Hello! I am a sophomore in an early college high school. I am taking dual-enrollment criminal justice classes for my associate’s in criminology, however, I’m really stressing out because I don’t know which college/university has the best program. I know there’s still time to figure it out, but I want to start looking into it. Any suggestions?
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What career path do you plan to pursue with a criminology/criminal justice degree?
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What state are you in? It seems that most states have a non-flagship state school that offers a criminal justice major if you are looking at affordability.
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University of St Louis, Arizona St and John Jay are all schools you should research.
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Why are you “really stressing out”? what is the fear / anxiety that is the basis for your stress? “I want to start looking” is fine. “Really stressing out” is a red flag. It’s in your own interests to figure that out.
As for suggestions:
#1 As @GKUnion asks: *what8 is your goal? that will shape the criteria for the where
#2 Figure out what your budget will be: no or minimal debt is the goal
#3 Almost always, start with the university system in your state: it is likely to recognize more of your credits and be more affordable than any place else.
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Sam Houston State University in Texas has a very good program and the cost even for out of state is reasonable.
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Hello! I’m still not sure yet, I’m still looking into it.
Texas.
Thank you, I will!
I believe that my stress comes from knowing my major but not my career, but thank you for sharing your point of view. I’ll try figuring it out.
Oh, baby: you are what- 16 ? give yourself a little time!
The ‘what do you want to be when you grow up’ question is so insidious! not least b/c it assumes that you should have a life plan before you have had any time to figure out what your options are and what suits you. That wasn’t great in medieval times (your dad’s a farmer / shoe maker / etc, so are you), but it is absolutely useless now, when some of the jobs / careers you might want might not even properly exist yet! 20 years ago there was no such thing as a podcast producer, a sustainability manager, or a genetic counselor. The first use of DNA in a criminal case was in 1986- before you were born, but during your parents lifetime.
Be patient with yourself: the gift of the US college system is that you can say, now, I think that I would like to major in criminal justice because X / Y / Z. Colleges that I can afford and offer that major are A / B / C. Between now and when I start college I can learn more about X / Y / Z, on my own, looking for internships and other other ways to be around them to see what is most interesting to me.
Then, when I get to college, 1) I will learn whether I like some / all / none of criminal justice as an academic subject and can adjust my courses to reflect that; 2) I will be over 18, so will be able to get more meaningful work placements/internships to see what aspects of cj work really interest me. It is possible (tbh, likely) that your interests will evolve, get more focused, and maybe even change as you learn more. So, as you learn more, you make changes: you get this certification and go more that direction. This could happen repeatedly throughout your career.
tl;dr- for most people, their career evolves. That you don’t have an exact plan right now is more than ok. If you keep following your true interests, working hard and learning from each step, you will get there.
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