Online Graduate Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention
University of Cincinnati’s online Crime Analysis and Prevention graduate certificate in the Master of Science in Criminal Justice program is specifically designed to supply individuals with a strengthened knowledge of the intricacies and fundamentals of law enforcement and crime prevention.
Crime Analysis and Prevention Graduate Certificate Highlights
High Quality Education
Our online Master’s in Criminal Justice program is ranked 12th best in the country for 2024 by U.S. News & World Report. The curriculum provides students access to a set of core courses dealing with basic theories and practices, while additional elective courses give students the opportunity to focus on other topics of interest, such as applied crime prevention and police effectiveness. This certificate is ideal for individuals looking to begin or enhance their careers in law enforcement agencies, as well as in other public service organizations that develop and implement programs that help communities respond to local crime and disorder problems.
By graduation, students will be prepared for what’s next. Below are the student learning objectives for this certificate.
- Students will articulate the “mechanics” and theory underlying the implementation of various crime prevention and policing strategies.
- Students will critically analyze the evidence regarding the effectiveness and/or limitations of various crime prevention and policing strategies.
- Students will organize and manage various types of crime data.
- Students will learn and perform analyses to identify important patterns in crime data. These include crime scripting analysis and identification of “hot spots.”
- Students will identify interventions that have a reasonable chance of reducing crime—given the results of their analyses.
- Students will assess the impact of crime reduction strategies using the analytic techniques that they have learned.
Flexibility
- 100% online
- Start in the fall, spring, or summer semester
- Only 12 credit hours
Support from Application through Graduation
At UC, you’ll have a full support team behind you:
Enrollment Services Advisor: Your partner through the application process, getting enrolled, and starting your program
Student Success Coordinator: Helping you prepare for classes and stay on track
Access to Resources: Access to university resources that will support you through your program including online learning expectations and resources, health and wellness resources, and academic support
The Graduate Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention takes 3 semesters to complete with classes offered spring, summer, and fall. Graduate level statistics (prerequisite), transfer credit allowed with a 5 year limit. Applied Statistics in Criminal Justice (CJ7040) is offered in the spring semester only. The certificate takes 15 hours to complete, but that may vary depending on if the statistics class was transferred or has to be taken.
| Course | Title/Description | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| CJ7040 | Applied Statistics in Criminal Justice This course will introduce the statistical techniques used in the social sciences, including criminology and criminal justice, with emphasis placed on interpretation of results and computer applications. The course will include learning thelogic of, and how to calculate, different statistical techniques. |
3 |
| CJ7050 | Introduction to Crime Mapping This course is designed to teach the elementary skills and techniques of Geographic Information Science (GIS), with a focus on crime analysis, using ESRI ArcGIS 10.1, or similar software package. ArcGIS is a software platform that is used to apply geography to solving problems and making decisions. In addition to GIS techniques, we will be covering basic data preparation procedures, as well as a brief survey of various types of crime data and how to acquire such data. Topics to be covered will include querying, editing, designing, analyzing, and building map systems utilizing crime data. Analysis techniques will cover both attribute table and spatial data operations such as table relates and joins, spatial aggregation, and buffer analysis. |
3 |
| CJ7051 | Advanced Crime Analysis This course teaches students about the practice of crime analysis in law enforcement. Students will learn the terminology, principles, and techniques crime analysts use in everyday practice. A major component of this class is learning how to perform advanced analytical techniques employed by crime analysts using software programs such as ArcGIS 10.3, Excel 2013, and CrimeStat IV, or other versions as appropriate. |
3 |
| Course | Title/Description | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| CJ7070 | Theory and Practice of Crime Prevention This course is designed to provide an exploration of the various approaches to reducing crime as well as the theories that inform those approaches. We will focus most fully on situational approaches to crime prevention, though we will also explore crime prevention through social development, community-based crime prevention. We will also examine how policing intersects with these various approaches to crime prevention. |
3 |
| CJ8074 | Applied Crime Prevention This course covers the fundamental theories of environmental criminology (AKA Crime Science) -- rational choice perspectives, advanced routine activity theory, crime pattern theory, situationalcrime prevention, and problem-oriented policing - and shows how these theories can be used to diagnose the causes of specific crime problems, develop and implement solutions to these problems,and evaluate the effectiveness of solutions. It also examines criminal adaptation to prevention and how this can be measured and countered. |
3 |
