Forensics and Criminality Minor

The interdisciplinary minor in forensics and criminality was designed for students interested in the study of law, deviant behavior or careers in the criminal justice system. In this program, students study psychological and/or ethical issues related to criminal behavior, consider criminality in the context of social class analysis, and learn about the American system of criminal justice. Twenty units are required, 4 at the lower-division and 16 at the upper-division level. Contact Dornsife College Advising for further details.

Students should choose a curriculum for their minor based on their academic interests. Those students interested in white collar crime, for example, might choose POSC 130 Law, Politics, and Public Policy  at the lower-division level, SOCI 350 Social Exclusion, Social Power, and Deviance  and PPD 342 Crime and Public Policy .

Those who are interested in the criminal justice system might choose LAW 200x Law and Society , REL 341 Ethics in a Technological Society , SOCI 351 Public Policy and Juvenile Justice , POSC 340 Constitutional Law  and POSC 432 The Politics of Local Criminal Justice .

Those interested in individual and social determinants of deviancy might take PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychology , PSYC 360 Abnormal Psychology , or PSYC 363 Criminal Behavior , or PSYC 365 Introduction to Forensic Psychology ; SOCI 360 Social Inequality: Class, Status, and Power , LAW 402 Psychology and Law  and SOCI 353 Public Policy and Criminal Justice .