Why I Chose Criminal Justice as My Major Essay

Double majoring is the form of completing two sets of degree requirements and you get one bachelor's degree when you graduate. You can pursue two fields to study in college to help you in the future. The majority use two majors that relate to each other in a certain field and it’s more helpful because it makes you a stronger and more reliable candidate for your dream job. Although some double major in two fields of subjects that are different but it still works out great because you have a backup to fall back on and employers see that you’re very skilled in two different fields and you have a higher knowledge of certain things. It can also give you a higher percentage of getting more income in your future job and it can benefit you in many ways. The two majors that I chose to use are Sociology and Criminal Justice; these two fields of study relate and overlap each other have to do with society and understanding the meaning of certain things or the reason to crime and why it happens. I’m going to use these two to show how double majoring can work perfectly together and the benefits that come with it.

Why Double Majoring Is Better Than Minoring

Starting college can be a bit stressful and scary for everyone. You might not know what you want to be yet or what you want to study to have a career in, in the future. Although, knowing the requirements for 2 majors can be helpful for choosing which major or which career path you want to choose or follow when you enter college. Knowing which classes you are required to take, if the major is impacted and very hard to get into the program, and the minimum G.P.A. required to stay in the major as well. All these requirements can help you make your final decision, they can help you. Choose on depending what are your strengths and weaknesses and the perfect major for you. For example, if you want to be a Sociology major and one of the classes required as a GE is Psychology and you got a bad grade in high school in psychology, then maybe it’s not the right major for you. Another example is if you want to go into Criminal Justice but then see that you must maintain a minimum of a 3.00 G.P.A. With every grade being a C or better; that can be a bit of a challenge, especially if your working as well, then maybe you have to adjust yourself a schedule or change your mind onto a different major. Knowing these specific pieces of information can help you in making the right decision for you and your future.

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This paper will examine the reasons and explanations why Double Majoring is the right choice for certain people and how it can make you look better as a student or employer and how it can benefit you in the future. For example, when you apply for a job, employers might see that you have double majored and thinking it reflects someone that knows what they want to do, a strong work ethic, is very organized, and has a very diverse level of knowledge based on majoring in two different areas. As well as “ Studies have indicated a double major can result in a 3.2 to 9.5 percent increase in income compared to fellow college graduate with just one major.” (Writers, 2019). Another reason might be because you are genuinely passionate about two different subjects and want to study both of them. Also, you might think that minoring with a major is easier and will still make you look better than the average college graduate, and that is correct as well but, someone that double majored might have a higher level of knowledge and way more detailed than someone who minored in that specific major.

The majors that I specifically chose that fit me are Sociology and Criminal Justice. I started off by thinking about what I really wanted to do in life; I wanted to help society by being involved in the justice system, but before I could help society, I have to understand it and how it relates to the criminal justice system. I chose Criminal Justice because since I was little I’ve always wanted to do something for my community and always being influenced by these crime dramas and seeing how so much crime is in our society and how it affects our society. I want to give back and fight for justice and for the ones who deserve it, bring some equality to the justice system because majoring in it right now, I can see that it isn’t very fair and it treats a lot of people very poorly. Which then brings me to my second major I chose which is Sociology; I chose Sociology because I wanted to learn and study about how crime affects society as a whole or how it targets certain groups or races primarily and to seek justice on that. Also, how sociology studies how laws and social expectations develop and change and how the violation is handled by different government agencies and social institutions. I’m talking a sociology class right now as a GE for my requirements to get declared into my Criminal Justice Major, so far it catches my attention very much and how society targets African Americans as being more involved in crime and oppressing them to be associated with it so all you think as them are criminals. These two majors I chose relate to each other and would go perfectly with what my life long goal is to work in the FBI.

