California currently has one verified FEPAC-accredited forensic science program: the thesis-based Master of Science in Forensic Science at the University of California, Davis. The official American Academy of Forensic Sciences directory lists the UC Davis program, including its DNA Analysis and Criminalistics tracks, with an accreditation term running from March 1, 2026, through March 1, 2031.
That is a much narrower answer than a general search for forensic science degrees in California would produce. California universities offer other programs in forensic chemistry, forensic biology, crime scene investigation, digital evidence, and criminalistics. Some follow curricular standards associated with the Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission, commonly called FEPAC. Others were accredited in the past. As of September 25, 2026, however, none of those additional California programs appears in the current official FEPAC directory.
This guide explains the scope and practical value of the UC Davis accreditation, what the curriculum contains, how the two tracks differ, what admission and tuition involve, and why accreditation alone does not settle eligibility for California criminalist jobs. It also clarifies two programs that can cause confusion in search results: San Jose State University, which states that its curricula meet FEPAC educational standards, and Cal State LA, whose MS in Criminalistics held FEPAC accreditation beginning in 2011 but is not currently listed.
California’s currently accredited program at a glance
| Institution | Accredited program | Included tracks | Format | Current accreditation term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of California, Davis | Thesis-based MS in Forensic Science | DNA Analysis and Criminalistics | In person, with full-time and part-time study | March 1, 2026 to March 1, 2031 |
The accredited pathway requires 54 quarter units and substantial original research. UC Davis offers both a thesis plan and a capstone plan in its catalog, but the university specifically identifies the thesis-based option as FEPAC accredited. Readers comparing completion plans should not extend the accreditation label to the capstone option without an explicit change in the published accreditation scope.
The program is designed primarily for scientific crime-laboratory careers. Its curriculum includes analytical instrumentation, forensic biology and DNA, toxicology, drug chemistry, microscopy, materials analysis, pattern evidence, quality assurance, law, ethics, courtroom testimony, and research. It also includes mock crime-scene and moot-court experience, but it is not a short vocational certificate intended mainly for entry-level scene processing.
Students seeking a broader view of education and career planning can also use the site’s California CSI and forensic science resources. The analysis below focuses specifically on current FEPAC accreditation.
What FEPAC accreditation means
FEPAC is the Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. It is a programmatic accreditor recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Programmatic accreditation evaluates a defined degree program or concentration rather than accrediting the university as a whole.
That scope affects how program claims should be read. FEPAC accreditation of the UC Davis thesis-based MS does not label every degree, certificate, course, or completion plan at UC Davis as accredited. It applies to the academic pathway and tracks identified in the accreditor’s directory and supporting accreditation action.
FEPAC’s recognized scope includes qualifying bachelor’s and master’s programs in forensic science. It can also cover natural science or computer science degrees with forensic science concentrations, as well as qualifying undergraduate crime scene investigation programs under its current standards. Stand-alone certificates and associate degrees are outside the standard bachelor’s and master’s accreditation categories and should not be advertised as FEPAC-accredited degree programs.
The commission evaluates more than a program’s title. Its standards address areas such as:
- The institution and program’s administrative structure
- Faculty qualifications and instructional capacity
- Curriculum breadth and depth
- Science and mathematics preparation
- Laboratory resources and facilities
- Practical forensic training
- Ethics and professional responsibilities
- Quality assurance
- The relationship between law and science
- Program assessment and student achievement
- Research or capstone requirements
- Experience communicating scientific findings and providing testimony
At the graduate level, the standards require coherent advanced study rather than a collection of survey courses. Depending on the program’s concentration, expected subject matter can include crime-scene investigation, toxicology, microscopy, forensic biology, instrumental analysis, pattern evidence, ethics, quality systems, and the legal context in which forensic conclusions are presented.
Graduate students must also complete independent research or a substantial capstone project culminating in a thesis or written report of publishable quality. Practical preparation includes experience related to expert testimony. These requirements help explain why UC Davis’s original-research pathway, laboratory work, case reporting, and moot-court activities fit the accredited model.
Accreditation provides evidence that an external commission reviewed the program against published forensic science education standards. It does not function as a professional license, guarantee employment, or replace an employer’s course-specific hiring rules. FEPAC itself acknowledges that many sound forensic science programs have not applied for accreditation.
Four labels that should not be confused
California program searches often combine several different claims. They describe different forms of recognition.
