Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Criminology

Purpose

The PhD in Criminology is designed for students who wish to work in government agencies (Department of Justice, State correctional agencies), nonprofits/community agencies, or those who want to teach in higher education. Graduates from the program will have the necessary skills to conduct research in the area of criminology that may contribute to positive change in the field.

Expected Program Outcomes

1. Provide adequate career preparation for students planning to work in academic, research, or policy development fields related to criminology.
2. Develop the knowledge and ability to conduct empirical research, defend dissertations, and publish findings.
3. Acquire a deep understanding of the root causes of crime; critically evaluate criminological theories and apply them to real-world events.
4. Enhance analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills to assess the effectiveness of public policies and criminal justice practices in addressing crime.

Expected Student Outcomes

1. Students will be able to apply critical knowledge about criminology and crime prevention perspectives to real-world events.
2. Students will demonstrate core strategies and skills to teach in higher institutions.
3. Students will demonstrate the ability to conduct original research and apply statistical knowledge.
4. Students will critically analyze the implications of empirical research outcomes in criminology and communicate these findings to shape criminal justice policies and practices.
5. Students will develop a comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of criminal control and apply that understanding to policies and practices.
6. Students will effectively communicate complex ideas in writing and verbally.

Admission Requirements

Documents required for application:

• Letter of Recommendation
• Transcripts

The applicant must submit an application to the Troy University Graduate School. To be considered for admission to the PhD in Criminology program, the applicant must:

1. Have a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice, Criminology, or Sociology from a regionally accredited institution of higher education. Applicants with other degrees may also be considered for admission.
2. Have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.6 (4.0 scale) on all graduate coursework.

The applicant must also submit the following materials:

1. Official transcripts for all post-secondary academic study, one official transcript per institution.
2. Three (3) letters of recommendation for the department-level admission committee to review.
3. Statement of Intent of up to 1000 words. The Statement of Intent should include details of your rationale for pursuing a Ph.D. in Criminology and details regarding your past career and research interests.

4. Writing Sample (maximum of 1000 words) The goal of the writing sample is to measure the applicant’s ability to write clearly and succinctly in an academic fashion. The writing sample will assist the Doctoral Admission Committee in evaluating the applicant’s research, writing, analytical and problem-solving skills. The writing sample may include a thesis completed by the student or a significant research paper, preferable written at the graduate level and solely by the applicant. The paper should be double-spaced, 12 point, Times New Roman font with 1-inch margins on all sides. It is recommended that the writing sample follow the American Psychological Association (APA) style. However, other writing styles, including but not limited to Chico, Modern Language Association (MLA), AMA Manual or other accepted research writing styles will be considered. The Doctoral Admissions Committee will evaluate the writing sample based on the following criteria: 1) Writing Development and Critical Thinking - ability to articular the primary concept and inform the reader of its focus; 2) Organization and Structure - development of the topic to include fluid transitions; 3) Paragraph Development - use of transitions and language within each paragraph; 4) Mechanics - appropriate spelling, grammar, and punctuation; and 5) Use of Writing Style - Although all classes and dissertation will employ the APA format, the Committee will review the sample for appropriate use of other acceptable academic research writing style such as cited in the previous paragraph. Note: The writing sample could also include accepted or published research that the applicant has been sole or co-author of a research project. The applicant must submit a PDF of the paper or a link as proof of publication.

5. Resume or Curriculum Vitae

The Doctoral Admission Committee may request an interview with the applicant, if needed.

Application Deadlines

• Fall Semester Admission: The priority deadline for application is February 15th. Applications will be accepted until May 15 or until the program is full.
• Spring Semester Admission: The priority deadline for application is September 15th. Applications will be accepted until November 15 or until the program is full.

Admission Examination Requirements

TOEFL scores are required for all international students; this requirement is waived if the student has earned a bachelor’s or master’s degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution. Students scoring 70 or higher on the Internet-based TOEFL Test, 193 or higher on the Computer-based Test, and a 523 or higher on the Paper-based TOEFL Test will be given full consideration for admission into the doctoral program. Students scoring below these requirements may be required to (in addition to other admission requirements) interview with the Doctoral Admissions Committee prior to full consideration of admission into the program.

Doctoral Admission Committee

The Doctoral Admissions Committee will be composed of criminology faculty members with doctoral directive status. Once all of the application information has been received from the Graduate School, the Criminology Doctoral Admission Committee will review all the eligible applicants. After the committee considers all aspects of the admission process, it will make a recommendation regarding an applicant’s admission into the PhD in Criminology Program. After a decision has been made, applicants will be notified of their status.

Doctoral Dissertation Committee

The members of the Dissertation Committee should be appointed no later than 30 credit hours into the program. The Dissertation Committee shall consist of at least three members. At least two persons (including the chairperson) should be from the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. If a student requests a faculty member from another institution, the faculty member must hold full-time Graduate Faculty status at the home institution, must be approved by the other members of the Dissertation Committee and be acknowledged by the Dean of the Graduate School at Troy University.

Admission to Doctoral Candidacy

The student who has achieved all degree requirements except the dissertation is a doctoral candidate. To qualify for doctoral candidacy, students must (1) complete all coursework with a minimum GPA of 3.0 and (2) pass the comprehensive examination.

Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation serves as the final requirement of the PhD program. PhD students in Criminology may choose to write either a 5-chapter traditional dissertation (Introduction, Literature Review, Methods, Results, and Discussion and Conclusions) or a 3-paper dissertation. Students should consult with their dissertation chair to decide which dissertation format they will select. For students who choose the traditional dissertation format, there are two defenses:

1. The dissertation proposal with covers Chapter 1: Introduction, Chapter 2: Literature Review, and Chapter 3: Methodology
2. The final defense, which includes all components of the dissertation.

The most recent edition of the American Psychological Association (APA) will be the only writing style accepted in writing the dissertation. Additionally, a 12-point Times New Roman font should be used consistently throughout the document. The student is encouraged to review the Troy University Dissertation Guidelines on the Troy University Graduate School website for further information.

Dissertation Proposal

The dissertation proposal (Chapters 1, 2, and 3 - Methodology) indicates the student’s commitment to the dissertation committee to complete the proposed dissertation in a reasonable time frame, generally a year or more. The proposal is a document that formally presents the student’s written description of the formal doctoral dissertation; the dissertation committee is responsible for reviewing the proposal to determine the feasibility of the proposal methodology.

The committee’s approval endorses the research plan and indicates the committee supports initiating or continuing the dissertation process. Drafts of the proposal will only be reviewed by members of the dissertation committee. Feedback and suggestions from dissertation committee members will incorporated until the draft is considered acceptable by all members of the dissertation committee. The students should anticipate review by the dissertation committee and the incorporation of feedback to consume approximately two to three weeks.

Final Defense

Upon completion of the dissertation, the student must successfully complete an oral defense pertaining to the dissertation research. The final defense provides the candidate with an opportunity to address all components of the dissertation such as the introduction, importance of the study, methodology, results, discussion/conclusion and references. The work must be of publishable quality using the Graduate School’s Dissertation Guidelines format requirement. To complete their degree, each doctoral candidate is required to prepare, present, and orally defend a dissertation that shows independent investigation. Upon completion of the dissertation, the student must successfully complete an oral defense pertaining to the dissertation research.

When the dissertation has been approved by all members of the Dissertation committee, the student with the approval of the Dissertation chair will determine the date, time, and site of the oral Dissertation defense. All members of the Dissertation committee must receive a copy of the candidate’s dissertation at least two weeks prior to the scheduled defense. If the student does not pass the oral dissertation defense, a subsequent oral defense may be scheduled at the discretion of the Dissertation chair. Only after the students has successfully defended the dissertation will the members of the dissertation committee sign the Dissertation Acceptance Page(s). The dissertation chair will notify the Dean of the Graduate School at least one week in advance of the scheduled oral Dissertation defense. The oral Dissertation defense must occur at least four weeks before the intended date of graduation/commencement. Due to distance constraints, if the student cannot physically be on the Troy campus for the dissertation defense, the student is responsible to arrange video conferencing technology for a virtual defense, per the dissertation committee approval, for the dissertation defense.

Continuous Enrollment

Students must be continuously enrolled for a minimum of one credit hour in Dissertation (CRM 8849) per term during and including the term in which they successfully defend their dissertation. Dissertation credit hours may exceed but may not be less than the minimum of 12 semester hours. For example, if students have 12 dissertation credit hours but do not successfully defend their dissertation, they will be required to enroll in at least one credit hour of Dissertation (CRM 8849) until they successfully defend their dissertation.

After the Dissertation Defense

Dissertations must be written in English and must be acceptable in form and content to present to the Dissertation Committee and to the Graduate School.

The work must be of publishable quality using the Graduate School’s Dissertation Guidelines format requirement. The Dissertation must be reviewed by the Graduate School for adherence to the Dissertation formatting requirements (Appendix C in the Dissertation Guidelines). The student must submit a flawless copy printed on regular paper to the Graduate School (Adams Administration Building, Room 231, Troy Campus) for format review. The appropriate number of “Dissertation Acceptance Pages” and ” Human and Animal Review Forms” printed on bonded paper with appropriate original signatures should be submitted along with Dissertation. The Dissertation and other required pages are to be submitted in a “10 X 13” heavy manila envelope with a copy of the title page adhered to the front of the manila envelope. The last date a fully approved Dissertation may be submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School is three (3) full weeks prior to the date of graduation. THIS DEADLINE IS NOT NEGOTIABLE.

The student is responsible for checking the University Academic Calendar for relevant deadlines for commencement for the semester in which he or she plans to graduate.

Three Paper Dissertation

Doctoral candidates who choose the three-paper dissertation format must produce three publishable manuscripts instead of the traditional five-chapter dissertation. Each manuscript should be unique, with significant differences in theoretical perspective, approach, methods, or the sample and/or dataset used. The doctoral candidate must be the primary author of all articles and should have contributed much of the original conceptual and intellectual work for each manuscript. The roles of any co-authors must be clearly specified. While all manuscripts must meet publishable quality standards, publication is not a requirement for the dissertation to be approved.

Teaching Requirement

Students in the PhD in Criminology program must gain teaching experience prior to completing their degrees. This requirement can be met in various ways, including being appointed a teaching assistantship or teaching as an adjunct instructor at Troy University or other external higher education institutions.

Curriculum (60 sh)

A. Required Courses (24 Semester Hours)

B. Electives (24 Semester Hours)

C. Dissertation (12 Semester Hours)

Degree Plan

Doctor of Philosophy in Criminology Degree Plan/Progress Record