2024 Best Criminal Justice Schools in California
28
Colleges in California
8,527
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Criminal Justice is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #27 most popular major in the country. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.
For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 28 schools in California to determine which ones were the best for criminal justice students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 8,527 degrees in criminal justice to qualified students.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings
Choosing a Great Criminal Justice School
Your choice of criminal justice school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Criminal Justice School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.
You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.
Pick Your Criminal Justice Degree Level
When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Criminal Justice Schools in California list to help you make the college decision.
More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.
To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you.
Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Read more about College Factual's methodology.
Best Schools for Criminal Justice in California
If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the criminal justice degrees they offer, see the list below.
10 Top California Schools in Criminal Justice
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type
16th
Most Popular In CA
131
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Every student who is interested in criminal justice needs to check out University of San Diego. USD is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of San Diego. A Best Colleges rank of #187 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means USD is a great university overall.
There were roughly 131 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at USD in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from University of San Diego
Bachelor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
6th
Most Popular In CA
159
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
The University of Arizona Global Campus is a good choice for students interested in a degree in criminal justice. UAGC is a fairly large private for-profit university located in the city of San Diego. A Best Colleges rank of #305 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UAGC is a great university overall.
There were approximately 159 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at UAGC in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from The University of Arizona Global Campus
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
27th
Most Popular In CA
159
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Every student who is interested in criminal justice needs to look into Golden West College. Located in the large suburb of Huntington Beach, Golden West College is a public college with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #189 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Golden West College is a great college overall.
There were roughly 159 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at Golden West College in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Golden West College
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
43rd
Most Popular In CA
73
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Santa Rosa Junior College is a wonderful option for students interested in a degree in criminal justice. SRJC is a fairly large public college located in the midsize city of Santa Rosa. A Best Colleges rank of #364 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means SRJC is a great college overall.
There were about 73 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at SRJC in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Santa Rosa Junior College
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type
7th
Most Popular In CA
156
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Located in the city of San Diego, National University is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #196 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means National University is a great university overall.
There were about 156 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at National University in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from National University
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
54th
Most Popular In CA
82
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Located in the suburb of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population. This college ranks 111th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 82 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at Moreno Valley College in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Moreno Valley College
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
4th
Most Popular In CA
184
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Located in the large city of Chula Vista, SWC Chula Vista is a public college with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #295 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means SWC Chula Vista is a great college overall.
There were roughly 184 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at SWC Chula Vista in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Southwestern College
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
1st
Most Popular In CA
489
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Located in the suburb of Monterey Park, East Los Angeles College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 137th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 489 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at East Los Angeles College in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from East Los Angeles College
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
70th
Most Popular In CA
62
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Napa Valley College is a small public college located in the city of Napa. This college ranks 130th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 62 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at Napa Valley College in the most recent year we have data available.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Napa Valley College
Associate Degree
Highest Degree Type
38th
Most Popular In CA
80
Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
Located in the city of Santa Ana, SAC is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 109th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 80 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at SAC in the most recent data year.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Santa Ana College
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