Current FEPAC accreditation
A currently accredited program appears in the official FEPAC directory with a defined degree, status, scope, and accreditation term. UC Davis meets this test for its thesis-based MS in Forensic Science and the included DNA Analysis and Criminalistics tracks.
Curriculum aligned with FEPAC standards
A university may design its curriculum around FEPAC educational standards without completing or receiving accreditation. San Jose State University uses this type of language for its undergraduate forensic science curricula. That can be useful evidence about curriculum design, but it is not the same external status shown in the FEPAC directory.
Historical FEPAC accreditation
Programs can have a documented past accreditation term but no current listing. Cal State LA announced FEPAC accreditation for its MS in Criminalistics in March 2011 for a five-year term. Its current absence from the directory means the 2011 announcement describes historical status, not current accreditation.
UC Davis also has an earlier accreditation history, including a term from 2010 to 2015. Its current standing rests on the separate accreditation awarded in 2026 for the March 2026 to March 2031 term.
Institutional accreditation
Institutional accreditation concerns the college or university as an organization. FEPAC programmatic accreditation focuses on a specific forensic science degree or concentration housed within an appropriately institutionally accredited institution. A university can be institutionally accredited while its forensic science program is not FEPAC accredited.
These categories explain why a list of California institutions offering forensic education is much longer than the current FEPAC-accredited list.
UC Davis Master of Science in Forensic Science
The University of California, Davis offers California’s only forensic science program currently listed in the official FEPAC directory. FEPAC awarded full accreditation at its February 8, 2026 meeting, with the term beginning March 1, 2026, and ending March 1, 2031.
The directory identifies DNA Analysis and Criminalistics tracks. UC Davis uses the closely related labels Forensic DNA and Forensic Criminalistics on some university pages. The degree is delivered in person, and students may study full time or part time. UC Davis does not currently offer the forensic science MS as an online degree.
Degree structure and accredited completion path
The MS requires 54 quarter units. According to the 2026-2027 UC Davis catalog, the degree includes:
- 26 to 27 units of core coursework
- Three seminar units
- Nine elective units
- 15 to 16 research units
The catalog lists Plan I, which requires a thesis, and Plan II, which uses a capstone. UC Davis’s accreditation language identifies the thesis-based option as the FEPAC-accredited pathway. A student choosing the degree specifically because of FEPAC status therefore needs the thesis route, not merely admission to the broader MS.
That thesis requirement is academically substantial. Research is not an added elective or a final classroom paper. Fifteen to 16 research units account for close to 30 percent of the 54-unit degree. Students develop an original project, work with faculty and potentially external laboratory partners, analyze findings, and produce formal scientific work.
The research load favors career preparation that depends on experimental design, technical writing, data interpretation, and defensible scientific conclusions. Those skills are directly relevant to crime-laboratory work, where an analyst may need to explain methods, document limitations, withstand technical review, and testify about results.
The research commitment also demands more time and continuity than many course-only professional master’s degrees. Part-time enrollment can make the schedule more manageable, but the program remains an in-person scientific degree with laboratory, research, and thesis responsibilities.
Shared forensic science curriculum
UC Davis’s required and available coursework covers scientific, legal, and professional areas that recur across forensic laboratory disciplines. Published curriculum topics include:
- Professional responsibilities and ethics
- Physical evidence
- Drug chemistry
- Toxicology
- Analytical chemistry
- Instrumental analysis
- Forensic biology
- DNA analysis
- Microscopy
- Materials analysis
- Pattern evidence
- Arson and fire debris
- Explosives
- Quality assurance
- Forensic report writing
- Court testimony
- The relationship between law and science
This breadth serves two purposes. First, it gives students exposure to the major evidence categories handled across public crime laboratories. Second, it teaches the quality and legal framework surrounding the science. A technically correct analytical result still has to be documented, reviewed, communicated, and presented within an evidentiary process.
Quality assurance coursework is especially relevant to laboratory careers. Crime laboratories operate through validated methods, controlled procedures, documentation rules, proficiency testing, technical review, and corrective-action systems. A graduate who understands instrumentation but not quality systems has only part of the preparation needed for casework.
The law-science interface and court-testimony components address another common gap in purely scientific degrees. Forensic analysts do not conduct research in isolation. Their reports can affect criminal investigations and court proceedings, and their conclusions can be challenged through discovery, cross-examination, and competing expert interpretation.
