UNITY -- Unity College's conservation law program was already one of the few, and most respected, of its kind in the nation, but a recently announced partnership with Husson College promises to make Unity graduates among the most highly sought-after minds in law enforcement.

The new partnership allows Unity College students to earn their four-year undergraduate degree while preparing for a nearly seamless transition into Bangor-based Husson's Criminal Justice Administration master's program.

"What we're hearing from professionals in the field is that they'll be on the fast track to upper management," said Alisha Gray, strategic projects coordinator for Unity College. "It's pretty rare for folks in the law enforcement field to have master degrees. Those that have them have an upper hand."

The program is nearly identical to the partnership with Husson announced last spring. That program allows Unity students to earn a Master of Science in Business with a year at Husson following their graduation from Unity.

When Marie Hanson, Husson's director of legal studies, heard of the agreement, she saw a similar opportunity within the school's law programs, Gray said.

"It came together quickly," she said. "We followed the exact template of the previous agreement."

While the agreement enhances Unity's offerings, Husson will reap the benefit of a steady stream of incoming students to help put its fledgling master's program, which Husson launched last year, on the map.

"They become Husson students," said Julie Green, director of public affairs for Husson, of her school's benefit from the deal. "These types of agreements are just more ways we can get more people educated."

Unity's conservation law students must apply for the master's program by the spring of their junior year. As seniors, the students must take Conservation Law Enforcement Supervision and Management in the fall semester followed by Conservation Law Enforcement Capstone, which puts the students knowledge and skills to practical use, during the spring semester.

Both courses were already a staple in Unity's conservation law programs. Students in line to enter Husson's master's program, however, will have to complete a graduate level capstone project, Gray said.

The results from the capstone project will be submitted to Husson with the final transcript. The capstone allows students to skip their Graduate Record Examinations, or GRE, which are similar to the Scholastic Aptitude Test, or SAT, high school students take before entering college.

Students will take two classes the summer following graduation from Unity and then four courses each semester of the school year at Husson. "They literally can begin directly upon graduation from Unity," Gray said. "They're still in the mode."

Graduates of Unity's four-year conservation law program enter the workforce with a degree in environmental science and law enforcement. "They are essentially scientists with a criminal justice degree," said Pat Stevens, curriculum coordinator for the conservation law program.

That alone makes Unity graduates uniquely qualified to fill myriad positions at both the state and federal levels. With a master's degree, Unity graduates will be among the top candidates in the most competitive fields, Stevens predicted

"The demands of enforcement today are a lot more complex and require a lot more study by individuals that are seeking to go up in the institutions," Stevens said. "We've had young people here get some really fantastic jobs. With this, they're really going to be something to behold."

Unity College students have a reputation for maturity and tend to know exactly what they want to do after graduation, Husson's Green said. That reputation dovetails perfectly with Husson students.

"Many students come to Husson with a clear vision of their future," she said. "We admire that about Unity and I think they admire that about us."