toledo Law School
>>University of Denver Law School
>>Widener University School of Law
Field Experience
During the senior year, students have the opportunity to choose an internship from a number of agencies and organizations in the areas of law, law enforcement, institutional and noninstitutional corrections, courts, juvenile advocacy and counseling programs, and security. For one quarter (10 weeks), 30 hours per week, students work under an agency field supervisor and meet regularly with an adviser and also with peers who are doing field placements in other agencies. Placements are individualized to fit a student’s career objectives.
Cooperative Education
Students have the opportunity to participate in co-op as part of their undergraduate program. In general, they may apply for co-op employment after three quarters of full-time study in criminal justice at RIT.
Cooperative education provides work experience in a criminal justice-related field, but does not merit credit.