Admission Requirements

Guaranteed Admission to the Criminal Justice Major :

Students who meet the following qualifications are guaranteed admission into the criminal justice major.

•  Achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher following completion of at

    least 56 credits (of which 30 credit hours must be taken at the University

    at Albany)

•  Earned a grade of B or better in two of the following courses -

    RCRJ 201, 202 or 203 or equivalents

•  Completed the statistics and research methods classes required of majors

    (RCRJ 281 and 282, or equivalents) with a grade of B or better.

Even those students who qualify for guaranteed admission must complete an application.

Application into the Criminal Justice Major:

Students who do not meet the conditions for guaranteed admission into the major, can still apply for admission. However, it is important to note that criminal justice is a restricted major with limited enrollment. Applications for admission to the criminal justice major are reviewed by the School's Undergraduate Admissions and Awards Committee. Applicants must have completed at least 42 graduation credits prior to application and 56 credits at the time of admission, and they must have earned a B or higher in RCRJ 201, RCRJ 202, or RCRJ 203 (or ASOC 203).

Some of the factors considered during application review include:

•  Overall grade point average

•  Breadth and quality of liberal arts background. The committee will view

    favorably students who have strong records in history, mathematics,

    English, languages, and/or natural sciences.

•  Student's Written Statement of reason for seeking to undertake a criminal

    justice major

The application for the criminal justice major can be found here.

Admittance of Transfer Students to the Criminal Justice Major

Transfer students have two avenues through which they can be admitted to the undergraduate criminal justice major. 

1. Transfer students may apply to the major upon admittance to the University if they have

    achieved a grade of B or better in either RCRJ201, RCRJ202 or RCRJ203 (equivalent

    courses at their prior college will be recognized as meeting this requirement if they

    received a B or better in those courses). Their application will be evaluated and

    compared to other applicants by the Associate and Assistant Deans. The evaluation will

    primarily focus on their overall GPA and the required essay. The best applicants will be

    admitted until we have reached our targeted number of majors.

    The application for the criminal justice major can be found here.

2. Students who have transferred to the University of Albany will be eligible for

    guaranteed admission to the program under the same guidelines as native students.

    Specifically, to qualify for guaranteed admission transfer students must have:

•  Achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher following completion of at

    least 56 credits (of which 30 credit hours must be taken at the University

    at Albany)

•  Earned a grade of B or better in two of the following courses -

    RCRJ 201, 202 or 203 or equivalents

•  Completed the statistics and research methods classes required of majors

    (RCRJ 281 and 282, or equivalents) with a grade of B or better.

    Even those students qualified for guaranteed admission must complete an application.

It should be noted that, because this program is not intended for persons interested in police science, criminalistics, etc., transfer students who have taken courses in such areas may expect such credits not to be transferable into the major. Articulation of such courses will be processed on a case-by-case basis.

Application Deadlines:

For fall admission, applications must be received by the last Friday in February.

For spring admission, applications must be received by the last Friday in September.