The University of Maryland’s Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJS) is a national and international leader in research and criminal justice education. A 1998 study of the quality of faculty in doctoral criminology and criminal justice programs reported that CCJS faculty were the most frequently cited of American criminal justice programs while a more recent study reported that more than a third of the 22 most accomplished new scholars in criminology and criminal justice received their Ph.D. degrees from CCJS (Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 1998; 2001). According to a 2005 U.S. News and World Reports ranking of the quality of Criminology and Criminal Justice Doctoral programs, the Maryland program is number one out of the thirty-two programs ranked.
The mission of the department is to lead in the development of criminological and criminal justice research and theory; the training of graduate students to conduct and understand basic and applied research; and the provision of undergraduate education of the highest quality including internships and international experiences. Department members guide the highest levels of government, nationally and internationally, on the development of research based policies to prevent and control delinquency, crime, and terrorism. The department serves the campus, the local community, and the state as consultants and advisors on issues of critical importance.
