Florida International University's M.S. in CJ Program

[XFitKdub]

I'm currently a senior in college in Kentucky, but I'm strongly considering this program.

Just curious if anyone from down that way has graduated through there or had any friends go through there? Does it have a very good reputation in the Miami/Dade area with the LE community?

I have family in the area and will be headed down that way after graduation in May. I'd like to begin my LE career in the Miami area, but I'm looking to possibly knock my Master's out of the way first.

Also looking maybe to be a bit more diverse and go into the the University of Miami's international relations master's program, but the FIU CJ program is top choice as of now.

Thanks in advance for any info.

[Delta_V]

A master's degree is a master's degree. As far as the school's reputation, that only means something if you're looking to get a job teaching on the college level. No agency is going to care where your master's degree is from, as the simple fact that you have it will put you ahead of most other applicants when it comes to formal education.

If you really do care about the reputation of the university, I'd stay in Kentucky and get your master's at EKU (which is a very respectable program nationwide), and in turn pay a lot less when it comes to tuition and housing. FSU is also a renowned CJ/criminology program and offers a master's program online.

[LeoRespect]

Thats awesome that you are going on to get your Masters. Like a post said earlier a Graduate degree is great no matter where you receive it. If you want a job in law enforcement at the local level I would apply once you begin school down here. It usually takes a year or two to get hired and you dont want to finish school and have a ton of loans and be unemployed. It would be nice to walk into a job after you graduate.

[XFitKdub]

Well the actual reason I'm looking at doing a campus Master's CJ program versus Online is I have a very good offer on the table to attend basically the grad school of my choice at nearly no charge to me other than living expenses. Thats where my family living down there comes into play.

So I know I'll be living in the South Florida area, Fort Myers or Miami area to be exact. That really leaves my two best options as Florida International University or Florida Gulf Coast University for a campus CJ program. This, coupled with the fact I want to start my LE career in South Florida at preferably a large PD. With my ultimate goal being a FLE career.

My hopes were to get a PD job then get my master's while working, but with this offer I have been given I'm modifying my plans to suit. Being that I can get an M.S. through a campus program within 12-18 months its not going to delay my plans long.

Obtaining my Ph. D. has been something I would like to achieve one day as well. Teaching may not be a bad way to wrap up my career or as a side job one day. I think having an M.S. from a campus program would benefit me in this fact.

[Hisrighteousness]

i have the same degree that you seek (from another state) it is a positive...if you have an opportunity to go to college and earn a degree with no loans...that needs to be the main focus....b/c after you are 55 and retired, you still have a degree, but you get a leo job (which is fantastic) and life can happen and the window to do this never opens up again.

[vinnies]

From a F.I.U. student working on his BS in Criminal Justice, I wanted to warn you. Major budget cuts have left our program crippled, class times are severely scattered and only one offering of each subject is common. The higher the course or more specialized, the even worse it gets. They are pushing hard to get CJ students working on the online system that essentially offers it completely online (the BS degree and some other higher classes). If you take this route, or are forced to enroll a few classes online and some 'face to face' be prepared to spend an extra $199 bucks FOR EACH online course you enroll. Teachers are decent, and because this is a research university, most professors are retired or still involved in law or law enforcement and are adjunct professors. Even scheduled a ride along (Aventura PD) with one of my professors (who was a Sergeant).

Overall I dont want to make it sound horrible, It is a really great program here, one of the larger ones, I just would like to make u aware of the issues ive personally dealt with.

[PS100]

Also looking maybe to be a bit more diverse and go into the the University of Miami's international relations master's program, but the FIU CJ program is top choice as of now.

This info is from 10 years ago, but may I add that FIU's International Relations Master's program is excellent, and highly regarded. While I was getting my BA at FIU (in International Relations) I worked at the Graduate department for a semester and it seemed to be a very tight program...many more people appyling to get in than were accepted, with about a quarter of students coming from overseas, with GPA's and GRE's through the roof. Again, this is from ten years ago, and things may have changed, but there were some very good people working there, I wouldn't hesitate to enroll there.