Okay, so I just recently graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice. Towards the end of my bachelors I was beginning to have second thoughts, especially after taking a few electives that really interested me more than my major. Those classes were all science based, particularly the marine/environmental science based ones that interested me the most. This got me to thinking that going into a different field would be a much better choice.
I now would like to pursue a masters in a marine science program, if possible. I really don’t want to start over in undergrad. Is this even possible to do?
It can be. I did something very much like that.
You need to read up on the grad programs that you are interested in, and find out what their admissions requirements are. Even if you did not complete the full major, you may have enough courses for admission, grades that are good enough in those courses, and professors from those courses who would be happy to write letters of recommendation for you. If you are short a few classes, then check around and see where you can take those classes (preferably somewhere it won’t cost you a lot of money), get good grades in them, and then apply to grad school.
Thanks for the reply and your help. One thing I’ve wondered about is for the letters of recommendation, what if you never really built up that great of relationships with the professors? I have a few that I might be able to ask because f the classes I took with them but I don’t know if they’d be willing to since they don’t really know me that well.
When you ask for references, give the prof (or have ready) information to help them write it. The info should include the specific class you took, exactly what term you took it, what you particularly enjoyed about the class, any specific positive feedback that the prof gave you in that class, what you are applying for, why you are applying for it, and links between the class you took and what you are applying for. Some of these will take some thought- you will find it easier if you write at least a good draft of your ‘why I want to do this Masters’ essay. You may have to reach to find links- it might be in the way that both involve gathering and analyzing information to learn about a situation or the focus on the science aspects or whatever. The idea is that you give the prof outline points of the kinds of things that you hope s/he would say about you- and that the program you are applying to would like to hear.
First thoughts: Don’t make the same mistake over again.
What I mean by that is - you thought you were interested in criminal justice, but now you have second thoughts, and you think you’re interested in marine/environmental science based on a few courses. But master’s degrees are expensive! And taking additional classes are time-intensive. So I suggest that you make sure that this is your real interest first before spending time and energy to go to an MS program.
Can you shadow a marine scientist? Do an internship? Volunteer with an environmental sciences agency? Work at an environmental agency with your criminal justice degree? Do some informational interviews with people who work in the area? You want to learn a lot more about the every day work that goes into this field. The work is often very different from the coursework and knowledge.
Do you have a specific career in mind? Graduate school is career training. The goal is for you to get a credential you need for a specific job, not just get a graduate degree and hope for the best. You might not even need a graduate degree - a certificate program might help, or on-the-job training. You may even realize that it’s not an MS in marine science that you want (which is probably going to be somewhat research-focused) but a master’s in environmental resource management or something similar. An example is Yale’s [master’s in environmental management](http://environment.yale.edu/academics/degrees/mem/), which focuses on the connections between science, management, and policy. There’s a specialization in water resource management and policy. You might even decide that you want a master’s in public health with a focus in environmental health science, and a specialization in water/marine policy or climate change. There are lots of those programs - Columbia’s department has a special focus in water. You’ll need fewer perquisites in these kinds of programs than a straight marine science program.
You probably won’t have to start over, but there will be courses you’ll have to take to have a foundational knowledge if you went for a straight marine sciences or environmental sciences program. Which kind of program you choose will determine what your prereqs. There will probably be more if you go for a marine science or geology program. There might not be that many at all if you do environmental studies or a geography program with emphasis on the environment. Environmental science will probably be somewhere in the middle.
Also keep in mind that the classes that you took were probably for non-science majors. Science classes for actual science majors are much more difficult. I remember comparing my introductory physics class (for science majors) to my husbands introductory physics class (for non-science majors) . . . he thought he loved physics until he saw what a true physics class for science majors was like!
As previously mentioned above, you at least need to have the required classes on your transcript for grad school to apply for graduate school in a different area.
Yes, well unfortunately when I went into college at first I was very immature and kind of just picked that degree on a whim, without any real thought into it. I thought, “Yea, that’d be cool to be in the FBI or something”. After going through the program and finding out what law enforcement actually entails and how there’s little you can do with a CJ degree, I had second thoughts. I actually was more interested in all of the electives I took than the courses I took for my major.
I could possibly do an internship or shadow someone. I do live right next to a Great Lake after all. There are some agencies that do offer internships in the area but you must be a full-time student, which I am not anymore.
I have to be honest here. I don’t really have a career in mind. I just know that based off of the few classes I took, specifically my oceanography class that the marine sciences really interested me. Maybe I’m just a bit naive.
“You may even realize that it’s not an MS in marine science that you want (which is probably going to be somewhat research-focused) but a master’s in environmental resource management or something similar. An example is Yale’s master’s in environmental management, which focuses on the connections between science, management, and policy. There’s a specialization in water resource management and policy. You might even decide that you want a master’s in public health with a focus in environmental health science, and a specialization in water/marine policy or climate change. There are lots of those programs - Columbia’s department has a special focus in water. You’ll need fewer perquisites in these kinds of programs than a straight marine science program.”
^^^^^Also, that sounds a lot more practical for me at this point in time.
What sort of classes did you have in CJ that might be useful as entry to those agencies that you speak of? I know that some CJ people manage to get analyst jobs in other areas if they had training in data and stats and CS.
The Coast Guard my be a way to merge CJ and marine biology. Look through the academy website; they have some relevant programs.