Criminal Justice and Security - M.A.

The programme is, first of all, a continuation of the Faculty’s first-cycle academic study programme and is comparable to study programmes such as the first-cycle study of Security and Police Work and the study of Information Security. The second-cycle study programme takes two years to complete (120 ECTS). After the completion of the programme a graduate receives the title M.A. in Criminal Justice and Security.

Graduates become experts in the field of security studies; they gain good insight and understanding of the real world, the trends in the field of security operations and management, as well as of the functioning of the judicial system and law enforcement agencies (police, prosecutors, courts, prisons, intelligence agencies, etc.), the role of informal social control mechanisms (families, school, associations, civil-society organisations, and other factors of socialisation), and also of the role of institutionalised informal social control mechanisms (mostly detective agencies and private security companies). At the postgraduate level, students deepen their knowledge of social, psychological, economic, behavioural, historic, and political aspects of criminality, delinquency, and criminal law; knowledge of research methods, research aetiology, prevention, control of and reactions against criminality and delinquency; skills to evaluate and detect criminal and delinquent behaviours in society; gain an overview of criminal law and criminal prosecution procedures; and develop an understanding of police work, the role of prosecutors, judges, and prison administrations.

Study programme

In the second-cycle Criminal Justice and Security study programme, which comprises two academic years, students acquire deeper knowledge from the fields of security sciences and master the research methodology necessary to produce a master’s thesis and to continue research in the field. Study subjects are composed so that the content items of a specific study year complement each other. The above-mentioned knowledge combines with that from the fields of constitutional law, critical thinking, and problem solving. Mentors help students choose the right study modules for them. The student then makes an individual study plan that directs him/her, in the second study year, into a specialisation ending with a master’s thesis. The student focuses his/her research interests within the framework of the chosen module. Horizontal compatibility of basic study subjects and specific study subjects constituting a module; elective subjects greatly increase the scope of knowledge and guarantee that a graduate’s expertise will benefit society. The master’s thesis must be contextually connected to the study subjects of a specific module.

This second-cycle or master’s degree study programme is designed so that the study subjects are vertically connected. In the first year, elective study subjects give students a wide overview of the field, and in the second year, the focus is narrowed down to specific areas – students can choose modules with the study subjects they are most interested in. The whole study programme is designed so that in the first-year students gain basic knowledge from the field of Criminal Justice and Security and upgrade this with a more focused study of specific subjects. All along, students also gain knowledge about various issues, which they will be able to use in practical research and leadership. The basic knowledge is further deepened by teaching students the methodological foundation that they need in order to develop the field in the future. Students reinforce their knowledge inside the framework of their chosen module and focus their efforts into a specialisation.

Competencies of graduates

The goal of the master’s level study programme is to produce graduates who are experts in the field of security studies; they gain a deep insight into and develop an understanding of the real world, trends in the field of security operations and management, the functioning of the judicial system and law enforcement agencies (police, prosecutors, courts, prisons, intelligence agencies, etc.); the role of informal social control mechanisms (families, school, associations, civil-society organisations, and other factors of socialisation) and that of institutionalised informal social control mechanisms (mostly detective agencies and private security companies). At the postgraduate level, students deepen their knowledge of social, psychological, economic, behavioural, historical, and political aspects of criminality, delinquency, and criminal law; knowledge of research methods, research aetiology, prevention, control of and reactions against criminality and delinquency; skills to evaluate and detect criminality and delinquent behaviours in society; gain an overview of criminal law and criminal prosecution procedures; and an understanding of police work, the role of prosecutors, judges, and prison administrations.

A graduate’s general competencies originate from the basic academic-level knowledge in the field and become elements of their general academic profile. In the course of their study at the Faculty, students develop their competency based on theoretical knowledge and their attitudes toward the use of the knowledge acquired, the two inseparable components of the higher-education goals.

