Criminal justice is the study of criminal behavior and societal responses to crime. Criminal justice at FMU is a track within two different departments: Political Science and Sociology. These departments work together to provide students a criminal justice background and the skills necessary to work within the field upon graduation.

For students interested in studying crime trends and patterns, criminal behaviors, and why people commit crime, a Sociology major would be appropriate.

Students whose interests are more aligned with institutional responses to crime (police, courts, corrections) would make Political Science their major.

Majoring in either discipline will prepare students for the same career path.

So what’s the difference in the coursework?

Because criminal justice is a shared program, students take courses from both Political Science and Sociology. Aside from the core required courses of each major, the primary difference is the focus of criminal justice courses, which varies depending on the major chosen.

I’m not sure. What’s the difference?