Students enrolled in a criminal justice program will first take a variety of college-level prerequisites required of all students enrolled at the specific college or university. These courses set the basis for the student to proceed with more degree-specific courses and also ensure the student acquires the knowledge and skill set needed to succeed in a college setting. Expected courses include at least one semester of a physical science, math, English, a course in humanities and a social or behavioral science such as philosophy or psychology.
Once the college prerequisites are completed, students will have to enroll in a series of classes specific to the school of criminal justice. These can include an upper-level English course, statistics, philosophy, politics, psychology or sociology. The particular college or university will specify the types of courses to be taken and the minimum accepted, as well as in which year these courses must be taken or completed. An adviser is usually assigned once a student has declared a major, typically at the end of the second or the beginning of the third year, in a four-year bachelors' program.
After the student declares a major in the field of criminal justice, he will begin to take general courses that directly relate to the field of work itself. Such courses will usually be seminar-style and are not concentration-specific, so all students enrolled in any of the majors offered in this field are required to finish them. An introduction to the criminal justice system will be completed, as well as courses in criminology; the fundamentals of criminal law; corrections systems and practices; police systems and practices; introduction to methods of research; crime, justice and social diversity; and problem analysis in criminal justice. Internships are recommended, if not required, at all schools.
Students who choose to prepare for a career in forensic science will take courses unlike those required by students in the general criminal justice majors. These advanced courses can even be completed through selecting a major in a physical science and a minor in criminal justice. For these, required courses will include biochemistry and independent chemistry research, general and advanced courses in criminal justice such as police systems and practices, the courts and criminal procedure and forensic science, as well as an undergraduate internship in criminal justice.