DNA Analysis track
The DNA track is aligned with forensic biology and DNA laboratory work. Admission to this track requires biology in addition to the program’s shared chemistry, physics, mathematics, and statistics prerequisites.
Relevant preparation includes forensic biology, DNA analysis, laboratory methods, quality assurance, interpretation, and original research. This route is a closer match for prospective forensic biologists and DNA analysts than a general crime-scene investigation degree focused on photography, fingerprints, and evidence packaging.
DNA casework relies on molecular and biological principles, statistical interpretation, contamination control, and strict quality systems. The graduate curriculum builds on a scientific bachelor’s degree rather than replacing foundational biology and chemistry preparation.
Research records published by UC Davis include work in DNA and proteomics, among other areas. Program achievement materials also document internships and collaborations connected to public laboratories and law-enforcement agencies. The exact research topic available to an individual student will depend on faculty expertise, laboratory access, project development, and partner capacity during the student’s enrollment.
A reader targeting DNA analysis should assess the entire transcript, not only the graduate track title. Hiring standards in forensic biology can include defined coursework in biology, chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, statistics, or population genetics. The UC Davis track provides advanced forensic specialization, while the bachelor’s degree and prerequisite history remain part of a hiring review.
Criminalistics track
The Criminalistics track is broader across physical and chemical evidence. Its coursework can support preparation in instrumental analysis, controlled substances, toxicology, trace evidence, microscopy, materials analysis, fire debris, explosives, and related laboratory areas.
This route is better aligned with a general criminalist or forensic chemist objective than a field-only CSI curriculum. Analytical instruments, chemical principles, quantitative work, microscopy, and quality assurance receive meaningful attention. The student’s undergraduate science major remains highly relevant because California employers can require specific chemistry and quantitative-analysis coursework.
The track also includes exposure to pattern evidence and scene-related topics. UC Davis publishes practical activities involving mock crime scenes, and its curriculum includes homicide crime-scene material. That experience helps laboratory-oriented students understand evidence recognition, collection, context, and chain of custody.
Still, the degree’s center of gravity is scientific laboratory analysis and research. Someone seeking a short route into evidence photography, latent print processing, property-room work, or routine scene documentation may find a focused CSI certificate or undergraduate field-investigation program more directly matched to those tasks. The UC Davis MS requires a science bachelor’s degree, advanced prerequisites, 54 quarter units, and a major thesis.
Practical preparation
The program combines classroom study with laboratory instruction, original research, mock crime-scene exercises, forensic reporting, and moot-court or expert-testimony experience. These activities correspond to different parts of professional forensic work.
Laboratory instruction develops methods and instrument familiarity. Mock scenes connect laboratory evidence to its source and collection context. Reporting requires students to explain findings precisely rather than relying on classroom discussion alone. Moot court tests whether a student can communicate technical conclusions to a legal audience and respond under questioning.
Original research adds another level of preparation. Routine casework follows validated methods, but analysts still need to recognize unexpected results, evaluate data quality, understand uncertainty, and separate supported conclusions from speculation. Research experience develops those habits through experimental planning, troubleshooting, analysis, and revision.
UC Davis’s published student-achievement information documents internships and thesis projects in areas including toxicology, DNA, trace evidence, firearms, fire debris, blood alcohol, and proteomics. This record demonstrates that students have worked across multiple forensic specialties. It does not establish that every student receives an internship, and the current program information does not present one uniform internship requirement for all students.
Admissions and science prerequisites
Admission requires a bachelor’s degree in a natural or physical science from an accredited institution. Current prerequisites include:
- General chemistry with laboratory
- Organic chemistry with laboratory
- Physics with laboratory
- Calculus
- Statistics
- Biology for DNA-track applicants
- A minimum 3.0 overall GPA
- A minimum 3.0 GPA in prerequisite coursework
GRE scores are not required under the current admissions information.
These prerequisites indicate the intended academic level. The degree is not structured as a conversion program for applicants with no college science background. A criminal justice bachelor’s degree without the required chemistry, physics, calculus, statistics, and laboratory courses would leave substantial preparation unfinished.
UC Davis states that applicants missing some prerequisites may be able to complete them during the first quarter after consultation with the program. That possibility is narrower than entering with an unrelated degree and beginning the science sequence from scratch. Organic chemistry, physics, calculus, and statistics normally build on earlier coursework, so prerequisite gaps can affect both readiness and scheduling.
