The EMER degree is a 32-unit program of study, distributed across three areas:

1. The first part is a 23-unit set of required core coursework: EMER 500, 506, 530, 540, 548, 661, and 671.
2. The second part is the elective area of a specialization. Students take up to 6 units of elective coursework. The electives are selected in consultation with a faculty advisor. EMER students have the flexibility to tailor their studies to meet specific career objectives that they and/or their professional organizations have identified.
3. The third part of the program is critical to our mission of supporting the development of more disaster-resilient communities. Students are required to complete their program through a culminating capstone assessment. Students will demonstrate their degree competencies through a signature assignment, which includes the completion of either a capstone project (EMER 694) or a thesis (EMER 698). EMER 694 and EMER 698 are four-unit courses, and are required to be completed during the last two semesters of a student's EMER studies.

GS700

Every semester, graduate students must be registered in a course, or in GS 700, or must have an approved educational leave.

• If a graduate student wishes to take a semester off before resuming coursework, s/he must take a Planned Educational Leave, not GS 700.
• Registration in GS 700 is restricted to graduate students who have completed all their coursework and need additional time to complete their thesis or study for the comprehensive exam.

GS 700 is intended to be taken when a student believes he/she will be graduating at the end of that semester and does not need or desire to take additional courses. Enrolling in GS 700 is a cost-effective means by which to extend the course by one semester, while completing the thesis or comprehensive exam.  Students must enroll in GS 700 during:

• Each semester they use any of the University's resources (including, but not limited to, faculty, staff, library, and/or other facilities/services), but are not enrolled in any courses; and/or

• The semester they are taking the comprehensive examination, submitting their thesis the University's Thesis Office, or graduating, if they are not enrolled in any other courses at the University. 

In other words, students must be enrolled in a course or GS 700 during the semester in which they intend to graduate. Although GS 700 is a zero-unit course, the fee is based on one unit of credit for payment purposes; no unit credit is added to the student’s program or transcript.

• Students may only enroll in GS 700 after they have Advanced to Candidacy and have completed all coursework for their master’s degree program, yet still have to complete their capstone experience (i.e., a thesis or the comprehensive exam). 
• GS 700 forms are available for Criminal Justice graduate students from the Criminology and Criminal Justice Graduate Advisor; GS 700 forms are available for Emergency Services Administration graduate students from the Emergency Services Administration Graduate Advisor;

The Graduate Advisor will only issue a permit to register for GS 700 for the intended purpose of completing a master’s capstone experience.

Before the Graduate Advisor will issue a permit to register for GS 700, the requesting student must meet with the Graduate Advisor for an advising appointment.  During this appointment, the Graduate Advisor will check the student’s degree progress and verify compliance with all applicable policies and procedures.

Unless compelling circumstances exist, students are permitted to register for GS 700 for a maximum of two (2) semesters. 

GS 700 permits will be issued during the first three weeks of a semester.  No “late-adds” of GS 700 after the University's "Census Date" will be authorized unless compelling circumstances exist.

Graduate students do not need to register for GS 700s during the winter or summer sessions unless the student is graduating during that term. Winter session deadline will be the last day to add deadline (this occurs during the first week of instruction). During the summer session the deadline to add will be the final day of the 3rd week of the summer session.

• Online 32 unit graduate program
• Students are encouraged to take courses in sequence with their same program-entry cohort. However, the program recognizes the professional and family demands of most all of our students. The program can be taken successfully by students working through the sequence of courses at their own pace.
• Courses (3-unit) will generally run for 15 weeks during the fall or spring semester, or 12 weeks if offered in the summer.
• Signature assignments referred to as Capstone Projects, which can be conducted solo or in teams of up to three students. These projects are developed to strengthen community resilience in the real world, often designed to solve problems in the departments/communities in which our students live and work.

