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Potomac State Offers Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice

Posted on: Monday, 11 July 2005, 03:01 CDT

KEYSER - Potomac State College of West Virginia University is offering a new four-year degree this fall - a bachelor of applied science in criminal justice, college officials said.

The new program will allow graduates with two-year, associate of applied science degrees to continue their education, college officials said.

"We saw this as a great opportunity in a number of ways for not only Potomac State College but also for the region," said Douglas Wilmes, dean for curriculum and instruction at Potomac State. "There is a strong and growing work force in (criminal justice) in the local and statewide economies.

"Current employees with an AAS degree often find a bachelor's degree is necessary for additional advancement in their careers," Wilmes continued. "The problem in many of these cases is that employees are place-bound, so offering a BAS in the local area is an attractive and valuable alternative to them."

Potomac State has offered an AAS degree in criminal justice on its Keyser campus for six years. Additionally, the college has offered criminal justice courses online as a cooperative AAS degree program between PSC and its sister campus, WVU-Parkersburg.

Andrea Bucklew, lead instructor of the college's criminal justice program, said students are required to earn their associate from Potomac State. Successful candidates for the BAS program must possess an AAS degree from a regionally accredited institution, she said. Additionally, the student must meet all general institutional admission requirements.

"As CJ agencies upgrade their educational requirements for employment, advanced degrees are becoming extremely important commodities," Bucklew said.

"Jobs requiring additional education include FBI agents, criminologists, corrections facilities managers and crime scene investigators among many other career titles."

Potomac State's bachelor's of bachelor of applied science in criminal justice requires 123 total hours, with a minimum of 62 hours earned through the associate of applied science degree.

In addition to general education courses, upper division offerings include terrorism; forensic techniques; roles of women in criminal justice; ethics in criminal justice; and communitybased corrections.

Information is available from Enrollment Services at (800) 262- 7332 or (304) 788-6820 or from the Potomac State Web site, wwwpotomaestatecollege.edu.

Copyright State Journal Corporation Jun 17, 2005

Source: State Journal, The

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