City College of San Francisco offers one direct crime scene investigation credential: an 18-unit Crime Scene Investigation Certificate of Achievement. Its forensic psychology offering is different. CCSF does not have a standalone forensic psychology degree, certificate, or concentration. Instead, students can take PSYC 4 Forensic Psychology as an elective within the Psychology Associate in Arts for Transfer.
Several related programs broaden the choices. The Administration of Justice Associate in Science can include all three of CCSF’s specialized forensic electives. A Cybersecurity Certificate and the cybersecurity option within the Computer Networking and Information Technology AS include computer forensics. Fire Science Technology programs also address fire-scene investigation and evidence preservation, although they are designed for fire-service careers rather than general CSI work.
These routes lead toward different occupational areas. The CSI certificate emphasizes physical evidence, fingerprints, scene documentation, and report writing. The psychology degree is an academic transfer route. The cybersecurity programs focus on digital evidence and network incidents. The fire programs address origin-and-cause investigation within a fire-service setting.
CCSF forensic and investigation programs at a glance
| Program | Credential | Forensic or investigative focus | Primary use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crime Scene Investigation | 18-unit Certificate of Achievement | Fingerprints, forensic evidence, photography, scene documentation, evidence preservation, reports | Entry-level civilian scene or evidence work; supplemental education for sworn personnel |
| Psychology AA-T with PSYC 4 | 60-unit Associate in Arts for Transfer | One forensic psychology elective within a general psychology curriculum | Transfer into bachelor’s-level psychology study |
| Administration of Justice AS | Associate in Science with a 30-unit major | Criminal investigation plus optional fingerprints, forensic evidence, and scene documentation | Broader preparation for justice, investigation, evidence, and public-safety work |
| Administration of Justice AS-T | 60-unit Associate in Science for Transfer | Limited forensic content available through electives | Transfer into criminal justice or a related major |
| Cybersecurity Certificate | 16-unit Certificate of Achievement | Required computer forensics, network security, firewalls, and ethical hacking | Cybersecurity, incident response, and entry-level digital-evidence preparation |
| CNIT AS with Cybersecurity option | Associate in Science | One required computer-forensics course within an IT and network-security curriculum | Technical networking and cybersecurity roles with some digital-forensics exposure |
| Company Officer Certificate | 11-unit Certificate of Achievement | Fire inspection, preliminary cause investigation, scene security, and evidence preservation | Advancement and certification preparation within the fire service |
| Fire Science Technology AS | Associate in Science | Broad fire-service curriculum; fire investigator listed as a possible career | Fire-service education rather than a dedicated fire-investigation credential |
Among these options, the CSI certificate is the direct route for physical crime-scene work. The other programs are closely related or adjacent pathways, not substitutes for the certificate.
Crime Scene Investigation Certificate
CCSF’s Crime Scene Investigation Certificate of Achievement requires 18 units and has a published minimum completion time of two semesters. It consists of six three-unit courses:
- ADMJ 52 Concepts of Criminal Law
- ADMJ 57 Introduction to Administration of Justice
- ADMJ 68 Criminal Justice Report Writing
- ADMJ 63 Fingerprints
- ADMJ 66 Forensic Evidence
- ADMJ 69 Crime Scene Documentation
The sequence covers the central tasks associated with field-based CSI and evidence work. Students study scene security, photography, diagrams, notes, evidence collection, preservation, chain of custody, reconstruction, latent-print development, evidence admissibility, expert testimony, and professional report writing.
What the specialized courses cover
ADMJ 63 Fingerprints examines fingerprint patterns and classification, latent-print development, evidence preservation, fingerprint databases, admissibility, and testimony. The course also introduces ACE-V, the analysis, comparison, evaluation, and verification process used in friction-ridge examination. Its catalog description includes field trips, although recent schedules have also included an eight-week asynchronous online section.
ADMJ 66 Forensic Evidence introduces the organization of crime laboratories and the characteristics and examination of physical evidence. Students encounter laboratory analysis concepts, courtroom admissibility, and expert testimony. This provides context for how collected evidence proceeds from a scene into laboratory examination and later legal proceedings. It is an introductory evidence course, not an advanced chemistry or biology laboratory.
