Online Master's Degree in Criminal Justice Administration (MSOM)

Start your journey towards a master’s degree in Criminal Justice today! Our 36-credit-hour program is fully online with no campus visits or entrance exams required.

A gavel and handcuffs

 

Advance your career with a master's degree in Criminal Justice.

Learn advanced communication and leadership skills, and prepare for impactful roles in today’s competitive market with a MSOM in Criminal Justice Administration from Wayne State College.

Affordable tuition

Affordable
Among the lowest-cost master's degrees in the U.S.

Obtainable degree

Attainable
No entrance exams. All bachelor's degrees accepted.

Fully online

Flexible
100% online with no campus visits required.

High quality program

High quality
Our graduate programs are nationally ranked for excellence.

 

Criminal Justice Administration MSOM program overview

The online master's degree in Criminal Justice Administration and Management prepares you for leadership positions in the criminal justice field. For those who want to move into command positions where management skills are in high demand, criminal justice professionals with a master’s degree will be needed. The field of criminal justice is growing, not just in the number of jobs and salaries, but in the variety of positions from which to choose. Most employees in management typically find jobs in emergency management, university campuses, environmental protection, or in federal agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security. A master’s degree in this field will help you stand out to advance your career.

Student learning outcomes for the MSOM program:

  1. Demonstrate leadership theory using an ethical framework.
  2. Construct effective communication strategies to reach diverse audiences.
  3. Examine organizational social systems impact on organizational behavior, change, and development.
  4. Apply the different approaches to dispute resolution management.
  5. Appraise research supported through the use of analysis and respective concepts in their field.
  6. Apply advanced knowledge of their select focus area.
     

View program courses 

Fast facts

Degree offered: Master of Science in Organizational Management (MSOM) / Criminal Justice Administration


Delivery format: Fully online


Program credit hours: 36

  • MSOM core (18 credit hours)
  • Criminal Justice focus area (18 credit hours)

School: Science, Health, and Criminal Justice


Department: Criminal Justice

Estimated program cost

$14,400*

Credit hours: 36

Cost per credit hour: $400 (includes fees)


*Based on 36 credit hours at the current online tuition rate for 2024-25. Does not include indirect costs. For more information on costs of graduate tuition, visit the Cost of Attendance page.

Get started today!

Our free application can help you decide if Wayne State College is the right choice for you and your career goals. You can apply up until the first day of the term!

Next term starts: May 12, 2025 (8- and 13-week summer sessions available)

How to apply  Request more info

Upcoming start dates:

  • June 2, 2025 (5- and 10-week summer sessions available)
  • July 5, 2025 (5-week summer session)
  • Aug. 18, 2025 (16-week fall session)

Criminal Justice master's degree program of study

Students must complete the MSOM core and Criminal Justice focus area courses. Up to 9 credit hours may be transferred in from another regionally accredited graduate institution and applied toward a degree (18 hours may be transferred from other Nebraska state colleges). Only transfer credit with a B grade or better is accepted. A B- is not acceptable.

A total of 36 credit hours are needed to graduate with this degree. Students may be required to take certain undergraduate courses if their undergraduate preparation is determined to be deficient by the advisor or department chair. These courses may not be considered part of the 36-credit-hour program of study for the MSOM.

MSOM core courses (18 credits)

  • Select one of the following:

    • BUS 620 Managerial Communications (3 credit hours) – Application of principles of communication to the managerial setting. The course investigates the influence of organizational climate, manager’s style, and use of motivation on the communication process. Communication strategies appropriate to business reports, speeches, interviews, and conferences are explored along with emphasis on managerial problems with employee communication and conflict management. The course includes a focus on methods of analyzing and resolving communication problems.
    • CNA 675 Legal Topics in Media and Communication (3 credit hours) – This course provides a concise overview of communications law, and then delves deeply into current legal issues surrounding communication such as social media law, legal topics for public relations professionals, recent considerations for media professionals, and the changing legal landscape.
  • Students who would like a leadership emphasis in their program of study may, with permission from their advisor, take two leadership courses as part of their 12 hours. The second course would be substituted for a course in one of the other three areas.

