Loyola U New Orleans Uses Game To Spur Interest in Online Criminal Justice Master's Program

To generate interest in its online Master of Science in Criminal Justice Administration program, Loyola University New Orleans has launched a game that provides a taste of the criminal justice experience. The game features a series of photo puzzles and crime analyses.

The "Criminal Justice Challenge & Photo Hunt" has three segments. The first, "Curriculum in the Real World," analyzes timely events such as the Madoff Ponzi Scheme and Casey Anthony's murder trial to demonstrate how the curriculum of the online program could be applied in real life.

The second segment, "Criminal Justice Fast Facts," contains trivia about the business of criminal justice, such as information on forensic science administration and justice administration, both areas of focus within Loyola's program.

 Screen shot of criminal justice challenge game

 

The third segment is where the game surfaces. Players tackle randomized puzzles, industry-related challenges, and quizzes. The idea is to offer insights about the industry during the experience. For example, in one photohunt, the player is shown two pictures and has 60 seconds to find the differences between the two images. Faster times score higher.

"We're seeing more criminal justice organizations encouraging employees to complete advanced degrees. To really be successful, especially in a leadership or administrative role, requires a working knowledge of resources, budgeting, and organizational management. Learning how to be that type of leader is challenging and important," said Bethany Brown, director of the online master's degree program. "Finding new, innovative ways to engage students, and promote critical thinking is one of our core values as an institution."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Training the Next Generation of Space Cybersecurity Experts

    CT asked Scott Shackelford, Indiana University professor of law and director of the Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance, about the possible emergence of space cybersecurity as a separate field that would support changing practices and foster future space cybersecurity leaders.

  • modern college building with circuit and brain motifs

    Anthropic Launches Claude for Education

    Anthropic has announced a version of its Claude AI assistant tailored for higher education institutions. Claude for Education "gives academic institutions secure, reliable AI access for their entire community," the company said, to enable colleges and universities to develop and implement AI-enabled approaches across teaching, learning, and administration.

  • AI microchip, a cybersecurity shield with a lock, a dollar coin, and a laptop with financial graphs connected by dotted lines

    Survey: Generative AI Surpasses Cybersecurity in 2025 Tech Budgets

    Global IT leaders are placing bigger bets on generative artificial intelligence than cybersecurity in 2025, according to new research by Amazon Web Services (AWS).

  • university building surrounded by icons for AI, checklists, and data governance

    Improving AI Governance for Stronger University Compliance and Innovation

    AI can generate valuable insights for higher education institutions and it can be used to enhance the teaching process itself. The caveat is that this can only be achieved when universities adopt a strategic and proactive set of data and process management policies for their use of AI.