Masters of Science in Forensic Science

Criminal Justice Emphasis
Staying on Track for Graduation

The Degree Program: 

The MSFS degree program requires students to complete a minimum of thirty (30) semester hours.  The program is designed so that students can normally complete the degree in four (4) semesters. 

The MSFS degree program does not use traditional advising methods, but instead places much of the burden of class management and planning on the graduate student.  Students should visit with the appropriate faculty member within their particular discipline to discuss their degree plans.  Each discipline maintains appropriate forms to be used in the class management task. 

Full Time Status

University policy provides that a "full time" graduate student is registered for no less than six (6) credit hours per semester.  Consider this much like the twelve (12) hour load common in most undergraduate degrees.  Because of the nature of graduate study the amount of time necessary outside of class is much greater, and this accounts for the lower credit hour numbers.  Students who wish to graduate on the four semester schedule should consider taking nine (9) hours during at least two semesters. 

In most instances the student in the Criminal Justice Emphasis should take four (4) to six (6) hours from the Common Core in each of their first two semesters. 

Overview and CJ Emphasis Courses

Students admitted to the Criminal Justice Emphasis should take the following courses:

• MSFS 6000 Overview of Forensic Law 2 hours (Fall)
• MSFS 6020 Overview of Forensic Psychology 2 hours (Spring)
• MSFS 6030 Overview of Forensic Biology 2 hours (Spring)
• MSFS 6040 Overview of Forensic Chemistry 2 hours (Fall)
• MSFS 6050 Overview of Forensic Computer Analysis 2 hours (Fall)

Students entering during the Spring '08 semester should note that the Overview of Forensic Accounting class has been dropped from the rotation.  Rather than the original twelve hours from the Overview students will now be required to have only ten hours.  The additional hours are to be made up with the new course on Forensic Firearms Investigation or another course from the respective discipline/emphasis. 

Students with a Criminal Justice degree are expected to have a working knowledge of the system, basic criminal investigation, evidence, and procedural law.  As such, a CJ student should not take Overview of Forensic Criminal Justice unless they have permission of the emphasis director (Carl Franklin). 

Students admitted to the CJ Emphasis should plan on taking the Emphasis classes in the following order:

• CJ 6110 Crime Scene Techniques 3 hours (Fall)
• CJ 6220 Serial and Mass Murder Investigations 3 hours (Spring)
• CJ 6320 Surveillance and Intelligence in the Criminal Investigation 3 hours (Spring)

Students in the CJ Emphasis will take Forensic Firearms Examination (MSFS 6140) in lieu of the forensic accounting course.   

Internship/Project/Thesis (IPT)

Students should begin work in their first semester to identify and select the appropriate Internship, Professional Project, or Thesis (IPT).  Please refer to the Graduate Student Handbook (available on this site and through the office of the Dean of the College of Science) for full details and descriptions of each.  Students should also plan to spend time with the emphasis faculty to discuss and focus their respective IPT. 

The IPT is an intense part of the total degree program.  The major difference is that the IPT is based on student production rather than simply an accumulation of knowledge as in a traditional class.  While the number of credit hours is familiar the methods for accumulating that credit is very different.  In a traditional class the student should expect 15+ hours of classroom time for each hour of credit earned.  Students at the graduate level should also expect to spend two to three hours outside of class for each hour of credit.  What this means is that for a typical graduate class the student should expect to invest 120 to 145 hours of time during the semester for a three credit hour class.

The IPT has no formal classroom portion, so students are not expected to be in a classroom during the semester.  Instead, the student is required to produce their work outside of the classroom.  The ultimate success in the class is based on the quality and quantity for the given IPT.  What this means is that a student can easily spend between 200 and 450 hours of work in order to gain the three credit hours of IPT. 

Most students find that they should plan no less than two semesters to finish their IPT.  A typical choice is to register for three (3) credit hours of IPT in the third semester of a four semester program.  The fourth semester is then spent completing the IPT.  In some instances, the student may not be able to complete their IPT in six hours, so additional hours may be needed.  Faculty supervisors for any IPT can help guide you on the requirements for graduation. 

Capstone

Beginning with the 2008-2009 academic year the Capstone Course (MSFS 6910, The Forensic Expert in the Courtroom) will be offered only once a year.  Students entering during the Spring '08 semester and later should make appropriate plans so that they do not miss this required course.

Missing Class Rotation

As noted above, the MSFS degree program is designed for a four (4) semester rotation.  Each of the classes required to graduate will be taught at least once in any given four semester period.  This means that students can start the program either in Fall or Spring semesters.  It also means that with some planning the student can predict their ultimate graduation, assuming they take the classes as offered.  Chosing to skip a class, for any reason, may affect the student's ability to graduate within four semesters. 

Suggested Class Schedule

Below is a suggested class schedule for the four semester plan: