Forensic Studies MS

The Master of Science (M.S.) in Forensic Studies degree program provides students the opportunity to gain advanced knowledge and academic credentials through an interdisciplinary course of study and specialization. A component of the College of Arts & Sciences’ Justice Studies Department, the M.S. in Forensic Studies program offers comprehensive education and training in two applied research concentrations – Forensics Behavioral Analysis and Human Identity and Trauma Analysis.

A challenging curriculum delivered by accomplished practitioner-scholars provides students foundational and progressive knowledge and experience in theory, methods, applied research, and field work. Graduates typically pursue or seek to advance careers within investigative and law enforcement agencies; continue their education within a distinct range of doctoral programs (e.g., forensic psychology, forensic anthropology, skeletal biology, bio archaeology, or social work); and/or contribute to developing and promulgating relevant policies for local, county, state and federal agencies.

The Master of Science (M.S.) in Forensic Studies degree program requires the completion of 4x credit hours and admits qualified students during the fall and spring terms.

Student Profile

Incoming students are typically within the 25-75^th percentile of graduate entrance exam scores.

Graduate Record Exam (GRE)

GRE taken prior to August 1, 2011

Verbal: 370-480
Quantitative: 420-570

Revised GRE taken after August 1, 2011

Verbal: 144-152
Quantitative: 140-147

Department Contacts

Walsh-Haney, Heather

Program Coordinator/Professor

ETI 0112C

239-590-7693

hwalsh@fgcu.edu

Meet the Forensic Studies MS Faculty

Concentrations

Forensic Behavioral Analysis Concentration
Human Identity and Trauma Analysis Concentration

Accreditation
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Admissions Information
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Getting Started
Applicants must submit an application online per the individual program’s instructions below. Please contact Graduate Admissions at 239-745-GRAD or graduate@fgcu.edu for additional information about the application process. Satisfaction of minimum University and program requirements does not guarantee admission to a graduate program. Applicants should check with the program for the most up to date admission requirements prior to commencing the application process.
- Submit a completed FGCU Graduate Admissions Application and satisfy all applicable university admissions requirements.
- Submit a completed Immunization History Form
- Earned baccalaureate degree from an institution that maintains accreditation by a U.S. Department of Education sanctioned accrediting body (https://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html) or equivalent foreign institution and supply one official transcript from each baccalaureate and/or graduate institution attended.
- Submit an official copy of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) taken within the last five years with a combined quantitative and verbal score of 1100.
- Provide evidence of an undergraduate GPA of 3.25.
- Complete the following undergraduate courses or equivalent:
  
  ANT 3345 Methods in Anthropological Research (3)
  
  ANT 3520 Forensic Anthropology***
  
  ANT 3824 Archaeological Field Methods (3)
  
  CCJ 3603 Forensic Psychology***
  ***Forensic Behavioral Analysis Concentration applicants are only required to complete these two courses. Human Identity and Trauma Analysis Concentration applicants must complete all four.
- International students must demonstrate English language proficiency in accordance with University regulation.
- A criminal history through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement may be required for specific internships or elective work/study assignments.
- Special immunizations and screenings may be required for elective field work.
- Submit:
  
  Three completed letters of recommendation from persons qualified to judge the applicant's academic and professional potential.
  
  A letter of intent which describes research and career goals, no more than two pages in length (single spaced, 1-inch page borders, New Times Roman 12 point font), which specifies the student's area of concentration and foreseen ability to articulate with specific faculty.
  
  Curriculum vitae.
Program Requirements
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Program Requirements for the 2024-2025 Catalog Year
Program Progression and Additional Graduation Requirements
- Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 for all coursework in the program.
- Each Course for this program completed with a grade of C or higher.
- If pursuing the thesis option, follow the guidelines for submission of thesis materials through ProQuest. Refer to the Graduate Studies website.
- Submit an application to graduate by the deadline noted in the Academic Calendar.
- Students must register for a minimum of one credit during the semester in which they apply for graduation.
- Earn more than 50% of the credits toward the degree FGCU.
Program Requirements
1. Required Courses in the Major (16 credits)
  ANG 5525C Human Osteology (4)
  CCJ 6606 Social Constructs of Crime (3)
  CCJ 6707 Adv. Quantitative Research (3)
  DSC 6596 Critical Thinking and Intel Anal (3)
  GIS 5306C Advanced GIS: Spatial Analysis (3)
2. Thesis or Non-Thesis (18 credits)
  
  Thesis Option:
  Complete the following:
  CJE 6629 MS Thesis in Forensic Studies (6)
  
  Complete 12 credits from the Restricted Electives List* below.
  
  Non-Thesis Option:
  Complete 18 credits from the Restricted Electives List* below.
  
  Restricted Electives List:
  ANG 6910 Supervised Research (1-6)
  CCJ 6617 Forensic Psychology (3)
  CCJ 6696 Human Trafficking (3)
  CCJ 6930 Spec Topics (3)
  CJE 5777C Env'l & Subject Photography (3)
  CJE 6749 Ind. Research (3)
  CJL 6523 Forensic Analysis of Juries (3)
  Courses from the non-selected concentration below.
  Courses outside the Forensic Studies program approved by the faculty advisor on a case-by-case basis.
3. Concentration (9-10 credits)
  
  Select one of the following concentrations:
  
  Forensic Behavioral Analysis Concentration
  
  Complete the following:
  CCJ 6709 Advanced Qualitative Research (3)
  CCJ 6711 Research in Violent Behavior (3)
  CCJ 6941 Practicum-Frnsic Bhvrl Analyst (3)
  
  Human Identity and Trauma Analysis Concentration
  
  Complete the following:
  ANG 6740C Forensic Anthropology (4)
  CCJ 5796 Ecology of Crime (3)
  CJE 6748 Practicum-Human Identity (3)
Total Credits Required: 43 HRS
Course Descriptions
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Official Course Descriptions

Search for official course descriptions by using the Course Description Search utility.

