To be considered for regular status as a graduate student in the Department of Criminal Justice, students must meet general Graduate College requirements and the following department requirements:
- An undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice or related social or behavioral science with at least a 3.0 average is required for admission to graduate study.
- Successful completion of an undergraduate statistics course.
- Successful completion of an undergraduate criminal justice theories course.
- CJ101 Introduction to Criminal Justice or its equivalent (required for all entering students)
- Applicants with less than a 3.0 cumulative GPA may still apply to the program with submission of Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores of 152 or higher on each of the Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning sections and a score of 4 or higher on the Analytical Writing section.
Admission into our graduate program is a competitive process as openings are limited. Students not meeting the department requirements may be considered on a case-by-case basis as openings are available and may be required to take the GRE prior to admission.
Application Deadlines
Applicants who wish to enroll in Summer or Fall semester have the option to send application materials by the Priority deadline (February 15th) or the final deadline (April 1st). The Priority deadline is recommended for students seeking financial aid as most aid decisions are made prior to April 1st.
The deadline for Spring admission consideration is October 1st.
How to apply:
The first step in applying for the M. A. in Criminal Justice is admission to the Boise State University Graduate College. The prospective student should apply to the Graduate College Admissions office at least one full semester prior to expected enrollment.
Your official transcripts should be sent to BSU Graduate College Admissions, not to the Dept. Graduate Coordinator.
Concurrent to the application process at the Graduate College, the prospective student should send the following items directly to Department of Criminal Justice:
- A Statement of Purpose. This statement should explain the student’s reasons for seeking admission and what they hope to achieve in the program.
- Three letters of recommendation from professors/instructors competent to judge the student’s likelihood of success in a graduate course of study.
These items must be sent directly to:
Attn: Dr. Bostaph, Graduate Coordinator
Department of Criminal Justice
Boise State University
1910 University Dr. MS1955
Boise, Idaho 83725-1955
It is recommended that the applicant schedule an interview with the Graduate Coordinator.