A New Approach to Graduate Training in Criminology at the University of British Columbia

Abstract

In October of 1952, at Vancouver, Canada, the Senate of the University of British Columbia approved a graduate curriculum leading to a Diploma of Criminology. Professor of Sociology, C. W. Topping, long-time leader in penal reforms and major advocate of the new course, was made directly responsible for the program. The Diploma curriculum is a specialized unit of graduate study designed for students who anticipate a career within the field of corrections. Typical applicants for candidacy for the Diploma will have completed five years of college work, including one graduate year in social work, sociology or psychology. The LL.B. degree, also representing five or more years of college credit, would satisfy the educational prerequisite for the Diploma course, and it is conceivable that other backgrounds would be judged acceptable in individual