The admissions profile is a good fit for applicants coming from chemistry, biology, biochemistry, molecular biology, physics, or another qualifying natural or physical science. The DNA track adds a clear biology expectation. The Criminalistics track still requires significant chemistry, mathematics, and laboratory preparation.
Tuition and excluded costs
UC Davis lists tuition of $903 per unit for entrants in fall 2025 or later. Multiplying that rate by the 54-unit degree requirement produces calculated program tuition of $48,762.
That figure is tuition, not total cost of attendance. The university excludes health insurance, books, supplies, laboratory materials, and living expenses from the listed amount. Commuting or relocation costs can also be material because the degree is in person. Tuition is subject to change.
The same published per-unit rate applies to California residents, nonresidents, and international students. That pricing structure differs from programs that add separate nonresident tuition, though each student’s total expenses will still vary based on housing, insurance, transportation, materials, and time to completion.
Part-time study can spread tuition payments across a longer period and may help working professionals manage the schedule. It can also extend living and commuting expenses associated with the degree. Full-time study compresses the academic timeline but requires capacity for advanced courses, laboratory responsibilities, and sustained thesis research.
Reported student outcomes
UC Davis reported 46 enrolled students as of an August 27, 2026 update, divided between 22 in the DNA track and 24 in Criminalistics.
For the 2022 through 2025 period, the program reported:
- 69 graduates
- 53 graduates with a job or job offer
- Three admitted to advanced degree programs
- Seven in other categories
- Six unreachable or nonresponsive
These counts provide more detail than a single placement percentage because they preserve the university’s categories and identify nonresponses. They show that employment and further study were common reported outcomes among graduates, while also leaving some records outside those groups.
Outcome data cannot identify the fit of every individual job, its location, salary, permanence, or direct relationship to the graduate’s track. It is still useful evidence when combined with the documented internships, thesis topics, laboratory partnerships, and science-heavy curriculum.
How UC Davis aligns with California criminalist careers
California uses the title “Criminalist” for a state classification involving scientific examination of evidence. The California Criminalist examination bulletin requires a qualifying physical or biological science major and specified chemistry preparation, including the equivalent of eight semester hours of general chemistry and three semester hours of quantitative analysis.
UC Davis includes coursework relevant to quantitative and analytical preparation, but eligibility is evaluated through the applicant’s complete education record. FEPAC accreditation is not a substitute for the classification’s stated major and course requirements.
This is one reason the program’s natural or physical science bachelor’s requirement is consequential. Laboratory criminalistics rests on chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, and analytical methods. A forensic-themed degree title cannot compensate for missing required science credits when an employer publishes course-level minimum qualifications.
The California Department of Justice describes criminalists as scientists who commonly hold four-year degrees in chemistry, physics, biology, biochemistry, molecular biology, or another physical or biological science. Its guidance also discusses general chemistry and quantitative-analysis preparation.
The California DOJ further separates criminalist work from some crime-scene technician and investigator roles. A criminalist generally performs scientific laboratory analysis. A crime scene investigator may document scenes, collect evidence, photograph conditions, process surfaces, and maintain chain of custody. Depending on the agency, scene work may be assigned to a civilian specialist or a sworn officer.
Job titles are not standardized across every California agency. “Forensic science technician,” “evidence technician,” “crime scene technician,” “criminalist,” and “forensic scientist” can describe different combinations of field, laboratory, and administrative work. The vacancy’s minimum qualifications and duties carry more weight than the title alone.
The UC Davis MS aligns most closely with positions involving:
- Criminalistics
- Forensic chemistry
- Forensic biology
- DNA analysis
- Toxicology
- Controlled-substance analysis
- Trace evidence
- Materials analysis
- Fire debris analysis
- Laboratory quality systems
- Scientific research connected to forensic evidence
It can also support scene knowledge and courtroom preparation, but it is more extensive than the education usually associated with a property and evidence technician role. Those jobs may emphasize inventory, secure storage, chain of custody, database use, evidence release, and agency procedures rather than advanced analytical science.
Why San Jose State is not on the current accredited list
San Jose State University offers bachelor’s-level forensic science concentrations in Forensic Chemistry, Forensic Biology, Crime Scene Investigation, and Digital Evidence. The university states that these curricula meet AAFS-FEPAC educational standards.