ADMJ 69 Crime Scene Documentation concentrates on the scene itself. Topics include security, photography, diagrams, note-taking, collection, chain of custody, and reconstruction. ADMJ 68 Criminal Justice Report Writing is recommended preparation. Recent fall scheduling included both asynchronous online instruction and an in-person section at the Mission Center.
Together, these courses create a practical field-investigation curriculum. The program is designed for entry-level civilian crime-scene or evidence-handling work and as supplemental education for officers seeking a sworn CSI assignment. Job titles and hiring structures differ among California agencies. One department may employ civilian crime scene technicians, while another assigns scene processing to sworn officers.
What the certificate does not cover
The certificate is not a laboratory criminalistics degree. Its curriculum does not provide a bachelor’s major in chemistry, biology, or another natural science, nor does it contain the advanced chemistry and quantitative analysis expected for many crime-laboratory positions.
California’s Criminalist examination requirements, for example, call for education equivalent to a bachelor’s degree with a physical or biological science major, eight semester hours of general chemistry, and three semester hours of quantitative analysis. The CCSF certificate does not meet that standard by itself.
Someone targeting field CSI, evidence collection, latent-print support, or property-and-evidence work can use the certificate’s applied content directly. Someone targeting criminalist, forensic chemist, forensic biologist, or crime-lab analyst positions needs substantially more natural-science education.
The published certificate curriculum does not list a required internship. Practical preparation comes through course content involving evidence recognition, documentation, fingerprint development, photography, reconstruction, collection, and preservation.
Format and completion requirements
Recent schedules demonstrate meaningful flexibility but not a permanently online certificate. Spring 2026 included asynchronous online sections of Fingerprints and Forensic Evidence. Fall 2026 included both online and in-person Crime Scene Documentation sections. Course formats can change by semester, and the available evidence does not establish that all six requirements can always be completed online.
CCSF requires a grade of C or better in letter-graded certificate courses or a P in pass/no-pass courses. At least 20 percent of the certificate units must be completed at CCSF. Students also petition for the certificate after meeting its requirements.
The CSI certificate appears on CCSF’s list of financial-aid-eligible certificate programs. Inclusion on that list means it is an eligible program for aid purposes, although individual eligibility depends on the student’s circumstances.
Forensic psychology at CCSF
CCSF’s forensic psychology option is a course, not a degree. PSYC 4 Forensic Psychology may be used as an elective within the Psychology Associate in Arts for Transfer.
This distinction affects both educational planning and career expectations. One forensic elective can provide a useful introduction to psychology and law, but it is not equivalent to a bachelor’s or graduate program specializing in forensic assessment, correctional psychology, clinical practice, or research.
Psychology AA-T curriculum
The Psychology AA-T is a 60-unit transfer degree with a 21-unit psychology major. Its lower-division preparation includes introductory psychology, biological psychology, research methods, statistics, and additional science or critical-thinking coursework. Those foundational subjects are more consequential for long-term psychology study than the forensic elective alone.
PSYC 4 examines psychological research and theory involving:
- Criminal behavior
- Police and victims
- Witnesses and eyewitness identification
- Profiling
- The insanity defense
- Race and justice
- Legal controversies and outcomes
PSYC C1000 is recommended preparation. In Spring 2026, CCSF offered PSYC 4 in both an asynchronous online section and an in-person section at the Ocean Campus. The course is normally offered in spring according to the college catalog, so its timing can affect transfer-degree scheduling.
The AA-T requires 60 degree-applicable units, a minimum 2.0 GPA, completion of Cal-GETC, and grades of C or P or better in major courses. Research Methods also has introductory psychology and statistics preparation requirements.
Transfer and licensure implications
The Psychology AA-T is designed for lower-division preparation and transfer, not independent psychological practice. A student interested in forensic psychology would ordinarily use it as the beginning of a longer sequence: complete lower-division psychology and general education at CCSF, transfer into a bachelor’s program, and pursue appropriate graduate education for the intended occupation.
California psychologist licensure requires far more than an associate degree or a forensic psychology course. According to the California Board of Psychology, the process includes a qualifying doctoral degree, 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience, required coursework, examinations, and a fingerprint background check.
Research methods, statistics, and biological psychology are especially useful preparation for that route. PSYC 4 adds legal and forensic context, but it does not provide clinical assessment training, supervised practice, or a licensure internship.
