Department Summary
The Department of Justice Studies was founded as a Police School in 1930. Over the years, the degrees offered have varied as academic curricula in the field of criminal justice and criminology have evolved.
In recent years, our Department has successfully transitioned toward an emphasis on justice broadly conceived, favoring an interdisciplinary inquiry into principles and issues of social justice and human rights that are essential for the common good.
Looking forward from 2021, our Department offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Justice Studies, Justice Studies with a Concentration in Criminology, and in Forensic Science with Concentrations.
SJSU was the first university in the CSU to offer a Forensic Science Degree. The BS in Forensic Science has three concentrations : Chemistry, Biology, and Digital Evidence.
The Department also houses four minors Justice Studies, Forensic Studies, Legal Studies, and Human Rights.
In addition to the degrees mentioned above, our Department houses the Record Clearance Project. At the graduate level, the Department offers an MS degree in Justice Studies and an online MS degree in Criminology with a Concentration in Global Criminology.
The department is located at 524 MacQuarrie Hall, and can be viewed online at .
Brief Description of Duties
In the Department of Justice Studies, lecturer faculty are most typically appointed to teaching roles on one or more of our programs.
Less frequently, lecturer faculty are appointed to service and research roles.
- The candidate must demonstrate awareness and experience understanding the needs of a student population of great diversity in age, abilities, cultural background, ethnicity, religion, economic background, primary language, sexual orientation, gender identity, and academic preparation through inclusive course materials, teaching strategies and advisement.
- Faculty shall organize all their classes within the Canvas Learning Management System (LMS) .
- All classes must be offered and meet as scheduled throughout the entire semester or term, in the mode assigned and listed in the schedule of classes (.
asynchronous, synchronous, bichronous, in-person, or hybrid).
Required Qualifications
Initial appointment at the LA range is for an entry-level lecturer showing promise as an educator.
A candidate for this range would typically possess at least a Master's degree and / or equivalent specialized professional expertise or experience.
Persons without a qualifying degree may be appointed in this range with approval from faculty services.
Applicants should demonstrate an awareness of and sensitivity to the educational goals of a multicultural population as might have been gained in cross-cultural study, training, teaching and other comparable experience.
Campus Security Authority
Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) and CSU systemwide policy, the faculty coach member in this position is subject to ongoing review for designation as a Campus Security Authority (CSA).
Individuals designated as Campus Security Authorities are required to immediately report Clery incidents to the institution and to complete Clery Act training as determined by the University Clery Director.
Questions regarding CSA designation and training can be sent to the Clery Director at
to be paid per WTU in Special Session programs (a typical course is 3 WTUs). As the salary schedule indicates, compensation may be reduced if enrollment targets are not met.
L-A / Range 2 : $2021 per WTU
L-B / Range 3 : $2215 per WTU
L-C / Range 4 : $2790 per WTU
L-D / Range 5 : $3527 per WTU
Application Procedure
Click Apply Now to complete the SJSU Online Employment Application and attach the following documents :
- Cover Letter
- List of at least three (3) or as many as five (5) references
This is a continuing open position.
Conditional Offer
The work for this faculty position is located in the State of California. Employment is contingent upon US residence and proof of eligibility to work in the United States.
Proof of immunization against COVID-19 or proof of a medical or religious exemption and compliance with testing protocols is required for employment.
Satisfactory completion of a background check (including a criminal records check) is required for employment. CSU will make a conditional offer of employment, which may be rescinded if the background check reveals disqualifying information, and / or it is discovered that the candidate knowingly withheld or falsified information.
Failure to satisfactorily complete the background check may affect the continued employment of a current CSU employee who was conditionally offered the position.
Appointment is contingent upon budget and enrollment considerations and subject to order of assignment provisions in the collective bargaining agreement between California State University and California Faculty Association.
These provisions state the Order of Work, or the order in which available courses must be assigned to faculty, starting with tenure line faculty and ending with new lecturer appointees.
San José State University : Silicon Valley's Public University
Located in the heart of Silicon Valley one of the most innovative and diverse regions in the world is the founding campus of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system and the first public university in the West.
The 2020 #1 Most Transformative University in the nation according to Money Magazine, San José State is an essential partner in the economic, cultural, and social development of Silicon Valley, the Bay Area, and California.
SJSU is a top-200 school nationally in research funding and second highest in research productivity in the CSU system. Cutting-edge research, combined with world-class scholarship, student-centered learning opportunities, and experiential and interdisciplinary programs, allows SJSU to provide transformative opportunities that advance the public good locally and globally.
San José State enrolls more than 36,000 students many are historically underserved, and around 45% are first-generation and 38% are Pell-recipients.
SJSU is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander (AANAPISI) Serving Institution.
The university’s commitment to social justice extends from its vibrant, inclusive campus to an international network of over 275,000 alumni.
As such, San José State is committed to increasing the diversity of its faculty so our disciplines, students, and community can benefit from different and divergent cultural and identity perspectives.
Equal Employment Statement
San José State University prohibits discrimination on the basis of Age, Ancestry, Caste, Color, Disability, Ethnicity, Gender, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, Genetic Information, Marital Status, Medical Condition, Military Status, Nationality, Race, Religion, Religious Creed, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Sex Stereotype, and Veteran Status.
This policy applies to all San José State University students, faculty, and staff as well as University programs and activities.
Reasonable accommodations are made for applicants with disabilities who self-disclose. Note that all San José State University employees are considered mandated reporters under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment.
Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act and Campus Housing Fire Safety Notification
Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the Annual Security Report (ASR) is also now available for viewing at The ASR contains the current security and safety-related policy statements, emergency preparedness and evacuation information, crime prevention and Sexual Assault prevention information, and information about drug and alcohol prevention programming.
The ASR also contains statistics of Clery crimes for San José State University locations for the three most recent calendar years.
A paper copy of the ASR is available upon request by contacting the Office of the Clery Director by phone at 408-924-1501 or by email at
Pursuant to the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the Annual Fire Safety Report (AFSR) is also available for viewing at .
The purpose of this report is to disclose statistics for fires that occurred within SJSU on-campus housing facilities for the three most recent calendar years, and to distribute fire safety policies and procedures intended to promote safety on Campus.
A paper copy of the AFSR is available upon request by contacting the Housing Office by phone at 408-795-5600 or by email at