New Criminal Justice MBA to Begin Fall 2021

Bluefield College’s School of Criminal Justice will offer a new master’s degree program beginning in the fall of 2021. The program will be in justice administration (JA) and will be offered in collaboration with BC’s Caudill School of Business.

“The MBA-JA will have five core business classes, five criminal justice classes, and a two-semester capstone course,” said Dr. Lisa Robinson, director of the new justice administration program.

Dr. Robinson added that each department will focus on its respective roles in administration and criminal justice to create the criteria for the master’s degree.

“The business classes will focus on financial management, ethics, leadership, and other things they (students) need to be as an administrator,” she said. “The CRJ classes will focus on things specific to criminal justice, like public policy, theory, and crisis command and control for critical incidents.”

By integrating curriculum from the Business and Criminal Justice departments, Dr. Robinson added, students will be more diversified and marketable for jobs in law enforcement and government administration.

“We aim to provide a new opportunity for our students to succeed in their careers by giving them the skills to advance into administrative and supervisory roles in their organizations,” Dr. Robinson said. “This master’s was developed over three years to ensure it meets the needs of our alumni and current students who want to progress in their careers.”

Dr. Kim Farmer, dean of the School of Criminal Justice, said, “My hope is to be able to provide a graduate program for criminal justice professionals that will better prepare them for leadership roles, make them more competitive and qualified for career advancement, and support and sustain the growth of Bluefield College into the future.”

The business side of the program will focus more on the administration aspect of the degree. The School of Business believes the new MBA-JA will be very helpful to those interested in advanced and relative knowledge of investigating crime, understanding the criminal mind, and much more.

“This degree is designed for those interested in developing or advancing administrative skills used in criminal justice,” said Dr. Sharon Perot, executive director of the MBA. “2020 marked a time of violence across the U.S., in our neighborhoods, internationally, in business, and in cyberspace.”

Because administration is a key focus of the degree, salaries offered to graduates of the program will be more than if they had just an undergraduate degree.

“According to a 2016 U.S. News report, individuals with an MBA earn on average $1 million more over 20 years than those with undergraduate degrees,” Dr. Perot said. “The business administration core courses provide students with deeper industry knowledge, an expanded network, increased critical thinking, problem analysis, and problem-solving skills.”

For more information on the new master’s degree in justice administration (MBA-JA), contact Dr. Robinson at lrobinson@bluefield.edu or Dr. Perot at sperot@bluefield.edu.