Administration of Justice degree choices
CCSF offers both an Administration of Justice AS and an Administration of Justice AS-T. They have different purposes and different levels of CSI specialization.
Administration of Justice AS
The Administration of Justice AS has a 30-unit major covering criminal law, evidence law, criminal investigation, policing, report writing, justice-system principles, and related topics. Students select nine elective units and can choose:
- ADMJ 63 Fingerprints
- ADMJ 66 Forensic Evidence
- ADMJ 69 Crime Scene Documentation
Selecting all three incorporates the certificate’s specialized forensic courses into a broader associate degree. The result includes more general justice-system and investigative education than the 18-unit certificate while preserving its main evidence-processing subjects.
This route works better for a student who wants an associate degree and broader exposure to policing, investigations, courts, or corrections. The standalone certificate is shorter and more concentrated on scene and evidence work.
The catalog also includes optional work-experience courses, but an internship is not a universal requirement of the AS. As with the certificate, this remains an Administration of Justice program rather than a laboratory forensic science degree.
Administration of Justice AS-T
The AS-T is primarily a transfer credential. It requires Concepts of Criminal Law and Introduction to Administration of Justice, with additional selections that can include Criminal Investigation or Forensic Evidence. Students also choose courses in areas such as sociology, psychology, or statistics.
Its forensic depth is limited compared with the CSI certificate or the regular AS completed with all three forensic electives. A transfer-focused student can use the AS-T to build lower-division criminal justice preparation, but it is not a specialized CSI program.
Digital evidence and cybersecurity programs
Physical crime-scene investigation and computer forensics involve different tools and bodies of knowledge. CCSF addresses the digital side through its Computer Networking and Information Technology programs.
Cybersecurity Certificate
The 16-unit Cybersecurity Certificate requires courses in:
- Introductory networking
- Network Security
- Computer Forensics
- Firewalls
- Ethical Hacking and Network Defense
- DNS Security
CNIT 121 Computer Forensics covers forensic tools, data recovery, file-system analysis, evidence collection and protection, computer-crime investigation, diagnostic software, and expert-witness skills. CNIT 120 Network Security is recommended preparation. In Spring 2026, CNIT 121 was offered as an eight-week asynchronous online class.
The broader certificate emphasizes cybersecurity and network defense. It is relevant to incident response, network investigations, and the preservation or examination of computer evidence. It does not cover physical scenes, fingerprints, blood or biological evidence, scene photography, or the other subjects central to the CSI certificate.
CNIT AS with Cybersecurity option
The Computer Networking and Information Technology AS includes multiple options. Under the Cybersecurity option, students must complete CNIT 121 Computer Forensics along with Firewalls and Ethical Hacking and Network Defense.
This is an IT and network-security degree with one required computer-forensics course, not a dedicated digital-forensics or cybercrime-investigation degree. It provides broader networking and technical preparation than the shorter certificate, but its required forensic study is concentrated in CNIT 121.
No criminal justice internship, law-enforcement academy, or dedicated digital-forensics practicum is identified as an AS requirement. The program aligns more closely with technical cybersecurity work than with civilian physical-evidence positions.
Fire investigation and scene-preservation options
CCSF’s Fire Science Technology department offers relevant investigation coursework, but these programs serve a different professional population from the CSI certificate.
Company Officer Certificate
The 11-unit Company Officer Certificate is intended primarily for fire-service personnel preparing for advancement and California State Fire Training Company Officer certification. Its six-course curriculum covers management, administrative functions, fire inspections and investigations, all-risk command, wildland operations, and instruction methods.
F SC 75C Fire Inspections and Investigations includes preliminary fire-cause investigation, scene security, and evidence preservation. The program’s published outcomes include conducting fire investigations and preserving crime scenes. Field trips are part of F SC 75C.
This is an adjacent fire-investigation pathway, not an entry-level civilian CSI certificate. Its investigative content supports company officers who may need to recognize, secure, document, or preserve a fire scene for further criminal or civil investigation. Courses are offered on occasion, so completion can extend beyond a continuous short-term sequence.
