2025-2026 Academic Catalog

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Criminology (CRIM)

CRIM 1054 - Virginia Tech Prison Book Project (1 credit) 
A one-hour course with the Virginia Tech Prison Book Project. Students will complete a learning module about carceral institutions in the United States and the impact of educational opportunities on the lives of incarcerated people. They will then participate in a service learning event where they match individual requests from incarcerated readers to books and prepare the books for shipping.
Instructional Contact Hours: (1 Lab, 1 Crd) 
Course Crosslist: HUM 1054, RLCL 1054 
CRIM 2504 - Crime and Punishment in American History (3 credits) 
Analyzes changing understandings of crime and punishment from the Colonial Era to the Age of Mass Incarceration. Considers how factors of race, ethnicity, class, and gender intersected with changing ideas of criminality and punishments.
Pathway Concept Area(s): 2 Critical Thinking Humanities, 7 Identity & Equity in U.S., 11 Intercultural&Global Aware. 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
Course Crosslist: HIST 2504 
CRIM 2754 - Internship (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 2964 - Field Work/Practicum (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 2974 - Independent Study (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 2984 - Special Study (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 3124 - Murder in American History (3 credits) 
Considers how the definition of murder as a crime has changed from the colonial period to the present day. Uses murder cases to study the dynamics of American society in condemning, condoning, or celebrating murder. Asks how cultural factors, including racial prejudice, gender stereotypes, beliefs about sexuality, and class status affected the act of killing, media coverage of the event, societal reactions, and the execution of justice. Topics covered include abortion, lynching, vigilante justice, and the evolution of the legal system.
Pathway Concept Area(s): 2 Critical Thinking Humanities, 7 Identity & Equity in U.S., 11 Intercultural&Global Aware. 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
Course Crosslist: HIST 3124 
CRIM 3414 - Criminology (3 credits) 
Principles of criminology and contemporary theories of criminal behavior, focusing on the extent and distribution of crime in the United States.
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 3434 - Systems of Justice (3 credits) 
Analyzes the systems of justice in the United States, from a sociological perspective. Focuses on law enforcement, courts, and corrections. Evaluates the effectiveness of social policies related to systems of justice. Explores the structural, community, and individual level factors that influence different stages of justice systems.
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 3474 - Women and Crime (3 credits) 
Focuses on women as victims and perpetrators of crime, with particular attention to race and class. Analyzes how social, cultural, and economic factors influence victimization and participation in crime. Includes adolescent girls involvement with crime, including juvenile gangs. Evaluates theoretical explanations of why women commit crime. Examines womens experiences with the criminal justice system.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 or SOC 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 4224 - Victimology (3 credits) 
An in-depth exploration of the multifaceted field of victimology. A scientific study of victims and the aftermath of victimization, which delves into the physical, emotional, and psychological consequences victims endure. Provides insights into the historical context of victim studies, various theoretical frameworks, and the evolving role of the criminal justice system concerning victims' rights and advocacy. Additionally, this course examines the societal consequences of victimization and explores preventive, interventionist, and compensatory mechanisms to support victims and mitigate the impact of crimes.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
Course Crosslist: PSVP 4224 
CRIM 4424 - Juvenile Delinquency (3 credits) 
Examination of juvenile delinquency. Includes methods of data collection and the extent and distribution of delinquency. Detailed coverage of theories of delinquent behavior. Examines the juvenile justice system and treatment and prevention of delinquency. Utilizes current empirical research on delinquency in the U.S. and internationally.
Prerequisite(s): SOC 3414 or CRIM 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 4454 - Topics in Criminology (3 credits) 
A variable topics course in criminology. In-depth examination of topics such as capital punishment, women and criminology, racial profiling, terrorism, white collar crime, law enforcement, international gangs, political crime, the prison system, cybercrime, and rape. May be repeated 2 times with different content for a maximum of 9 credits. Junior standing.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 or SOC 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
Repeatability: up to 9 credit hours 
CRIM 4474 - Cyber Criminology (3 credits) 
Empirical patterns and consequences of cybercrimes. Emphasis on applying criminological theories of crime and victimization to cyberspace. Cybercrime prevention strategies and tactics. Examination of ethical issues of privacy, security, and social control. Pre: Junior standing.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 or SOC 3414 
Pathway Concept Area(s): 3 Reasoning in Social Sciences, 10 Ethical Reasoning 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 4484 - Hate Crimes (3 credits) 
Focuses on the causes, manifestations, and consequences of hate crimes in the United States. Includes theories of prejudice and biased behavior, the context of perpetration, the individual and community-level effects on the victims, and the political, historical, and social significance of such crimes. Considers broad questions of bias compared to hate, the recognition and prosecution of hate crimes compared to non-bias crimes, the impacts of hate crimes at the individual and community levels, and responses by law enforcement and communities.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
Course Crosslist: PSVP 4484 
CRIM 4504 - Family and Crime (3 credits) 
Focuses on the ways in which involvement in the criminal justice system affects families and family systems. Analyzes the antecedents and consequences of parental incarceration, including an investigation as to how social policies influence this phenomenon. Includes how offenders and their families are embedded in the criminal justice system and learn to navigate periods of incarceration and reentry—which includes family members’ secondary prisonization. Examines the emotional and financial costs of incarceration and reentry on families, as families serve as informal safety nets.
Prerequisite(s): CRIM 3414 
Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd) 
CRIM 4754 - Internship (1-3 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: (1-3 Lec, 1-3 Crd) 
Repeatability: up to 3 credit hours 
CRIM 4964 - Field Study (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 4974 - Independent Study (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 4984 - Special Study (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course 
CRIM 4994 - Undergraduate Research (1-19 credits) 
Instructional Contact Hours: Variable credit course