• Firefighters
• Law Enforcement
• Emergency medical services personnel
• Military personnel
• Emergency managers
• Public health practitioners
• Public administrators
• NGO administrators
• Private business disaster planners

EMER requires a total of 32 graduate level units. Of this total, 26 units of coursework are required of all students, while 6 units may be taken as electives. Since we look for students to come from many different backgrounds, with varied professional experience, we provide a strong set of foundational required courses and allow students to generate in their 6 units of electives a path of study that can strengthen a specific set of competencies in emergency management, their professional organization, or as their own career leadership development dictates.

Many of the EMER courses are specifically designed to support students’ development of their Capstone Projects/theses. The problems tackled in these culminating projects can be sanctioned through students’ senior administrators within their own organization, through EMER’s collaborative partnerships with multiple agencies throughout the world, or generated by the student.

EMER examines emergency management research and theory with a constant “eye” to practical application in the real world. EMER requires students to complete a Capstone Project or thesis as a final assessment of their studies. All final projects are delivered by students electronically and saved within EMER’s Digital Library, allowing access to future EMER students, EMER alumni, and members of EMER’s community collaborative partnerships. We want all of our graduating students to know they have made and will continue to make a positive difference in the lives of those they serve and in the organizations they have been educated to lead.

EMER accepts students for fall admission.

CSULB full-time faculty teaching in the EMER program currently come from eight different programs/departments on campus with part-time faculty practitioners representing emergency services, public health and private industries directly involved in emergency management.

Required courses focus on developing competencies in:

• Writing and critical thinking skills
• Emergency management and planning
• Gathering information and research data for making more informed and strategic decisions
• Interagency risk and crisis communications
• Disaster mental health
• Homeland security
• Business continuity
• International emergency management
• Grant writing and administration
• Finance and budgeting
• Hazards and risk management
• Strategic planning and integrative practices in emergency services administration
• And many more

The EMER program is delivered exclusively online.

Advising is conducted utilizing web-based technology.

Fall, spring semester, and sometimes in the summer online.

Most faculty develop their courses to offer intensive study and discussion of course topics in weekly lessons which can be delivered in real-time or through content made available online. Any content delivered in real-time will be recorded and always made available to students unable to participate in the initial discussions.

Using the latest digital technologies faculty and students can study all phases of disaster management through lectures and discussions delivered in real-time or through weekly lessons designed to accommodate students’ professional working schedules.

Yes, required courses are offered sequentially and all students admitted into the same cohort each fall can progress with their same cohort colleagues throughout their program of study.

However, as a program designed for working professionals, EMER does not expect all students to pursue this program in lock-step, as changes in work assignment and/or family responsibilities can always have an impact on degree planning. Students who commit to starting the program are expected to have planned their work/family demands, so that they can finish their degree in a timely manner. Adjustments will have to be made in consultation with the EMER Graduate Advisor.

All students entering in their first fall semester must commit to enrolling and completing the same initial seven-units of EMER courses.

These courses introduce students to the functionality of the EMER online technologies, critical writing, thinking and library research skills, as well as the foundational principles, competencies and research and theory in emergency management. The content and course assignments in these initial first semester courses have all been closely integrated to ensure students experience a successful start to their graduate studies.

After the first semester, two new courses for each cohort, along with additional elective courses, are made available for each of the original fall cohorts moving through the program.

Two to three years after starting the program.

 The admission deadline is June 1 for fall each year. 

• Cost per unit: $499 (Starting Fall 2017)
• Cost per course: $1,497
• Total cost of the program: $15,968
• Costs for books, software, or other course materials are in addition to the course fees

The School of Criminology, Criminal Justice, and Emergency Management and the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) at California State University, Long Beach.

Every step in the process for applying to the EMER program is detailed on our How To Apply page.

California State University, Long Beach

1250 Bellflower Blvd

Long Beach, CA 90840

Attn: Dr. Peter Kreysa, FCS-FA8 M/S 0501

Please contact the EMER Graduate Advisor, Dr. Peter Kreysa, at Peter.Kreysa@csulb.edu or (562) 985-8111.