The general competencies developed by graduates are:

• the ability to analyse, synthesise, propose solutions, and foresee consequences in the areas of criminal justice and security studies;
• the ability to master research methods, procedures and processes relevant to the field of criminal justice and security;
• the capability to develop critical reasoning and judgement;
• the capability to use theory in practice;
• the ability to work professionally and autonomously;
• the ability to use communication and other skills necessary to act internationally;
• the ability to understand, through the prism of classic and new concepts, current issues in security and crime detection;
• the ability to apply classic and new professional concepts in practice;
• the capability to commit to ethical principles and professional ethics;
• the ability to develop good interpersonal communication skills and work well individually or in teams;
• the ability to use systemic concepts in understanding and defining problems;
• the ability to understand social, psychological, philosophical, economic, historical, legal, and political aspects and implications of criminality and delinquency, and the functions of investigators, prosecutors, other government bodies, and law enforcement agencies.

Further, in the second-cycle study programme, students: get deeper knowledge in the wider fields of expertise; gain skills to seek new sources of knowledge in scientific research areas; learn how to use scientific research methods to tackle a wide range of problems in new situations; assume responsibility for managing the most demanding systems; develop critical introspection, and social and communication skills necessary in leadership and team work.

Employment of graduates of FCJS

Security is becoming increasingly more important in all spheres of the modern world. In the past few years, companies expressed much more interest for the knowledge gained by students of security sciences. In the past decade, the Faculty adapted its study programmes to the needs of the economy and deepened its expertise in this field. As experts in the field of criminal justice and security, the graduates of the second-cycle Criminal Justice and Security Studies programme can find employment in the non-business sector, especially in the public sector and non-government organisations, the police, and military, and in the business sector, where the following areas are emphasized: implementation of integral security in corporations (retail businesses, casinos, tourist sector, etc.); security specialisation (physical protection, national security, international security integrations, information security); interdisciplinary expertise in security and management (manufacturing, retail, transport of energy sources, chemical technology, etc.); design and development of security models for the optimisation of security processes; marketing of products and services, such as security techniques and software; and private intelligence and investigation services.

The graduates are equipped with knowledge to be able to work efficiently and professionally, but they can truly be successful only if society has a need for their expertise and values it. A graduate from the second-cycle Criminal Justice and Security study programme at the Faculty of Criminal Justice and Security becomes an expert with the theoretical and practical knowledge necessary to manage different organisations, various demanding processes and professional tasks in the field of security. Furthermore, graduates with a master’s degree in Criminal Justice and Security are capable of:

• detecting, analysing, and solving problems related to human rights, principles of legality, and the rule of law;
• mastering general and specific research methods for studying various phenomena connected to security and, above all, the basic applied research of security issues in local communities and organisations, nationally and internationally;
• developing critical reasoning and judgment in managing security;
• transferring theory into everyday practice and synthesizing expertise from the field of criminal justice and security with other related fields;
• developing the ethical standards necessary for autonomous professional work at the highest quality level;
• developing communication skills to successfully work in situations of co-dependency, nationally and internationally;
• cooperating at different levels of security management in local environments, organisations, both nationally and internationally;
• doing deeper analyses of the basic mandates of intelligence and security entities from the viewpoint of legality;
• deepening their understanding of the relevant relationships between investigation and law enforcement bodies and other parties involved in the national intelligence and security system;
• measuring the scope and type of criminality and other forms of delinquency in society;
• studying how well different parties adhere to the criminal legislation and methods of providing safety;
• studying practical aspects of policing, the activities of prosecutors, courts, and the prison system;
• studying other control mechanisms in modern society and providing private, public, national, and international security;
• understanding security issues and activities at global, continental, state, regional, and local levels;
• researching causes, control mechanisms, criminality, and reactions of offenders; and
• understanding the state’s internal security systems and security systems within the international community.

A graduate with a master’s degree in Criminal Justice and Security is capable of taking on the most demanding tasks of analysing, planning, developing, and leading security processes in the public and private spheres of the economy or in non-government organisations.