Hello all,
I am currently in the process of finishing up my MS in criminal justice. I have found this field to be truly fascinating, and i would enjoy doing research for it. There’s so many new and exciting topics in criminology\CJ. I have found something that really interests me is epidemiological criminology. I know, that may sound like a made up field, but i promise it’s not! It’s the intersection of public health and criminology. This brings me to my question, should i be applying for a PhD in CJ or applying for an MPH (Masters of public health)?
I am not only examining this with a lens of what i’m interested in, i’m also looking at it in terms of career prospects. If i earned a PhD, i would really want to work for state or federal government as a consultant\researcher. I don’t particularly want to go immediately into teaching at a university. I have found a few social science research jobs, but does anyone know if more of those positions will be opening up in the future? I’ve read that CJ is a booming field due to the “CSI effect”. Also, some PhD programs have told me most students are employed as professors, but some are researchers too. Overall, employment is good.
In terms of the MPH, i’ve found loads of jobs (i would specialize in epidemiology), but i’ve also read that when there are budget cuts in the federal government, public health is often the first to go. Then i can find other sources that say an MPH is a great investment. I’m just really confused on what’s the truth. I found a great MPH program that specializes in epidemiology and touches on crime prevention (and has really interesting research projects, yay!)
I’ve asked professors for help on this matter but all i get are obvious answers like “well, go for the PhD if you’re interested in research, go for the MPH if you’re interested in being a practitioner”. But what does that really mean? What are the actual differences in a researcher vs a practitioner? Which will allow me to earn more? Which will allow me to climb up promotions?
I’ve been recently applying for crime analyst jobs in police departments, but the competition has been fierce. Can anyone advise me on this matter?
It sounds like you have identified an interesting MPH program that will satisfy your interests. One difference between a PhD and a MPH/MS researcher is that the PhD is required to be the PI or leader of a federally-funded research project. With a MPH/MS, you would be a valuable member of a research team. PhDs often search for work in a national market while masters level researchers and analysts might find multiple job opportunties within a particular region.
Finally, I suggest that you broaden your job search to include county-level jobs as a research or evaluation analyst. Counties have a strong involvement in criminal justice and probably hire more researchers than police departments.
Lots of PhDs are never PIs on grants and have no need to be. It depends if you get a job in academia or in the public sector. Your professors are correct. If you are more interested in working in the CJ area, then a MS (even the one you already have nearly achieved) is probably good enough to get you in the door. A PhD takes a long time to earn (usually over 3 years after a MS) and unless you are really committed to the research or are seeking a career where the PhD is essential, then it is not a great idea. The 3-5 years of earnings and raises/advancement is not going to be magically made up with a PhD.
I know my professors are correct, but like I said, it doesn’t really tell me much of the actual differences of day to day job tasks at all. I already knew what they told me. I’ve researched degrees before. I know a PhD takes years of commitment, and I’m okay with that. There’s hardly any entry level social science researcher jobs that don’t require either a couple years of research experience (I got my degree from UC’s online CJ program, so no experience) or a PhD. You get experience while working on your PhD because you help out on research projects. It’s a plus for experience and earning a degree. However, if I go down that path I’m trying to ensure that it would be completely worth it (employment and earnings wise). An MPH allows me to branch out in another field that can still be related (EpiCrim like I mentioned), but I don’t want it to hinder my qualifications to participate in research. This program would be in person, so hopefully I could get more hands on experience. I hope that helps clarify my previous post.
Thanks!
Well, the PhD is always going to be around, so one solution to this is to get an MPH first and work for a few years, see whether you like research and whether you can move up enough in research to satisfy your career goals. If you can, you’re good; if not, then you can return and get a PhD.
The next best way to learn about day to day differences (besides working) is set up some informational interviews with people who work in the kinds of jobs you want to work in. Most people love talking about themselves - so find some people with MPHs and PhDs who do research in public health and ask to buy them coffee and chat with them for 30-45 minutes about their work.
You can also get research experience during an MPH by working with professors as a research assistant. It’s very common.
Also, if you want to do research in epidemiology, I would say you should get a PhD in epidemiology. I think that would be more marketable than a PhD in criminal justice. But it would entirely depend on the kind of research you truly want to do and where you want to work.
Read research papers, publications, and academic journals. Do you want to do that kind of research and write papers for publication to contribute to the body of knowledge in the field? If so, then consider the PhD.
The advice from @juillet is excellent.
@juillet thank you! That is a great idea. I have also considered getting the MPH for that reason as well - the PhD will always be there. Furthermore, if i ended up enjoying the MPH work more than the CJ related work, i would have the option to get a PhD in epidemiology. 
@AuraObscura i would enjoy contributing to my field. I think that would be a great feeling. However, i do think @juillet made the great point that i could go back for the PhD if i really want to later in life. I just don’t want to spend half my life in school lol. I love learning, but i’m not a fan of debt!