Go to the Course Descriptions Search Web page, then follow these steps:
1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select a course prefix from one of the SUBJECT dropdowns (required)
3. Enter search words in the TEXT field (optional, but will narrow the search results)
4. Press Search
Supplemental Course Descriptions

The following course descriptions only provide information about the focus that an individual professor chooses to take for their course. These descriptions are not a replacement for the official course description. Use the Course Description Search page to find the official course description.
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Course Schedule
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Getting started with the Course Schedule Search

Search for program courses by using the Course Schedule Search utility.

Go to the Course Schedule Search Web page, then follow these steps:
1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select one or more of the search options to narrow your results (for example, CAMPUS, COLLEGE, DEPARTMENT, LEVEL, PREFIX*, COURSE ATTRIBUTE**). For virtual or web courses, select VIRTUAL in the CAMPUS field.
3. Press Search.
*A course prefix is a three-letter designator for a major division of an academic discipline (for example, ACG for Accounting , BSC for Biological Science, ENC for English Composition). See the Degree Requirements page for a list of courses (with prefix and number) that can be used to fulfill degree requirements.

**A course attribute identifies specific characteristics of courses that can be used in a Degree Evaluation to satisfy a degree requirement. (Course attribute examples are Humanities courses - GEHM and Social Science courses - GESO.)

Course Schedule / Syllabi

Getting started with the Course Schedule Search
Search for program courses by using the Course Schedule Search utility.

Go to the Course Schedule Search Web page, then follow these steps:
1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select one or more of the search options to narrow your results (for example, CAMPUS, COLLEGE, DEPARTMENT, LEVEL, PREFIX*, COURSE ATTRIBUTE**). For virtual or web courses, select VIRTUAL in the CAMPUS field.
3. Press Search.
*A course prefix is a three-letter designator for a major division of an academic discipline (for example, ACG for Accounting , BSC for Biological Science, ENC for English Composition). See the Degree Requirements page for a list of courses (with prefix and number) that can be used to fulfill degree requirements.

**A course attribute identifies specific characteristics of courses that can be used in a Degree Evaluation to satisfy a degree requirement. (Course attribute examples are Humanities courses - GEHM and Social Science courses - GESO.)
Learning Outcomes
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Academic Learning Compact – Forensic Studies M.S.

Consistent with its mission and guiding principles, Florida Gulf Coast University is committed to academic excellence and continuous quality improvement, as supported by a sound teaching-learning process. Within this process, students and instructors share responsibility for learning that is a movement from the simple to the complex, the concrete to the abstract, and the dependent to the independent. The Academic Learning Compact (ALC) initiative supports the teaching-learning process by clearly identifying expected core student learning outcomes in the areas of content/discipline knowledge and skills, communication skills, and critical thinking skills; aligning curricula with expectations; and using assessment to guide continuous improvement.

Content Knowledge and Skills (CKS)

Graduates will be able to:
1. Demonstrate how a working knowledge of the intelligence enterprise contributes to the policy making process.
2. Demonstrate how quantitative data analyses help to identify patterns of physical and/or behavioral manifestations of crime.
3. Analyze the physical and/or behavioral lines of evidence and generate a report.
Each semester, we assess CKS at the program level through exams, forensic reports, research papers, oral/poster presentations, and/or group projects that are completed in one or more of the following required courses: Advanced Quantitative Research Methods (CCJ 6707), Human Osteology (ANG 5525C), Critical Thinking and Intelligence Analysis (DSC 6596), and Practicum (CJE 6748 or CCJ 6941).

Communication Skills (CS)

Graduates will be able to:
1. Demonstrate a working knowledge of the security challenges facing the United States and how the intelligence and policy nexus form our framework for security.
2. Demonstrate a working knowledge of forensic investigation issues and medical terminology by applying the appropriate social and physical science literature to the problem and subsequently organizing and evaluating that information by means of quantitative analyses.
Each semester, we assess CS at the program level through exams, forensic reports, research papers, oral/poster presentations, and/or group projects that are completed in one or more of the following required courses: Advanced Quantitative Research Methods (CCJ 6707), Human Osteology (ANG 5525C), Critical Thinking and Intelligence Analysis (DSC 6596), and Practicum (CJE 6748 or CCJ 6941).

Critical Thinking Skills

Graduates will be able to:
1. Analyze the factors, events, and changing nature of the threats that influence United States intelligence and security policy.
2. Analyze the factors, events, and ethical issues that influence forensic investigations.
Each semester, we assess CTS at the program level through exams, forensic reports, research papers, oral/poster presentations, and/or group projects that are completed in one or more of the following required courses: Advanced Quantitative Research Methods (CCJ 6707), Human Osteology (ANG 5525C), Critical Thinking and Intelligence Analysis (DSC 6596), and Practicum (CJE 6748 or CCJ 6941).
Tuition, Fees, and Financial Assistance
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Tuition and Fees

Information on Tuition, Fees and estimated total Cost of Attendance is available on the Office of the Bursar web site.

Tuition Waivers

A limited number of tuition waivers, which cover only in-state matriculation fees, are available. These are awarded competitively. To access the application, visit the tuition waiver page.

Supplemental Tuition Waiver

Click here to download the supplemental tuition waiver application.