The RWC Criminal Justice program has recently introduced two new one-year certificates specifically for Criminal Justice majors. These certificates, namely Juvenile Corrections and Criminal Justice Administration, are designed to complement an associate’s degree. However, they can also be used to complement a bachelor’s degree. Not only should these certificates help students further their specialization in their fields, but they will also help reduce training time when students enter the workforce.
Although the certificates are already in place, the RWC OneStop website has yet to be updated with their information. Until this problem is alleviated, anyone interested can contact Professor Marilyn Simon for more information.
The Juvenile Corrections certificate should help students better understand the intricacies of the juvenile corrections workforce. There is already a cognate program set up for juvenile delinquency. However, this does not focus as intently on the actual rehabilitation of juveniles. According to one Criminal Justice faculty member, this certificate should help students interested in this area with their future progressions in this field. Some of the course requirements for this certificate include Behavior Modification, Intro to Disabilities, and Substance Abuse.
The Criminal Justice Administration certificate focuses more on the management and administration skills required to successfully navigate a career in the administration of correctional, justice and rehabilitation facilities. Course requirements for this certificate are more oriented toward management, accounting, employment laws, and public relations.
However, a Criminal Justice faculty member said that while these would be ideal to take before entering the workforce, it would be more fiscally prudent to remember that most jobs in this field do offer tuition remission. If you enter the workforce, as the majority of criminal justice students do, it would be much cheaper to take these courses.