    Select one of the following:

    • BUS 627 Ethics in Leadership (3 credit hours) – This course will examine classic cases of business and industry. As part of thorough analysis, the course considers firm actions within an ethical framework. The class will also discuss what we can learn about the traits of ethical leadership. The development and implementation of an ethical code and the need for continual ethical training is explored. As a backdrop to this discussion, the student will complete an assessment of his/her ethical character traits.
    • BUS 665 Leadership Seminar (3 credit hours) – This course provides students with context and background for the consideration of leadership from multiple perspectives. The course explores leadership theory and practice. Special emphasis is placed on the translation of theory into practice. The evolution of leadership thought, situational leadership, and the future of leadership are also explored.
    • CNA 661 Research in Leadership (3 credit hours) – Approaches the study and practice of leadership from a communication perspective. Particular focus on the relationship between communicating and leading. Examination of leadership concepts and theories in organizational group and public contexts. Students will study leadership styles and develop leadership skills through analyzing both historical leaders and current leadership publications, then applying lessons from both to various organizational contexts. Prerequisite: Any graduate-level research design course.
  • Select one of the following:

    • BUS 690 Seminar in Organizational Behavior (3 credit hours) – Examination and analysis of the organization as a social system and the impact of its various components on work attitudes and behavior; topics include the development of organizational structures, organizational effectiveness, decision making and policy formulation, leadership, and change.
    • CNA 648 Advanced Organizational Communication (3 credit hours) – An advanced course in organizational communication focusing on organizational culture, ethics, and language in the workplace, character and leadership, organizational change and development, and the analysis of organization communication through completion of an organizational communication audit and feedback report.
  • PED 622 Statistical Applications and Data Analysis (3 credit hours) – A course in statistics designed to provide an introduction to statistical measures. Application to research problems in various disciplines will be emphasized. Computer applications using common statistical software will be utilized to analyze data sets. Statistical Applications and Data Analysis has a variable prefix.

    Plus select one of the following:

    • CNA 665 Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches (3 credit hours) – Provides an overview of research design and understanding of the preliminary considerations that go into selecting a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods research design. These include knowing the definition for these different approaches, considering philosophical worldviews, reviewing the literature, understanding the use of theory, anticipating ethical issues, and developing writing strategies. Students will learn the process of research as it relates to each approach. This process includes writing an introduction, specifying a purpose statement, and developing research questions and/or hypotheses. This course will also discuss the methods and procedures for qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods studies.
    • EDU 603 Introduction to Educational Research and Design (3 credit hours) – Beginning graduate students will develop a practical knowledge and application of basic types of research, as well as basic research tools and skills that will be helpful to them throughout their program. Graduate students will create a research plan and write a review of literature (paper). Students will create appropriate survey and interview questions, develop a beginning understanding of educational statistics, and the process for developing a research proposal including Institutional Review Board requirements and application processes.
    • PED 650 Research Design (3 credit hours) – A course designed to develop knowledge of research, research skills and practical utilization of research information. Graduate students will be expected to use technology effectively and efficiently for any of the following purposes: to conduct literature reviews, to formulate research problems, to develop proposals, to participate in active research problems, and/or to understand and apply basic research tools of both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Research Design has a variable prefix.
  • PED 622 Statistical Applications and Data Analysis (3 credit hours) – A course in statistics designed to provide an introduction to statistical measures. Application to research problems in various disciplines will be emphasized. Computer applications using common statistical software will be utilized to analyze data sets. Statistical Applications and Data Analysis has a variable prefix.