I believe that my interests such as fighting for justice and doing the right thing no matter what situation I’m in and my personality with helping people and being responsibility and honest match with what I want to study which is Sociology and Criminal Justice. Using the VARK Questionnaire, I can see that I’m more of a Kinesthetic learner and a Read/Write Learner, meaning that I’m more of a hands on person and like to work with items and dive into the problem myself. I also agree with the Myers-Briggs personality test when I received my type as INFJ because I do make some of my decisions with my feelings than thinking because I can relate to a lot of people and I’m very empathetic. As well as I'm more of a judging person than a perceiving person when I make certain decisions. I tend to judge what decisions I make than just jumping to them and taking a chance. Other factors I believed that helped me determine my choice of major which is Criminal Justice is the influences around me like family who are in the Air Force or have jobs as a police officer and helped me open my eyes to this major and want to fight for people and protect them. Criminal Justice is what I’ve always wanted to study, and sociology has a part to do with it and can help me improve and better my knowledge in the field that I’m interested in going into. Research states that, “Try and pick two majors that you are interested in and will want to invest your energy into, but also pick two that could have some overlap in the course requirements.” (Randle, Randle, & University of Houston). I’ve picked sociology and criminal justice, both majors overlap each other and benefit the other and can make my critical thinking a stronger utility for me for my advantage.

The two majors that fit me are Sociology and Criminal Justice; Sociology is the study of the structure, development, and functioning of human society; while Criminal Justice is the system of law ... used for all stages of criminal proceedings and punishment. These two majors relate with the basic definitions of them; sociology is the study of human interactions in society and Criminal Justice is focused on the crime and the cycle of it; if we understand the way humans interact and why the act like this in society toward crime, then we can figure out how to stop it or lower it and who or what it’s targeting. The major declaration requirements for Criminal Justice are to take CRJU 101 & 110 before your upper division classes as well as the Cognate courses like POSC 100, PSY 100 or 370, and etc; and maintaining a minimum 3.00 GPA with a “C” or better in each class. For Sociology you must take SOC 100 & 142 with a “C” or better, then do the GE for Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning, which can be SOC 170/HDEV 190/ or PSY 110. Lastly you need to take SOC 270 and when taking these classes have at least a minimum of a 2.5 G.P.A. For Criminal Justice, you must rake 48 Units of the major courses, which consist of 36 units of the core courses, next units of the following restricted option courses, then 3 units of any upper-division elective criminal justice and at least 6 units of a Senior Integrative Experience. For Sociology you must take either SOC 354 or 355 with a “C” or better, next you have to complete both SOC 356 & 357 for 6 units; then, you have to complete 3 units in both the Global Perspectives and Sociology Inequality and Social Change; Lastly, you complete 12!units of your Upper division Sociology courses to satisfy the previous requirements. In conclusion, both of these majors share most of the same prerequisite courses you must take to be declared into the major itself like SOC 100 & PSY 100. I passed AP Calculus, meaning that I don’t need to take a Mathematics requirement for Sociology and making it easy to double major. If both these majors share most of the same Prerequisites, then it’s easier and better to double major it benefit yourself in the future.

A few career options for Sociology in the Criminal Justice area are Law Enforcement, Probation or Parole Officers, Victim Services, and Federal Government Organizations such as the FBI and IRS. By this research, we can see how Sociology and Criminal Justice relate to each other in and outside the field. Double majoring can raise your chances of getting employed in one of your career choices reflecting you as a more open minded person and well prepared as well. It’ll give you the upper hand against other people applying for the same jobs as you. Three careers you can do with Criminal Justice are Supervision in social services, a legal representative, and finally in investigating in the FBI. We see again how with criminal justice, you can enter Social Services and see how the justice system is worked and how crime is seen first hand and how it affects our own society and the effects with it. These two majors reflect each other's strengths and weaknesses and provide a wider knowledge of society and the justice system that can improve your decision making or your critical thinking process which will look better for you and your future employers.

In conclusion, using the VARKs Test and the Myers-Briggs Test, I was able to see the type of personality that I have and the type of learner I am as well which both match up and I can use to help me make the decision to better myself and choose to Double-Major. Most of my research I found about my two majors coincided with each other and made them the perfect match to double major in and the effects it could have on me and my future career if I did make that option. It can provide a higher percentage of being given employment in a specific area; also having an increase in income due to you majoring in two different areas that can relate to each other as well. Research states that, “It allows students to focus on two disciplines, related or unrelated, simultaneously. About 25% of all undergraduate college students double major in their bachelor’s degree.” (Randle, Randle, & University of Houston). With this you can have a higher chance into getting into your dream job or having a back up plan if one career option falls back on you. Double majoring will benefit you in the future no matter what the position is for you.