Learn about the mind of a criminal to help keep our communities safe
Criminal Justice Associate's degree - Psychology specialization
Psychology professionals within the criminal justice field have numerous opportunities to use their critical-thinking skills to analyze, evaluate, and help rehabilitate criminal offenders. Our Criminal Justice program with a specialization in Psychology will prepare you to excel in the juvenile justice, corrections, and law enforcement systems through top-tier curriculum that focuses on psychology case studies, theories, and tactics that are not commonly available in Associate’s degree-level courses.
In addition to your specialization courses, which are designed and included to give you a competitive advantage as you start your career, you will also complete in-field learning and gain first-hand experience and knowledge of the many key psychology positions available in the criminal justice field.
As a graduate of our Criminal Justice Associate’s degree with a Psychology specialization, you can choose to enter the workforce upon graduation or you can choose to further your education and seamlessly transfer your credits into our Criminal Justice Bachelor’s degree.
Online Criminal Justice Degree main page
Create a positive change with a psychology specialization
Your study of criminal justice with an emphasis in psychology will help prepare you for a career once you graduate. Whether you’re completing your degree online or taking courses on campus, you will receive the same amount of support from your instructors and the rest of the staff at Rasmussen College. Plus, we will help you find a career once you graduate, so you can put your newfound knowledge to use.
Request more information about the psychology program.
Are you ready to learn more? We’ve spent more than a century at Rasmussen College preparing people for success. If you would like to know more about our school, what we offer our students or anything else, please fill out a contact request or call us at (888) 549-6755. One of our program managers can answer any questions you may have.
Psychology Courses
Your courses will prepare you to better understand criminal and deviant psychology. Criminal minds can be complicated and your degree will help you understand what drives these individuals to commit crimes. Your courses online or on campus will be led by instructors with vast knowledge of the subject matter and real world experiences.
Some key courses include:
Social Psychology
You will examine how the social environment influences thought, behavior, feelings, and potential actions of people.
Community Psychology
You will focus on the four systems which function in a community: the mental health system, educational system, criminal justice system, and social service system.
Abnormal Psychology
You will examine numerous applications, including a variety of mental health disorders, individuals who have difficulty functioning effectively in everyday life, the impact of family dysfunction on the individual, and the influence of mental illness on criminal behavior.
Psychology Career Outlook
A specialization in Psychology will help you focus on the internal factors of why crimes are committed. Your study of psychology as it relates to criminal justice will allow you to look at the justice system from a different perspective. Your ability to apply what you learned will help you understand the criminal thought process.
Here is a snapshot of a possible career for someone with a Criminal Justice degree:
Salary & growth statistics provided by the BLS ‡ |
25th Percentile | 50th Percentile | 75th Percentile | Projected Growth |
| Social and Human Service Assistants | $22,230 | $27,940 | $35,620 | 23% |
| Correctional Officers and Jailers | $31,210 | $39,050 | $52,240 | 9% |
The Rasmussen College career placement services staff starts helping you before you graduate – with your resume, cover letter, interviewing techniques and how to search for a great career. And it doesn’t end there – these services are available throughout your entire career.
‡"Occupational Employment Statistics Home Page." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Department of Labor, 27 July 2010. Web. 27 Sept. 2010.
"Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Department of Labor, Dec. 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2010.
BLS salary data may not reflect expected entry level earnings.
Seamless Credit Transfer Policies
Transferring your credits doesn't need to be difficult. At Rasmussen College, our transfer policies are designed to maximize your credit transfer and minimize your time to graduation.
Check out some of our highlighted transfer policies below or visit our Transfer Policy for a full description of each policy.
- Transfer your entire Associate’s degree credits and enter at Junior status if you have an Associate's degree and are seeking a Bachelor’s degree in a similar field—this also means you will not have to complete any pre-requisites for most degrees ¹
- Transfer all general education courses from your previously-earned Associate's or Bachelor's degree regardless of course of study ²
- Course-by-course evaluation of all courses with a grade of C or higher
- Credit by examination, which gives you an opportunity to test out of courses where you can demonstrate specific knowledge. These tests are offered free of charge to Rasmussen College students.
- Earn college credit through prior work, learning, and military experiences
Contact a program manager today at 888-549-6755 or complete the form on the right and one of our program managers will contact you to discuss transferring your college credit to Rasmussen College.
¹ Rasmussen College reserves the right to accept or deny transfer of credits based on guidelines defined in the course catalog. Rasmussen College transfer policies vary by state and degree; contact your local campus to discuss your credit transfer options.
² Refer to the General Education Block Transfer For Baccalaureate Candidates for complete details and restrictions.
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