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I will be a cop, hopefully in NYPD. I am currently in school getting my Bachelor's in CJ. I hear many people around forums say that CJ is a worthless, dime a dozen degree, and cops don't need it and should major in something else, and the idea is you are not stuck with cop work only. Well, I am going to a normal, accredited, state school and the things we cover in our classes, which are taught by ex cops by the way, have everything to do with cop work, such as use of evidence, excessive force, different classes of crimes, police discretion, etc. I don't understand really how one can say it's worthless. People say get a degree in Business Admin (which is very broad, the most popular degree and really dime a dozen) or Accounting, but nobody will hire you as a bookkeeper outside of a police dept after say 10 yrs of being a street cop cuz you wouldn't have any experience! Plus getting a random degree and doing cop work is basically like getting a civil engineering degree and being a car sales man. Wouldn't you eventually be a better cop if you have the theory basics other cops don't? Maybe CJ is not as rigorous as chemistry or math or whatever, but it is what it is. With that logic people majoring in urban studies or sociology are wasting time too? Maybe they wanna be a social or a case worker so it's not worthless for them. I personally am not planning to do anything else, that's why I switched from Business Management, which was not my thing, and unless you are getting a CJ degree from "University of Phoenix" type school I don't see a reason why it should be looked down upon. What's really going on here?
I will be a cop, hopefully in NYPD. I am currently in school getting my Bachelor's in CJ. I hear many people around forums say that CJ is a worthless, dime a dozen degree, and cops don't need it and should major in something else, and the idea is you are not stuck with cop work only. Well, I am going to a normal, accredited, state school and the things we cover in our classes, which are taught by ex cops by the way, have everything to do with cop work, such as use of evidence, excessive force, different classes of crimes, police discretion, etc. I don't understand really how one can say it's worthless. People say get a degree in Business Admin (which is very broad, the most popular degree and really dime a dozen) or Accounting, but nobody will hire you as a bookkeeper outside of a police dept after say 10 yrs of being a street cop cuz you wouldn't have any experience! Plus getting a random degree and doing cop work is basically like getting a civil engineering degree and being a car sales man. Wouldn't you eventually be a better cop if you have the theory basics other cops don't? Maybe CJ is not as rigorous as chemistry or math or whatever, but it is what it is. With that logic people majoring in urban studies or sociology are wasting time too? Maybe they wanna be a social or a case worker so it's not worthless for them. I personally am not planning to do anything else, that's why I switched from Business Management, which was not my thing, and unless you are getting a CJ degree from "University of Phoenix" type school I don't see a reason why it should be looked down upon. What's really going on here?
Look at the statement I bolded above. Bottom line, some degrees are harder and some are easier. Some are harder to get into, harder to pass (even at the 100-level), harder to sustain. Some are a cakewalk.
Take my situation. I have a postbac certification in education and an M.A. in English. The postbac was from a large state school; the M.A. was from a small and highly selective private university.
Guess which one was more demanding?
Also, guess which one I'm proud of having earned?
The fact is, speaking of education -- which gets less respect as a major, I think, than criminal justice, although I could be wrong -- many people who major in education tend to have SAT, GRE, and PRAXIS scores in the bottom quartile. Sure, perhaps some of them are poor test-takers, but the other explanation does demand consideration: Perhaps they're just not as academically adept as their counterparts. Speaking from personal experience, the academic and intellectual demands of my education certification were...well, let's say they were not taxing.
I can say at least in my opinion that a chemistry major, generally speaking, faced far more of a challenge than an education major, so at least on that score, s/he would be more deserving of respect, just as a person who won a 100-mile ultramarathon is more deserving of respect in that, generally speaking, s/he completed a harder task than someone who ran a local 5K.
Since I don't know much about CJ, I can't say definitively. I know you sound pretty defensive about it. My advice is to either major in something you yourself respect and don't feel defensive about, or deal with the fact that people around you won't respect your degree as much as you think they should.
I do respect it, that's why I AM defensive lol. My point was that a degree in math or chemistry, no matter how rigorous, is not gon help you be a better street cop when a degree in cj or a related field will.
I don't see a cop needing a 4year degree as a AAS or any 2 year degree should do.
When I attended school to be a cop in MN we just needed a 2year degree (like a AAS) and a tech school Cert. in law enforcement.
If you wanted to work for the state patrol you would still have to attend there academy.
The fbi hires mostly accountants with a lot of computer experience.
I don't see a cop needing a 4year degree as a AAS or any 2 year degree should do.
When I attended school to be a cop in MN we just needed a 2year degree (like a AAS) and a tech school Cert. in law enforcement.
If you wanted to work for the state patrol you would still have to attend there academy.
The fbi hires mostly accountants with a lot of computer experience.
U'll def need a 4 yr degree or more to move up the ranks in a big police dept. You are right about the FBI, not interested in them though.
Your performance as a cop will move you up faster than any DEG will.
You are missing the point. You will always have a better chance of promotion against someone with no degree, given you have the same experience and performance, just like any other job.
I do respect it, that's why I AM defensive lol. My point was that a degree in math or chemistry, no matter how rigorous, is not gon help you be a better street cop when a degree in cj or a related field will.
Then if you're convinced of that in your own heart, no one else's opinion -- particularly if that person is not in law enforcement -- should really matter. If, however, a law enforcement expert whose opinion has merit and weight has the opinion that a CJ degree is worthless, then listen to what s/he has to say with respect and consider taking the advice.
Then if you're convinced of that in your own heart, no one else's opinion -- particularly if that person is not in law enforcement -- should really matter. If, however, a law enforcement expert whose opinion has merit and weight has the opinion that a CJ degree is worthless, then listen to what s/he has to say with respect and consider taking the advice.
Well of course. I doubt that real experts will say that though.
Problem is to become a cop or be in law enforcement you DO NOT need a CJ degree. So I don't know why anyone would pigeon hole themselves with a very linear field of study. I could understand if you wanted to study something like crimenology which is different and somewhat unqiue.
But the NYPD requires 60 credits in anything. If you don't become a cop you may be extremely limited in your options after graduation.
If you insist on going NYPD then I'd recommend getting your degree and volunteering your time as a cadet or Auxiliary.
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