Fire Science Technology AS
The Fire Science Technology AS requires a 30- to 42-unit major, depending on the selected route and coursework. It covers fire prevention, building construction, fire-protection systems, fire behavior and combustion, wildland fire control, emergency-services safety, and emergency medical or rescue subjects.
CCSF lists fire investigator among possible career directions, but the required AS curriculum does not include the specialized F SC 34A, 34B, and 34C Fire Investigation 1 sequence. The degree therefore provides broad fire-service education rather than a concentrated fire-investigation curriculum.
CCSF identifies its Fire Science Technology curriculum as accredited by the California State Fire Marshal’s Office of State Fire Training. That designation concerns fire-service education. It is not forensic-science accreditation.
Fire Investigation 1 coursework
CCSF also schedules F SC 34A, 34B, and 34C as specialized courses associated with Fire Investigator 1 preparation:
- F SC 34A addresses scene security, origin-and-cause investigation, exterior and interior surveys, and fire-pattern analysis.
- F SC 34B covers photography, diagramming, evidence selection, evidence preservation, processing, and chain of custody.
- F SC 34C addresses investigative records, expert resources, findings, opinions, and legal testimony.
These courses form a six-unit sequence, but CCSF does not present them as a separate degree or Certificate of Achievement. Completion of the courses alone is not documented as automatically granting state certification.
Tuition, fees, and accreditation
CCSF’s current California-resident enrollment fee is $46 per semester unit. At that rate, the 18-unit CSI certificate carries $828 in enrollment charges. The 16-unit Cybersecurity Certificate carries $736 in enrollment charges.
Beginning in Summer 2026, nonresident students pay $409 per unit in tuition in addition to the $46 enrollment fee. An 18-unit CSI certificate therefore carries $8,190 in nonresident tuition and enrollment charges.
These figures are not total program prices. Health and registration fees, books, materials, transportation, housing, food, and other living expenses are separate. Eligible California and San Francisco residents may receive Free City enrollment-fee support.
Current details are available through CCSF’s tuition and fees page.
City College of San Francisco holds institutional accreditation from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. The ACCJC institutional record shows accredited status, with accreditation reaffirmed in June 2025 for the remainder of the cycle.
The CSI certificate is not FEPAC-accredited. FEPAC accredits bachelor’s and master’s forensic science programs, including qualifying natural or computer science degrees with forensic concentrations. An associate-level CSI certificate falls outside that stated scope, so FEPAC status is not the appropriate measure for this CCSF credential.
Choosing the right CCSF route
The 18-unit CSI certificate is the clearest choice for physical crime-scene and evidence-processing education. Its courses directly address fingerprints, photography, documentation, collection, preservation, chain of custody, reconstruction, reports, and courtroom issues.
The Administration of Justice AS provides a broader degree option. Choosing Fingerprints, Forensic Evidence, and Crime Scene Documentation as the nine elective units preserves the strongest CSI content while adding criminal investigation, law, policing, and justice-system study.
The Psychology AA-T serves a different objective. It supplies research methods, statistics, biological psychology, and transfer preparation, with PSYC 4 adding an introduction to psychology and law. It is the appropriate CCSF starting point for eventual bachelor’s and graduate study in psychology, not a short route into licensed forensic practice.
Digital-evidence interests point toward the Cybersecurity Certificate or the CNIT AS with Cybersecurity option. Both require Computer Forensics, but their central subject is network and computer security rather than physical scene processing.
Fire-service personnel can use the Company Officer Certificate for required investigation and scene-preservation content. The Fire Investigation 1 courses offer more specialized origin-and-cause, evidence, documentation, and testimony instruction, although they are coursework rather than a separate CCSF credential.
Students pursuing laboratory criminalistics should take a different academic direction. California criminalist requirements favor bachelor’s-level preparation in a physical or biological science with substantial chemistry. CCSF’s CSI coursework can add useful scene and evidence knowledge, but chemistry, biology, quantitative analysis, laboratory methods, statistics, and eventual bachelor’s completion must drive the education plan for crime-lab employment.
CCSF’s options are best compared by evidence type and work setting. Choose the CSI certificate or forensic electives for physical scenes, the Psychology AA-T for transfer into psychology, CNIT for computer evidence, and fire-science coursework for fire-origin investigations. More California institution profiles are available through the site’s forensic and CSI schools directory.