SUNY Albany SUNY Cortland SUNY Onenta

College Search & Selection
1

<p>What can you tell me?</p>

<p>My S is a jr in hs. Wants forensic science/criminolgy/criminal justice major.</p>

<p>Albany has a great School of Crim Justice but you can not be admitted in freshman yr. You must earn 42 cr in an Albany major and transfer in. Sounds very selective they only take top students with 3.2 min gpa and rigorous courses taken.</p>

<p>I'm not too sure about the other two schools programs.( Cortland or Onenta)</p>

<p>Trying to get an idea of what ea school would be like for him, the area, student body, how credible academics are. If he would "fit" or not.</p>

<p>I know Albany is a large univ ( I have read about the Rennasiance Program which seems to make smaller groups ) and many good resources in Chemistry( forensics etc) and the School of Crim Just sounds very good. But he would spending his first three yrs in the main college on the main campus.(w/ no guarentee of being accepted to the School of Crim Just later on)
Anybody have feed back on Albany( especially as a freshman?) ps I know about it's party hard rep, many schools have this)
The fact that he would enter Albany undecided or perhaps to the Chemistry dept(forensics)w/ no guarentee of being accepted to the School of Just has me a bit reluctant. I'm not sure if this route is too far reaching for a hs graduate. Perhaps a more structured plan where he would be directly admitted to a criminology program would be better since he insists he only wants a criminology major. </p>

<p>Oneonta? </p>

<p>Cortland?</p>

<p>In the middle of nowhere? What kind of credibility do these programs have?</p>

<p>If his intent is to be a police officer ( hoping to be hired @ age 21) he is only required to have 60 college credits.( associates degree) but as his Mom I am trying to encourage him to earn a BA/BS. Because he may change his mind down the road and want a different career, I think it would be wise to pursue a BA/BS. If when he turns 21 and he is hired for the po dept he can use it for advancement in the po dept if still wants to be a po officer.</p>

<p>Also considering Hofstra and CW Post which are local for us. If you know anything about these programs here also.</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

2

<p>I cannot tell you much. Marny currently has a D at Cortland. Hofstra offered my son a very generous merit aid package. I just want to say that I would not send my son to Albany if he needed to have a min. of 3.2 to get into the criminology program. My son is in the same bind at his school, but he needs a 2.8 (and they increased it this year from a 2.5) to get into his program. At least I know this is doable, but I still am concerned.
Oh, and I would insist on that BA/BS too. I think that he will thank you for that one day!</p>

3

<p>Hi Guys- Haven't "spoken" to you in a while. Lu- my d also applied and was accepted to Albany with the thought of being a Criminal Justice major. When we went to the Albany Open House and to the Criminal Justice session, they were very clear that Forensics was a whole other area and was housed within the "science" dept. (chem or bio). They stressed that the criminal Justice program was more social science based- study of society--deviant behavior--understanding the criminal mind and lots of research involved. This was not a CSI/forensics lab major. They wanted to make that very clear to everyone attending the Criminal Justice session.
D is very happy at Cortland- again it is a great school for education, sport management, outdoor and leisure etc. Though I am not familiar with their criminology dept, I am sure it's ok. I will say that Cortland is not as isolated as I thought. It is right on route 81 and within 45 minutes of Binghamton, Ithaca and Syracuse. D has already gone shopping at the Carousel Mall in Syracuse, visited sis in Ithaca and went to Bing to visit her friends.
Big week-end in Cortland as it was the Cortaca Jug game between Ithaca and Cortland. Lots of HS friends who go to school upstate found their way to Cortland last week-end. Being on route 81 really does make it pretty accessible. Oneonta in my opinion is a bit more isolated as it is a longer trip to any of the major upstate cities. My guess is that for criminology- both Cortland and Oneonta would be comparable.
Hope all is well with you. NE- I hope your son is adjusting well to JMU. It really does seem to be a great school.<br>
I think my d made the right choice staying in NY. She doesn't seem to be overly adventurous and the size of the SUNY colleges (5000-8000 kids) is just perfect. I do think that if she went to a much larger school, (Temple or GMU) she may have been a bit overwhelmed by the environment.<br>
Good luck!!
Marny</p>

