Masters in Criminal Justice Scholarships and Fellowships
Much like federal student loans, the scholarships available for graduate degrees are not so numerous but they tend to be higher awards than those made available to undergraduates. In the field of criminal justice there are scholarships and fellowships that have been endowed by professional organizations with an interest in criminal justice or law enforcement. There are also national programs that are underwritten by federal agencies and by corporate interests. Our list of available grants for graduate work in criminal justice represents a sampling of these programs; in many cases corporate scholarships or those offered by large charitable trusts are administered by universities at the local level. For that reason it is always wise to check your school’s database for available graduate level scholarships and then see if a criminal justice student can qualify under the grant specifications.
Florida State University has an impressive group of endowed fellowships for the study of criminal justice. The University Fellowship Program provides a stipend of $18,000 to successful new or continuing graduate students in criminal justice. These fellowships also include a tuition waiver. The Delores Auzenne Fellowship is a $5,000 grant to a new or continuing minority student who is enrolled in a graduate criminal justice program. The Leslie Wilson Assistanceship is also a $5,000 fellowship for an African-American graduate student in criminal justice.
John Jay College of Criminal Justice is a highly respected school operated as one of the City College of New York campuses. The school has a comprehensive program for graduate studies and has several endowed fellowships available to its graduate students. There is one sponsored by the school for outstanding scholarship in the amount of $2,000. There is also an International Graduate Student scholarship available in the same amount. The Thurgood Marshall Scholarship is open to graduate students who have completed a certain number of credits and who intend to be active in some capacity in the legal field. There are several other research grants available to graduate students.
Women in Federal Law Enforcement (WIFLE) offers a scholarship program for undergraduate or graduate students. Applicants must have completed at least one year of study and must be enrolled in a criminal justice program or a related discipline such as social sciences, public administration, computer science, finance, linguistic arts or some other academic area relevant to law enforcement. Awards made by this organization are usually $2,500.
American Society of Criminology offers a fellowship program for minority students of any ethnic background who have chosen to enter graduate studies in criminology or criminal justice. This organization is an academic society that focuses on the scholarly side of graduate work in the field: doctoral programs are important to the organization but any student enrolled in a Master of Criminal Justice program is a potential PhD candidate as well. The ASC is also an excellent resource for peer reviewed journals in the field and for a list of graduate programs in criminal justice.
UCLA Graduate Division maintains a database of over five hundred funding opportunities for prospective and current graduate students, students working on a master’s thesis or doctoral dissertation, and students engaged in postdoctoral research. It’s a large resource to try and sort through, but often resources like this one are the only place to find fellowship opportunities that do not have a designated academic discipline but may have a requirement for professional interest that aligns with a degree in criminal justice.
Related:
- Masters in Criminal Justice Jobs
- Masters in Criminal Justice Salary
- Online Masters in Criminal Justice
- Masters in Criminal Justice Requirements
- Masters Degree in Criminal Justice Schools
- Rankings of Masters in Criminal Justice Programs
- Masters in Criminal Justice
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