Criminal Justice Major in Pennsylvania
The Criminal Justice program is ideal for students passionate about making a difference in law enforcement, legal studies or corrections. It prepares you for a career as a police officer, lawyer or probation officer, all within a Christian, faith-based context that emphasizes ethical leadership and service.
100%
of first-year
students receive financial aid
students receive financial aid
98%
of the class of 2025 were
employed or in a graduate program
within 6 - 9 months after graduation
employed or in a graduate program
within 6 - 9 months after graduation
12:1
student to faculty ratio
Study Criminal Justice at a Christian University
Committed to deepening our understanding of crime, governance and social justice
The criminal justice degree program at Messiah University, one of the top Christian universities in the U.S., is a liberal arts degree that appeals to students who wish to pursue a career in criminal justice and to those who are still deciding their career goals.
Messiah’s program is experience-rich and practice-focused, including field trips, guest lectures, internships and courses taught by faculty with professional criminal justice experience. You will grow in professional skills, networking and community engagement. You will explore new and innovative practices in criminal and restorative justice, and cultivate vision for ethical service and impactful leadership in the criminal justice field.
Messiah’s program covers all three major branches of the criminal justice system: law enforcement, courts and corrections. Coursework includes criminal law and the court system, corrections, criminology, victimology, law enforcement and forensics. Professors will mentor you toward finding your place in preserving order, addressing deviance, supporting victims, restoring communities and promoting a more just society. Graduates of Messiah’s criminal justice program will be ready to enter a chosen career path, serve the common good and pursue ethical integrity.
Criminal justice may also be taken as a minor.
As a criminal justice major or minor at Messiah University, you will be able to:
- Study criminal justice from a Christian perspective.
- Explore a range of career options, including law enforcement, courts, corrections, victim support, system reform and advocacy, crime prevention and community restoration.
- Position yourself for professional success, leadership and criminal justice system reform.
- Gain professional experience through internships; drawing from a list of prior internship placements and faculty share their extensive professional networks with students.
- Enjoy proximity to the state capitol of Harrisburg, a hub for criminal justice policy, training and reform.
- Join the Messiah University chapter of Alpha Phi Sigma, the National Criminal Justice Honor Society.
- Learn from Christian faculty with scholarly expertise and professional experience.
As a graduate of the criminal justice program, you will be equipped to secure positions such as:
- Corrections administrator
- Law enforcement officer
- Detective or investigator
- Probation officer
- Victim advocate
- Non-profit organizational leader
- Restorative justice practitioner
- System reform advocate
- Re-entry specialist
Work in areas such as:
- Courts
- Law enforcement
- Victim services
- Juvenile justice
- Delinquency prevention
- Community corrections
- Institutional corrections
- Restorative justice
Messiah’s nationally recognized internship program helps place students in a variety of criminal justice internships. Recent internships include:
- Office of the District Attorney
- Greenlight Operation (restorative justice for human trafficking survivors)
- Dauphin County Drug Task Force unit
- Adult Probation and Parole Services
- Juvenile Probation (Dauphin and Cumberland Counties)
- The Salvation Army (Harrisburg Region)
- Commonwealth Public Service Intern
- Pennsylvania House Fellowship Program
- Army Heritage Center Foundation (Carlisle)
- National Sexual Violence Resource Center
- Victim Service Agencies (Dauphin and Cumberland Counties)
- Dauphin County Criminal Investigation Division
- Park Rangers and DCNR Rangers
- Domestic Violence Services of Cumberland and Perry Counties
- Harrisburg Police Department
- HOPE International
Programs related to Criminal Justice
In the Criminal Justice program, you will take a selection of courses that successfully prepare you for a career in a related field. Hands-on experiences and classroom learning within the framework of Christian faith will give you the skills and knowledge to achieve your goals. Our programs offer a wide variety of courses that will not only help you excel in your future career, but challenge you to develop a deeper understanding of your field of study.
Criminal Justice (B.A.)
Careers and outcomes
Where our grads work
Graduates of this program work in positions of leadership in their places of employment, using the tools and knowledge a Messiah University education prepared them with. Each year, eager employers and some of the nation's best graduate schools welcome Messiah graduates into their organizations.
98% of the Class of 2025 respondents were employed or in graduate school within 6-9 months of graduation.
Our Alumni
Regional and national employers seek out Messiah graduates for their academic preparation, work ethic and personal character. The transformation you experience at Messiah readies you to transform the lives of others through your chosen career path.
MEET ALUMNI FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY, CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND SOCIOLOGY
Messiah approaches criminal justice as an applied interdisciplinary science that is both theoretical and practical. You will set professional goals in your first semester, and work toward your goals with internships, class projects and a senior thesis. With sharpened reasoning and judgment, writing and speaking skills, and knowledge of theory and research methods, you will be positioned not just for job placement, but for leadership positions within the criminal justice system.
Messiah's unique approach to hands-on learning
Learning in the classroom is important but actually applying that knowledge in a hands-on way can make all the difference. At Messiah University, the Experiential Learning Initiative (ELI) allows Messiah to take this hands-on learning to a new level by giving students the opportunity to apply what they have learned to various real world contexts--such as an internship/practica, service learning, off-campus program, holding a student leadership position, or participating in undergraduate research.
Our criminal justice program emphasizes Christ first—in our work, our ethics and all of life. Christian faculty will guide you toward reasoned, faithful, personal commitment, and share their own faith views with honesty and clarity. Messiah’s program will help give graduates a clear-eyed, critical and compassionate view of offenders—and of the criminal justice system itself—something only a Christian-based program can effectively do.
Last updated: