Champlain College

Since 1878, students of Champlain College haven't just fulfilled responsibilities, they have created them. We offer majors with a specific focus, like e-Business Management, Digital Filmmaking and Public Relations and we’ve introduced new fields of study, like Game Design and Computer & Digital Forensics. Champlain offers an innovative three-dimensional education, which combines relevant studies that have a professional focus with a challenging set of Core and Life Skills courses.

A very inventive culture survives because people with a variety of talents use their abilities together. Here students assist each other as they launch new businesses, students and staff work together on research and service, and the college works with local leaders to create partnerships with the community. From Doughboys doughnuts to Bove’s family-recipe Italian, our city, Burlington, is the ultimate college town with a hip vibe, a thriving music scene and great food. It's original, forward-looking, and down-to-earth, just like Champlain College itself.

Law enforcement officials complete vital work daily in crime scene investigation, tracking the chain of evidence, and investigative interviewing. Champlain College's Criminal Justice program covers all you need to know, from police work and the courtroom to honing bargaining skills that are necessary to succeed in the legal system.

Computer & Digital Forensics

Almost every crime leads behind digital evidence. A key role is played in criminal acts such as financial fraud and identity theft by the modern technological gadgets such as cell phones and computers. The record keeping of files, transcations, and conversations is also easily carried out by them. Another role is as a record-keeper, be it one of conversations, one of files, or one of transactions. Computer forensic analysts work for many different organizations in order to find that digital evidence.

Computer & Digital Forensics graduates are well-sought-out in today's world since computer and network security problems are on the rise. To prepare for a universe filled with computer- and network-based crime investigation, you need a Computer & Digital Forensics degree from Champlain College.

The course focuses on the law, the digital investigative process, and computer and network technology. Not only will you learn to apply your knowledge of computers, software, and the law to research crimes, but you will also learn to articulate the dynamics of white-collar crime.

Program Highlights

• The C&DF is an interdisciplinary program of study; the multi-faceted field is studied in a cooperative curriculum with Champlain College's Criminal Justice program, and Champlain's Center for Digital Investigation.
• Experts in the field will teach you about real life situations. You will be taught by professors with superior industry experience and academic credentials. This type of real-world relevance can only come from our dedicated practitioner faculty at Champlain, and is one of the main strengths of the program.
• Champlain’s practitioner faculty teaches through the real life experiences that bring in the practical relevance to theoretical portions taught in the classroom, which is the strength of the program.
• Experience is provided by the many internship opportunities provided by our program. Classroom knowledge will be applied to real-life organizations, cases, and people.
• Learn how to create a procedure for analyzing computer and network equipment and data. Experience in conducting research, writing reports, and giving presentations are some of what the students will achieve due to individual research projects that are included in all classes.
• Learn to give your input to business and IT managers. This will help to develop computer usage policies consistent with criminal procedure, with particular attention being given to user privacy.
• The program also teaches how to communicate effectively the results of forensic analysis from the results of a computer/network.

The criminal justice program will prepare you with the essential skills you need in the social. legal and ethical aspects of the justice profession. Incarceration, the penal system, parole, probation, and report writing will all be included in the curriculum.

Through the upside-down curriculum that Champlain College provides, in just two years you'll gain a solid base in understanding criminal justice. In the third and fourth years, you will take more advanced classes in criminal justice and work towards developing the improved communication and problem-solving skills this you will require to work in this profession.

Also in your fourth year, you will get essential experience with a necessary internship at either the Vermont Police Academy or the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. With security being a major concern for our country, the demand is greater than ever for qualified leaders in the field of law enforcement and criminal justice systems.

Paralegals are hired by law firms, businesses, financial institutions (such as banks and brokerage houses), and government agencies; although they are supervised by attorneys, their duties usually include preparation of pleadings, interviewing clients, researching legal issues, drafting documents and assisting lawyers during courtroom proceedings. Instruction on legal theory and analysis is interwoven with practical skills.

A Paralegal degree is valuable not only in the legal field, but also in many areas of business. The degree will earn you jobs in any state, and most countries.

As a rule, "pre-law" students at Champlain choose either Paralegal Studies or Criminal justice as their major. Anyone who has plans for law school may choose any major they wish as an undergraduate. Most colleges don't care about your grades in your particular major, but rather how well you've done in every course you have taken.

Regardless of your chosen major at Champlain, we would suggest that you take some of our law related courses as a means of transitioning into law school more smoothly. Your admission is not guaranteed by this, but if you do get into law school, this will be great knowledge to make your first year less stressful. An additional advantage at Champlain is that you can receive advice from a practicing attorney, who is also our Paralegal Studies program coordinator.

Paralegals work in multi-faceted positions, causing the opportunities in the field to grow, especially as they perform many of the tasks that could only be done by attorney. The discipline of law is progressive and constantly-improving, and requires the research skills and expertise of paraprofessionals to function smoothly. If you attend Champlain, it will give you the opportunity to be able to work anywhere in the country as a paralegal.

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