Welcome
Combining a passion for scholarship with a keen understanding of practical applications, the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology offers students the opportunity to learn, explore and develop in a substantive and expanding field. The Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology is located on three campuses of Washington State University, at Pullman, Spokane and Vancouver.
The department offers both graduate and undergraduate degrees; students may earn a minor, a bachelor of arts, a master’s degree, or a Ph.D. in criminal justice and criminology. We have degree options to suit today’s students, with our B.A. offered both on campus and online. With groundbreaking research, renowned professors, and students who are making a difference, WSU is an exciting place to pursue your education.
Undergraduate
Undergraduates benefit from a policy-focused curriculum that prepares them both for careers and future study, learning from leaders in the field.
Graduate
Graduate students work closely with faculty, pursuing a more comprehensive understanding of the field of criminal justice and developing as scholars and researchers.
Meet our faculty
Department faculty have a wide range of research and teaching interests, and the department is nationally and internationally recognized for its scholarship.
News
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Axon Announces Intent to Partner with Washington State University to Further Groundbreaking Research on Police-Community Interactions
Washington State University Researchers Offer First Analyses of Use of Force in Body-Worn Camera Video
At the annual Axon Accelerate User Conference, Axon (Nasdaq: AAXN), the global leader in connected law enforcement technologies, and Washington State University (WSU) announced their intent to form a strategic partnership for further research that may improve law enforcement training and police-community relations.
In a set of landmark studies published in 2017, researchers at WSU’s new Complex Social Interaction (CSI) laboratory, led by Dr. David Makin, assistant professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology, have analyzed body-worn camera footage to gain … » More …
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Study: Tennessee among worst states to be a police officer
Being a police officer isn’t the most glamorous job in the world, but a recent study suggests it’s worse to be one in some states than others, and Tennessee is near the bottom of the barrel.
One of the issues for modern officers most frequently cited by a panel of academic experts quoted in the study is the erosion of public trust in law enforcement over the last several years.
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“The single largest issue facing police officers today is the incredible amount of tension between police, as an institution, and the communities they serve and the resultant … » More … -
Freshman displays grit, glamour, community spirit
Washington State University freshman Emily Durr will have little time this summer between donning her goalie’s helmet and gear to compete in the national lacrosse championships and donning her sparkling crown and gown to compete in the International Junior Miss (IJM) Teen pageant finals.
The lively and lovely 19-year-old from Tacoma is Washington’s reigning IJM teen queen and a fierce defensive player on WSU’s women’s club lacrosse team.Durr, who hopes to earn degrees in psychology and criminal justice, is also a an energetic crusader for curing type 1 diabetes. On May 6, she will lead a … » More …
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New risk assessment tool will let computer judge inmates
Many people arrested in Spokane County wind up in jail simply because they can’t afford to pay bond, leaving little or no room for serious criminal offenders.
So officials are testing a new tool created by Zachary Hamilton, Washington State University assistant professor of criminal justice, to help determine who needs to be detained to keep the community safe versus those who can be safely released into the community and supervised by pretrial services.
The tool, called SAFER, applies an algorithm to calculate several factors and generate a score for judges to tell whether an individual is at low, moderate, or high risk to commit … » More …
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