That is a meaningful curriculum claim, especially for undergraduates comparing science and specialty content. It is not current FEPAC accreditation. San Jose State does not appear in the official accredited-program directory reviewed through September 25, 2026.
The distinction is best understood as external status versus curricular design. A program can use FEPAC standards to shape its chemistry, biology, digital evidence, CSI, mathematics, and professional content without undergoing the complete accreditation process or receiving an accreditation decision.
FEPAC notes that many sound programs have not applied. Absence from the directory is not evidence that an active program lacks educational value. It means the program cannot be included on a current list defined specifically by FEPAC-accredited status.
SJSU also serves a different educational level. Its programs are bachelor’s pathways, while the currently accredited UC Davis program is a master’s degree requiring an existing natural or physical science bachelor’s degree. A first-time undergraduate deciding among forensic chemistry, forensic biology, CSI, and digital evidence is making a different choice from a science graduate selecting an advanced research specialization.
Career alignment within SJSU’s concentrations also varies. Forensic chemistry and forensic biology are closer to laboratory criminalistics preparation. Crime Scene Investigation emphasizes field evidence and scene work. Digital Evidence targets computers, devices, and electronically stored information. A shared “forensic science” label does not make those tracks interchangeable.
Why Cal State LA can appear on older accreditation lists
California State University, Los Angeles announced full FEPAC accreditation for its MS in Criminalistics in March 2011. The announcement described a five-year accreditation term. Cal State LA continues to offer the MS in Criminalistics, but the program is absent from the current FEPAC directory, and its present program page does not claim current FEPAC accreditation.
Older articles, archived university announcements, and third-party directories can preserve the 2011 status without clearly stating the end of the term. That is why search results sometimes identify Cal State LA as accredited even though the current official directory does not.
The accurate description is that Cal State LA’s MS in Criminalistics was historically FEPAC accredited. It should not be included alongside UC Davis as a currently accredited California program based on the available authoritative evidence.
Historical accreditation can still provide context about how a program developed. It does not describe current external review, current scope, or a current accreditation term. Accreditation directories and official commission actions are more reliable for present status than an undated list or an old announcement.
Is FEPAC accreditation necessary for a forensic career?
FEPAC accreditation is not universally required for forensic employment. Its value lies in the structured external review of a program’s curriculum, resources, faculty, assessment, practical preparation, and student outcomes.
A hiring agency may care more directly about:
- The applicant’s science major
- General and organic chemistry
- Quantitative or analytical chemistry
- Biology and molecular biology
- Physics
- Statistics
- Instrumental analysis
- Laboratory experience
- Research experience
- Specialty-specific coursework
- Report writing
- Quality assurance knowledge
- Eligibility for agency training or certification
- Work experience and background requirements
An accredited degree can package many of these elements coherently, but the word “accredited” does not erase a missing course required by an employer. Conversely, a graduate of a non-FEPAC program can be well prepared if the transcript, laboratory experience, research, and specialty training align with the position.
FEPAC recommends comparing non-accredited curricula with the science and mathematics requirements found in accredited programs. That is a practical method for evaluating California alternatives.
For laboratory criminalistics, prioritize chemistry and biology depth, analytical and quantitative work, instrumentation, statistics, laboratory methods, research, quality assurance, and technical reporting. A curriculum dominated by criminal justice administration, policing, courts, and general investigations is too light for many scientific analyst roles unless the applicant also completes the required natural science coursework.
For field CSI work, examine evidence recognition and recovery, scene photography, fingerprints, documentation, reconstruction, bloodstain or pattern topics, chain of custody, report writing, courtroom communication, and realistic practical exercises. Advanced organic chemistry and thesis research may be less central to routine field duties, though science courses still strengthen evidence interpretation.
Digital evidence requires another curriculum entirely. Computer systems, operating systems, networks, data acquisition, forensic imaging, mobile devices, cybersecurity, scripting, validation, and legal procedure are more relevant than wet-laboratory chemistry. FEPAC’s scope can include qualifying computer science programs with forensic concentrations, but California currently has no additional digital evidence program listed in the directory reviewed for this article.
How to decide whether the UC Davis accredited MS fits your goal
The accredited UC Davis pathway is best matched to applicants who already possess a substantial science foundation and want advanced preparation for crime-laboratory work. Its prerequisites, 54-quarter-unit structure, laboratory curriculum, in-person format, and thesis requirement all point toward that purpose.
A useful decision process begins with the target occupation.