4

<p>Marny, Glad to read your update, and that all is well. </p>

<p>My son is doing well, thanks for asking!</p>

5

<p>Just checked out the Cortland website. Gotta admit- it seems promising. You can do a Law and Justice concentration within the political science department or the criminology major within the Sociology/anthropology Dept. As noted on the criminology site, it's not a degree in criminal justice as the "BA in criminology provides a broader liberal arts curriculum"... That may meet alot of needs especially if he changes his mind and wants a broader educational experience.<br>
Just a reminder the ROTC program at Cortland is "housed" at Cornell which is only about 30 minutes away. I remember that your son may be interested in ROTC. Let me know if you need more info on Cortland. It really is a very pleasant campus and so far it has exceeded my expectations.</p>

<p>My d applied to all the 3 schools and was accepted to each one. As she was interested in Sport Management, it was a no brainer to choose Cortland.</p>

6

<p>I'd like to visit the three schools Albany Cortland and Oneonta. </p>

<p>Where he stands right now:</p>

<p>his grades are 85 gpa and he's not real motivated about anything other than being a cop. he thinks hs is a waste of time and would love to get out early. But he is bright, not living up to his potential. He is building his own computer holds a pt job and LOVES his video games. Taking drivers ed and LOVES driving. Wants to grow up fast I think. He's 16 will be 17 this winter. At that age of independence but not really ready to be, even tho he thinks he is. He's a good kid, very mechanical(he takes an engineer course in hs now and likes it- they built a robot) Hes a science and math kid in the true sense w/ a rebellious attitude but polite and dependable and resposible as far as his work and studies and chores, nothing bad going on just a chip on the shoulder.</p>

<p>Just tells me I want to be a police officer, whatever college it will take to get me there is fine. Not real interested in the college selection process.</p>

<p>SUNYs seem pretty good right now to me. I am interested in Clarkson Univ too. They sent him something about coming a year early. He likes that idea. I told him he'd really have to buckle down and increase his grades to 90's and score well on the SAT if he wants to apply early as it sounded competetive. He did not even want to take the PSAT given last month he says it's just a waste, he will take the SAT in May and study when it counts.</p>

<p>He is set on a criminal justice or criminology program. Still is curious about the military but not as hot on it ( which truthfully sounds good to me, I would support him if he wants it but really am happy for him to pass on it so I do not encourage it untill he is serious)</p>

<p>Cortland's website looks appealing, the sociology criminology program looks ok but not excellent. John Jay college is perfect as far as what he is looking for but the locationw/ no housing means he would live at home and commute by train to NYC. It is a more focused school of Criminolgy but w/ a bit of edge as far as college life. Id like him to see it and think about it but i is very different from the typical college life you'd expect. He wants a rural away from home college life, so John Jay fits his major interest but not the rest.</p>

<p>Stubborn minded kid- but bright and I trust he will do well when he does take it.</p>

<p>I am kind of frustrated w/ him can you tell? I love him w/ all my heart and am trying to support his interests and be a good guide and mentor for him in preparing for college and life after high school but really, he is very different from my first D who loves academia and is an artsy kid who was motivated in her college search. I'm getting a bit discouraged. But I know he will be ok in the end, these things work out. </p>

<p>Marny your confidence in Cortland inspires me to want to check it out. Thanks Cortland is a running canidate for sure.</p>

