Competency In Conducting Original Criminal Justice And Criminology Research
Competency in conducting original Criminal Justice and Criminology research
Indicator
Successful Completion Of Original Research Study As Demonstrated By Defense Of Thesis With A High Pass Or Pass Score
Successful completion of original research study as demonstrated by defense of Thesis using faculty-developed rubric. This rubric uses a 1-5 rating of specific criteria each thesis should address. Committee then assigns a High Pass, Pass, or Fail for each thesis.
Criterion
Student Success In CRIJ 6398 And CRIJ 6399
Students will demonstrate their ability to engage in an original research study within the field criminal justice or criminology during the completion of CRIJ 6398 and CRIJ 6399. The culmination of each course in the sequence will be a public defense of the student’s work. First, the research proposal will be defended proximal to the conclusion of CRIJ 6398; then, the results of the final research project will be defended at the conclusion of CRIJ 6399. At minimum, a thesis will include a literature review of relevant empirical literature, well defined and defensible methodology, original statistical analysis appropriate to the methodology described, and the contextualization of the study results within the existing literature.
Finding
91% Of Students Defending A Thesis Received High Pass Or Pass
91% of students defending thesis received a high pass or pass designation. Only one student's thesis evaluation was held for revision.
Action
Re-examine Rubric
For the upcoming year, the department will re-examine the thesis rubric used to assess student research competency. As the quality and skill sets of our master's students continue to improve, we aim to better articulate and assess desired research skills.
Goal
Methodological Competence
Methodological Competence
Objective
Competency In Employing Elements Of Qualitative And/or Quantitative Research Methods To Design Scientific-based Projects In The Field Of Criminal Just
Competency in employing elements of qualitative and/or quantitative research methods to design scientific-based projects in the field of criminal justice and criminology.
Indicator
Successful Completion Of Research Methods And Statistical Analysis Coursework
Successful completion of Research Methods and Statistical Analysis coursework.
Criterion
Master 80% Of Material In CRIJ 5392 And CRIJ 6385
All students in the CJ Master's program are required to complete 5392 Survey of Research Methods and 6385 Statistics for Criminal Justice Research in which they must master theory and application of social science research techniques as well as descriptive and inferential statistics as evaluated by demonstration of written, computational and oral abilities. Across this course sequence, standard tests that require application of theoretical ideas and demonstration of statistical analyses are conducted. Students are expected to master at least 80% of the material.
Finding
Demonstration Of Written, Computational, And Oral Abilities
In AY 2013-2014, 17 students completed the CRIJ 5392-Survey of Research Methods with scores above 80%. 12 students completed the CRIJ 6385-Statistics for CJ Research with scores above 80%. This finding indicates students are achieving a working mastery of social science techniques including an understanding of descriptive and inferential statistics demonstrating their written, computational, and oral abilities.
Action
80% Master Of Specific Areas
80% of Master of Specific Areas. In the upcoming year, we will further expand upon the specific areas of competency that we expect 80% of our Master of Arts students to master prior to completion. Specific areas of improvement include research and statistical skills.