Choose a laboratory-first route for criminalist or forensic scientist goals
A prospective criminalist, forensic chemist, DNA analyst, toxicologist, or forensic biologist should prioritize natural science credentials and course-level eligibility. The UC Davis Criminalistics and DNA tracks provide advanced forensic specialization, but the undergraduate transcript remains part of the professional foundation.
Chemistry-oriented applicants should pay close attention to general chemistry, organic chemistry, quantitative analysis, analytical chemistry, and instrumentation. Biology-oriented applicants need appropriate biology and molecular preparation in addition to chemistry and statistics. The California Criminalist classification provides a concrete example of why these details matter.
Choose field-centered education for routine CSI goals
Someone primarily interested in photographing scenes, documenting evidence, lifting latent prints, collecting biological material, preparing diagrams, or maintaining chain of custody may not need a research-intensive scientific master’s degree as the first educational step.
A field-centered CSI curriculum can provide more concentrated practice in scene processing and documentation. Agency structure also matters because some California departments use civilian CSI personnel while others assign scene duties to sworn officers.
UC Davis includes mock scenes and a homicide crime-scene course, but its central purpose is not entry-level technician preparation. The tuition, prerequisites, and thesis commitment should be justified by a laboratory or advanced scientific objective.
Account for the in-person research commitment
The degree is not online. Laboratory instruction, research, mock scenes, and other practical work take place through an in-person program at UC Davis. Full-time and part-time enrollment create scheduling options, but neither changes the delivery format.
Applicants living outside the Davis area need to include relocation or commuting in the financial and logistical plan. The calculated $48,762 tuition figure excludes living costs, insurance, books, supplies, and laboratory materials.
Thesis research also creates obligations that do not always fit a predictable evening-course schedule. Experiments, instrument access, laboratory partnerships, sample availability, data collection, and faculty supervision can shape the weekly workload.
Compare the thesis path with the capstone path carefully
UC Davis lists both thesis and capstone plans, but only the thesis-based option is explicitly identified as FEPAC accredited in the current university materials. An applicant motivated by accredited status should plan around original research and a formal thesis.
The capstone may serve a different academic purpose, but the current evidence does not place it within the verified accreditation scope. The difference affects more than the final document. Thesis students allocate 15 to 16 units to research and develop sustained experience with project design, data analysis, scientific writing, and defense of conclusions.
Evaluate cost against the role you are targeting
Graduate tuition should be assessed in relation to the education actually required for the intended occupation. A scientific master’s degree can deepen specialization and research experience, but some entry-level laboratory openings accept a qualifying bachelor’s degree. Field technician and property-evidence roles may use different minimum qualifications.
The UC Davis tuition calculation is straightforward: 54 units at $903 per unit equals $48,762 before excluded expenses. The career decision is more personal but should still be evidence-based. Compare the degree’s track curriculum and research opportunities with actual job classifications, not with the broad appeal of the forensic science label.
A practical California planning sequence
For a California laboratory career, start with the science transcript. Map completed courses against likely employer requirements, including the California Criminalist classification where relevant. Identify any gaps in general chemistry, quantitative analysis, organic chemistry, biology, physics, calculus, or statistics before treating a graduate program as the solution.
Next, choose the specialty. DNA and forensic biology call for a different academic emphasis than toxicology, trace evidence, drug chemistry, fire debris, or digital evidence. UC Davis offers a clear split between DNA Analysis and Criminalistics, though research and elective choices provide further specialization.
Then assess the degree format. UC Davis requires in-person participation and significant research. Its part-time option can help with pacing, but it does not convert the program into distance education. Location, work schedule, laboratory access, and thesis time belong in the same calculation as tuition.
Finally, use accreditation for what it establishes. FEPAC provides external assurance that the defined thesis-based program has been reviewed against forensic science education standards. It does not certify an individual graduate, guarantee a particular job, or override an agency’s hiring rules.
As of September 25, 2026, the current California list remains concise: UC Davis’s thesis-based MS in Forensic Science is the only program in the state verified in the official FEPAC directory. Its DNA Analysis and Criminalistics tracks offer advanced, science-centered preparation with laboratory work, testimony practice, mock scenes, and original research. Readers seeking laboratory criminalistics will find the closest alignment there. Those targeting field CSI, digital evidence, or an undergraduate starting point should compare other California programs by curriculum and career fit, while describing their accreditation status accurately.