  • Select one of the following:

    • BUS 628 Dispute Resolution Management (3 credit hours) – This course is designed to give students an overview of alternative dispute resolution. Students will explore negotiations, a process that helps individuals and organizations settle disputes. Students will examine their personal style of management and their unique approach to conflict. This course uses case studies, simulations and role-playing to explore concepts of interests, collaboration, mediation, and nonverbal communications. Students will grow in their ability to anticipate the needs of their audience.
    • CNA 617 Topics in Argumentation and Persuasion (3 credit hours) – The focus of the course will alternate between argumentation and persuasion with special attention given to the intricacies in argument structure and logic and/or to the analysis of persuasive campaigns.
    • PSY 535 Industrial/ Organizational Psychology (3 credit hours) – A study of the application of the methods, facts, and principles of psychology to people at work. Research in this course includes an examination of job analysis and evaluation, selection, training and performance appraisal of personnel, the structure and context of organizations, organizational culture, organizational change, career development, motivation, job satisfaction, and team dynamics from a psychological perspective. Students will also examine the impact of factors such as increasing government influence, technology improvements, shifting economic conditions, and the changing nature of the workforce on industry. This area of psychology will be shown to have a direct impact on business, industry, labor, public, academic, community and health organizations

Criminal justice focus area courses (18 credits)

  • Credits: 3

    Description: This course will examine administration and management in the criminal justice system and the administrative challenges associated with certain career choices. Students will explore various occupations in their career field. Topics include leadership, management, ethical issues, communication, political behavior, and administrative principles in criminal justice.

  • Credits: 0

    Description: This course requires students to demonstrate or report their level of achievement of the student learning objectives developed for the Master of Science in Organizational Management in Criminal Justice Administration and Management focus. Various measures such as surveys, comprehensive exams, and/or capstone papers or projects will be used to gather student data. Completion of this course is a graduation requirement. Graded S/NC. Prerequisite: Final semester prior to graduation.

  • Credits: 6

    Description: The focus of this part of the program will be to emphasize knowledge integration and application of learned principles.

  • Select three of the following:

    • CJA 625 Life Course Criminology (3 credit hours) – This course provides an overview of the life course approach and describes the major concepts and issues in one’s life that leads to delinquency and criminal behavior. This course reviews research on the role of the family in crime and juvenile delinquency as it applies to criminal justice.
    • CJA 627 Elements of Cybercrime (3 credit hours) – This course is designed to provide students with the foundational knowledge needed to detect, investigate, and prevent computer-related crimes. Topics will include computer hacking, dark web, digital forensics, online harassment, identity theft, sex crimes, cyberterrorism, digital copyright and related issues, and economic crimes.
    • CJA 630 Applied Criminology (3 credit hours) – This course is an advanced study of various theories of crime causation, including an examination of biological, psychological, economic, and sociological perspectives on criminal behavior and delinquency.
    • CJA 644 Topics in Criminal Justice (3 credit hours) – This course will examine current or special issues in criminal justice in depth. The course offers students the opportunity to discuss relevant issues facing society. This course may be repeated, by advisement, with different topics.
    • CJA 647 Youth Crime and Justice (3 credit hours) – This course provides an overview of youth crime and the response by the juvenile justice system. Topics discussed include juvenile delinquency and status offenders, gangs and extraordinary groups, peer pressure, drug use and abuse, and theoretical perspectives of delinquency. Additionally, police, courts, and detention of juveniles will be discussed.
    • CJA 650 Advanced Criminal Law (3 credit hours) – This course is an advanced look at criminal law and the cases that influenced the law we see today. Topics include an overview of the criminal justice system and uniqueness of the criminal process, the requirement of actus reus and mens rea, and the importance of proving each element of major crimes such as homicide, rape, and inchoate crimes as demonstrated through full cases and court decisions.
    • CJA 652 Drugs and Society (3 credit hours) – Comprehensive analysis of the interrelationships among drug use/abuse, crime, and justice. The course will examine historical and contemporary policies, drug markets, drug trafficking, and drug offender arrests, as well as prosecution and sentencing of drug offenders by the state and federal courts.

Awards and Rankings

Recognized for excellence

Best Online Master's in Organizational Management Programs

Wayne State College was recognized among the Best Online Master's in Organizational Management Programs for 2025 by My Degree Guide.

Best Online Master's in Organizational Management Programs

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Most Affordable Online Master's Degree 2025

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Get in touch

Department of Criminal Justice
Connell Hall, Room 204
Phone: 402-375-7139

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