Are you considering a career in law enforcement, social services, corrections, or crime prevention? Do you need a degree program that is accredited with classes offered through online learning programs rather than on campus?
If so, take a look below at the best online criminal justice degree programs in Oregon at the bachelor's level.
In these degree programs, you'll study crime prevention, juvenile delinquency, the justice system, and how various social agencies control and reduce crime.
Top Online Criminal Justice Programs in Oregon
Each of the online criminal justice programs in Oregon is distinctive and has its own character expressed through its courses and faculty, but all of the following meet accreditation requirements.
1. Oregon State University
Although Oregon State University does not have a criminal justice department, students can earn an online sociology degree with an emphasis on crime and justice.
The sociology program's crime and justice option includes courses on issues such as criminology, crime prevention, and juvenile delinquency. Students may also complete an internship at a criminal justice or social service agency.
Another optional emphasis in the sociology program is the social service and advocacy option, which prepares students to address community social problems and promote change.
U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks Oregon State's Ecampus among the nation's 10 best providers of online education. Its College of Liberal Arts, home to the sociology department, is one of the best online liberal arts colleges.
The university's quarter credit system, requiring 180 credits for a bachelor's degree, is slightly different from many universities on a semester system that offer primarily three-credit courses and 120-hour degree programs.
2. Portland State University
Among the fully online criminal justice bachelor's degree programs in the United States, Portland State University's Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in criminology and criminal justice continues to thrive.
The university provides asynchronous five-week courses along with ample academic and technical support services.
With most courses being four credits each, the total degree requirements are 180 credits (averaging about 11 courses per year over four years), including general education and electives.
Like Oregon State, PSU's quarter credit system is different from that of universities on a semester system, which have primarily three-credit courses and 120-hour degree programs.
3. Southern Oregon University
Students can earn either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice online at Southern Oregon University.
The degrees cover law, policing, theory, and corrections and prepares students for careers in criminal justice or to continue to graduate or law school.
As a bonus, students could earn an undergraduate certificate in restorative justice to enhance their CJ degree.
Rather than focusing on punishing criminals, restorative justice emphasizes how to repair the harm done to the victim, the offender, and the community.
4. Warner Pacific University
This private Christian university is the home of an online accelerated Bachelor of Science in criminal justice and criminology degree with strong liberal arts and social science roots.
Aimed toward working adults in a cohort model, this 46-credit degree completion program consists of 15 five-week asynchronous courses and requires 124 credits (including transfer hours) to earn the degree.
Students available for some on-campus courses could earn a distinctive hybrid Dual Degree that combines a Bachelor of Social Work and an online Bachelor of Science in criminal justice
5. Western Oregon University
Western Oregon University offers a hybrid Bachelor of Science in criminal justice program.
Curriculum content areas are interdisciplinary and include the study of courts, corrections, law enforcement, community crime prevention, youth crime, forensic anthropology, and homeland security.
In addition, Western Oregon University is the home of two relevant 45-credit online master's-level programs: a Master of Arts in criminal justice and a Master of Science in justice studies.
Combining research, theory, and practice, the criminal justice master's program prepares graduates for management roles in any criminal justice career field.
The justice studies master's program is for those who desire to serve as change agents.
Relevant careers might include community organizing, activism, advocacy for vulnerable populations, criminal justice, research and policy, or other social service agency or nonprofit leadership.
Western Oregon also provides a post-baccalaureate certificate program in criminal justice with two options:
- The advanced juvenile justice studies certificate offers students advanced knowledge of delinquent behavior and the juvenile justice system through research, theory, and practice.
- The social justice certificate prepares students to address social justice issues by organizing and effecting social change.
FAQs about Oregon Criminal Justice Degree Programs
Below, we address the most commonly asked questions about earning your criminal justice degree online in Oregon.
Is an Online Criminal Justice Degree as Respected as an In-Person Degree?
At reputable, accredited universities, the online degree programs are of the same high quality as the on-campus programs.
The only difference is that your learning mode is online, which adds flexibility and convenience for many students who may be unable to participate in traditional on-campus learning.
As the Portland State University website says so well, "At PSU's Criminology and Criminal Justice online program, you are not an online student. You are a criminology and criminal justice student who learns online."
What Careers Do Criminal Justice Majors Prepare You For?
Graduates with degrees in criminal justice find jobs with police forces, sheriff's offices, the FBI, homeland security, the state highway patrol, university or school police, or with correctional centers and institutions.
Other roles might include working as a detective, in private security, drug rehab programs, probation and parole, special investigations, social advocacy, forensic science, hospitals, women's shelters, or victim assistance programs.
Does Criminal Justice Require a Lot of Math?
The curricula of Oregon's online criminal justice bachelor's programs do not usually contain math courses other than the requirements for the university's general education programs.
Start Your Criminal Justice Degree Program in Oregon
If you're looking for information about various college and university degree programs—and especially if you're researching criminal justice programs in Oregon—please be sure to reach out to us at Best Accredited College for answers!