7

<p>Ah- the stubborn minded kid. I have one of those too. I def understand the mind set. My d too wasn't that interested in pursuing academia but she knew it was a necessity- thus we concentrated on an area of study which she found acceptable. Criminal Justice was a back-up for her as she is truly analytical and I could def. see her go into investigation or detailed background work for a gov't agency.
Anyway- there are new programs in the field of Homeland Security/Terrorism etc. Albany through the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy has a certificate program in Public Management- "Public Security Concentration". Courses include Terrorrism, Public Security and Law Enforcement. Bunch of computer courses and courses like Globalization, International Cooperation and Terrorism. Now I think this is graduate level program but you may want to check with the undergraduate division of the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs at SUNY Albany to see if they have a similar tract for undergraduates. Albany does have a semester in Washington program, so an internship with the Feds (FBI/CIA etc) may be something your son would like. ( I think Cortland has a semester in Wash too through the Political Science Dept)
You gotta remember studying criminology through the Sociology/Anthropology Dept. of any college will also include taking alot of "touchy feely" sociology courses. I initially went that route in college as I thought I was going into social work. I later changed to a political science major which worked better for me.<br>
You may want to do a quick comparison of the 2 programs at Cortland- Criminology and the program in the political science dept (Law and Justice??). There is a difference in emphasis. One concentrates on laws-gov't etc. the other may concentrate on society/ family etc.<br>
I too am keeping an open mind on these areas in the event the Sport Management program doesn't work out so we too need a "Plan B". But so far- it's good.
You too may need back-up plans for SUNY. My d got into all 3 schools, but she had about an 89 average and 23 ACT (1070 SAT equivalent). I wasn't too sure if she would get in as admission to the 4 year SUNY's is quite fierce. So as a precaution she applied to SUNY Delhi as a safety. I know a lot of the 2 year SUNY's have criminal justice programs, so you may want to check that out too. Good luck!</p>

8

<p>May I offer a small suggestion? Perhaps you would look at Arcadia University? They have one of only six accredited Master of Forensic Sciences programs in the country. I understand that they look very kindly on male applicants because they're so heavily female.<br>
My daughter is looking at the same field and is applying to Oneonta. She is definitely not applying to Albany because that is not a good fit for her personality wise.</p>

9

<p>I am a junior in highschool, looking to pursue a career in the criminology field. Being the first of my parents children, going to college is a new experience for all of us which leaves me curious to many of the questions that I have. I was wondering if you new any good schools that I should look into for this program, preferably SUNY schools..any help is extremely appreciated. Thank you.</p>

10

<p>crim- I do not know if too much has changed since we responded 2 years ago. I would suggest you check out the criminology program at Albany and definitely check out CUNY- John Jay College. Those 2 school websites should give you a good beginning in learning about college programs in criminology.</p>

11

<p>I’m 20 years old and I’m just getting started on this whole college process. I never even took my SATs. I’m completely lost of all of this. Although I am registered to take my SATs in May, I still have no idea what college I want to go to afterward. I’ve looked at SUNY Canton as well as SUNY Cortland and of course ACC as a back up. I’ve recently joined the national guard and want to find a good SUNY school that has a good forensics anthropology course and criminology, but I just get confused. I’m open to any suggestions anyone might have.</p>

12

<p>I am currently a criminal justice major in a community college. If your son is interested in advancement in the law enforcement field I suggest he chose a different major such as human services. Like you said you only need 60 credits to become an officer it does not matter what you have those credits in. Criminal justice degree is very difficult in the real world because it does not give you the advantage some people may think. I wish I knew that before I took it. I know many people in law enforcement some who also have criminal justice degrees and they are the first to tell you it does nothing for you. To advance to a position such as Lieutenant the department would rather take someone with a human services degree, because they have experience with people (public, which departments serve). A Criminal Justice degree does not make any statement unless your into a security guard job other than when you become an officer nothing you learn in that major is going to help you only what you learned in the police academy will. It is truly a waste of money and time to choose this major.</p>

13

<p>Albany is good for criminology. Cortland I know for a fact has a criminology program. It’s not as good as Albany but the major gives the students a good core foundation for the subject. Therefore, it’s easy to transfer in to the program at Albany. Many take gen eds at UAlbany or another college before transferring into the program. It’s better to take Sociology/Anthropology classes to get a foundation of the concepts that will be covered in the major before jumping into it.</p>