| CJ7080 | Theory and Practice of Law Enforcement This course is designed to provide an exploration of the various approaches to reducing crime as well as the theories that inform those approaches. We will focus most fully on situational approaches to crime prevention, though we will also explore crime prevention through social development, community-based crime prevention. We will also examine how policing intersects with these various approaches to crime prevention. |
3 |
| CJ8082 | Seminar on Police Effectiveness This course covers research and evaluation into what types of interventions used by the police have an effect on crime, disorder, and fear of crime. It examines theories of police effectiveness, methods for determining effectiveness, and the empirical results of effectiveness studies. |
3 |
Prerequisites
- Bachelor’s Degree (in any field of study) from a regionally accredited university
- At least one professional or academic letter of recommendation from an individual you have known for a minimum of one year – at least one letter must be from a current or past supervisor
- A personal goal statement
- An overall 3.0 GPA (on a 4.0 scale) or higher from all previous undergraduate coursework
– OR –
- An overall 2.75 GPA will be considered for acceptance with at least one of the following:
- Five years of criminal justice work experience (does not include social work)
- Nine hours of graduate coursework with a 3.0 GPA or higher with a regionally accredited college or university
- A minimum combined score of 300 on the verbal and quantitative parts of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) taken within five years of your application*
- *The GRE is not needed with a 3.0 GPA or higher
Fast Track Admission: automatic admission into the online Graduate Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention for undergraduate students who graduate from UC
- Cumulative GPA of 3.50 or above (for courses completed at UC)
- Earned 4-year undergraduate degree from UC
- Graduated from UC within the past 5 years (15 academic semesters)
- Any major applies (not limited to Criminal Justice majors)
- Must still complete the application and pay the application fee, but if the student meets the above requirements they will be automatically admitted to the program
- The Fast Track application process removes the Statement of Purpose/Personal Statement, CV/Resume, and Letter of Recommendation requirements from the application for qualified applicants; submission of transcripts as part of the application process is still required
- Letter of recommendation will be waived as a requirement (a generic letter signed by the MS DL Director or the Associate Director will be provided to meet Graduate School requirements)
Complete the online application and submit the application fee.
Standard Application Fees:
- $65.00 for domestic applicants to most degree programs
- $70.00 for international applicants to most degree programs
- $20.00 for domestic applicants to Graduate Certificates
- $25.00 for international applicants to Graduate Certificates
- Application fees are waived for Summer 2026 applications submitted by March 1st, 2026
- Application fees are waived for Fall 2026 applications submitted by July 1st, 2026
- Fee waivers are automatically applied for applicants who:
- are currently serving in the US armed forces
- are veterans of the US armed forces
All applicants are required to upload unofficial transcripts during the application process, showing all undergraduate and graduate course work completed, including degrees granted and dates of conferral.
Official transcripts are not required until the student has received and accepted an offer of admission from the university. Once the offer has been confirmed, the student must submit official transcripts.
Students who have received degrees from the University of Cincinnati do not need to submit official paper copies of their UC transcripts.
Transcripts can be submitted electronically or by mail. To see if your transcript(s) can be ordered electronically, visit the links below and search for your previous school(s).
- Parchment
- Please select “University of Cincinnati – Main Campus” as the recipient of your transcript.
- National Student Clearinghouse
- Please have your transcript sent directly to admissions@uc.edu.
If you do not see your past school(s) listed on either site, please contact the school(s) directly. Then, mail your sealed, unopened, official transcripts to:
Please mail sealed, unopened, official transcripts to:
University of Cincinnati
Office of Admissions
PO Box 210091
Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0091
At least one professional or academic letter of recommendation from an individual you have known for a minimum of one year, presented on corresponding professional letterhead. At least one letter must be from a current or past supervisor.
The personal goal statement should explain how the Certificate in Crime Analysis and Prevention will further your career goals in less than 500 words. You may also provide any other information about your ability to succeed in our program that you’d like us to consider.
International applicants must have a minimum TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of 550 (paper version) or 190 (electronic version) to be considered for acceptance.
| Term | Application Deadline | Classes Start |
|---|---|---|
Spring 2026 | B Term Summer 2026 | A Term Summer 2026 | B Term Fall 2026 | A Term Fall 2026 | B Term |
February 16, 2026 April 28, 2026 June 11, 2026 August 1, 2026 September 28, 2026 |
March 2, 2026 May 11, 2026 June 25, 2026 August 24, 2026 October 13, 2026 |
The University of Cincinnati's online course fees differ depending on the program. On average, students will accrue fewer fees than students attending on-campus classes.
The one fee applied across all UC Online programs is the distance learning fee. Students living outside the state of Ohio must also pay an additional “non-resident” fee to enroll in courses at UC Online. This fee is lower than the out-of-state fee for traditional on-campus programs.
To view tuition information and program costs, visit the Online Program Fees page.
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