by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 32,891 people earned their degree in criminal justice, making the major the 27th most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools” ranking looked at 338 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in criminal justice. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent criminal justice programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the criminal justice program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for criminal justice students.
Out of the 338 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Phoenix - Arizona landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Tempe, Arizona, and it awarded 976 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
UOPX - Arizona also took the #1 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UOPX - Arizona is $13,038 for criminal justice students.
Out of the 338 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools that were part of this year’s ranking, Hillsborough Community College landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Tampa, Florida, this fairly large public school awarded 123 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice students in 2020-2021.
HCC also took the #17 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking. It costs about $2,949 for criminal justice students per year to attend Hillsborough Community College.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Purdue University Global. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools. Purdue University Global is a large public school situated in Indianapolis, Indiana. It awarded 73 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Purdue University Global also did well on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list.
Read full report on Criminal Justice at Purdue University Global
Out of the 338 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools that were part of this year’s ranking, Macomb Community College landed the #5 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Warren, Michigan, and it awarded 33 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, Macomb Community College is in the top on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for Macomb Community College is $9,982 for Criminal Justice students.
Read full report on Criminal Justice at Macomb Community College
University of the Cumberlands did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #6. Cumberlands is located in Williamsburg, Kentucky and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 51 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Cumberlands also did well on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for University of the Cumberlands is $13,476 for Criminal Justice students.
Arizona State University - Skysong did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #7. Arizona State University - Skysong is located in Scottsdale, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 433 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our criminal justice students list, ASU - Skysong has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Arizona State University - Skysong Criminal Justice Report
Northern Virginia Community College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking. This large school is located in Annandale, Virginia, and it awarded 50 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
Northern Virginia Community College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #21 on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Northern Virginia Community College is $9,452 for criminal justice students.
Read more about Criminal Justice at Northern Virginia Community College
With a ranking of #9, Valencia College did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Valencia College is a large school located in Orlando, Florida that handed out 172 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, Valencia College is in the top on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for Valencia College is $5,354 for criminal justice students.
Walden University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #10. This large school is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and it awarded 258 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Walden University, the school also landed the #25 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
South Plains College landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking. South Plains College is a medium-sized school located in Levelland, Texas that handed out 49 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
The estimated yearly cost for South Plains College is $6,358 for Criminal Justice students.
Read full report on Criminal Justice at South Plains College
Park University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #12. Park University is located in Parkville, Missouri and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 179 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
Park University excels when it comes to criminal justice quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It costs about $14,619 for Criminal Justice students per year to attend Park University.
Amarillo College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Amarillo College is a public institution located in Amarillo, Texas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 55 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
It costs about $6,098 for criminal justice students per year to attend Amarillo College.
Wilmington University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Located in New Castle, Delaware, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 132 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Wilmington University is also in the top of our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Wilmington University is $15,186 for Criminal Justice students.
Read full report on Criminal Justice at Wilmington University
Delaware Technical Community College - Terry ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Delaware Technical Community College - Terry is located in Dover, Delaware and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 11 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Delaware Tech also did well on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $8,479 for Criminal Justice students per year to attend Delaware Tech.
Full Delaware Technical Community College - Terry Criminal Justice Report
With a ranking of #16, Golden West College did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. This fairly large school is located in Huntington Beach, California, and it awarded 159 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
Golden West College also took the #6 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” ranking. It costs about $4,024 for Criminal Justice students per year to attend Golden West College.
Colorado State University - Global Campus came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking. Greenwood Village, Colorado is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminal justice degrees to 119 students in 2020-2021.
Colorado State University - Global Campus excels when it comes to criminal justice quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Colorado State University - Global Campus is $14,954 for Criminal Justice students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice at Colorado State University - Global Campus
With a ranking of #18, Southwestern Illinois College did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Located in Belleville, Illinois, this medium-sized public school handed out 43 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice students in 2020-2021.
It costs about $6,995 for criminal justice students per year to attend SWIC.
Western Illinois University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #19. Western Illinois University is a medium-sized public school situated in Macomb, Illinois. It awarded 305 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
WIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #23 on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend WIU is $15,305 for Criminal Justice students.
Erie Community College landed the #20 spot on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking. Erie Community College is located in Buffalo, New York and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 73 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Erie Community College also did well on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Erie Community College is $4,575 for criminal justice students.
Indian River State College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #21. Indian River State College is located in Fort Pierce, Florida and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 44 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
Indian River State College also claimed a top spot on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top [COLLEGE_QUALITY_PECTENTILE_ALL_LEVES]% of all schools in this category. It costs about $3,786 for criminal justice students per year to attend Indian River State College.
Read more about Criminal Justice at Indian River State College
With a ranking of #22, Ferris State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. This fairly large school is located in Big Rapids, Michigan, and it awarded 66 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Ferris also did well on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Ferris is $12,213 for Criminal Justice students.
Raritan Valley Community College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools ranking, coming in at #23. RVCC is a medium-sized school located in Branchburg, New Jersey that handed out 69 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
The estimated yearly cost for Raritan Valley Community College is $6,127 for criminal justice students.
With a ranking of #24, Seminole State College of Florida did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Seminole State is a fairly large public school situated in Sanford, Florida. It awarded 61 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
The estimated yearly cost for Seminole State College of Florida is $8,427 for Criminal Justice students.
Full Seminole State College of Florida Criminal Justice Report
Bellevue University ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Schools list. Bellevue University is located in Bellevue, Nebraska and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 16 ’s criminal justice degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on this list, Bellevue University is in the top on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Bellevue University is $17,288 for Criminal Justice students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
While not in the ’top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | Anderson University South Carolina | Anderson, SC |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
