2027 Best Criminal Justice Schools in Minnesota
Criminal Justice is a field worth a close look when choosing where to study. While the number of schools offering the program varies, there are still top-quality ones to be found.
To produce this 2027 ranking, College Factual evaluated 3 schools to find the best for criminal justice students.
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Best Schools for Criminal Justice in Minnesota
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest overall criminal justice education in Minnesota.
Top Schools in Criminal Justice
Leading the list is Concordia University Saint Paul, our #1 school for criminal justice. Set in the city of Saint Paul, Concordia University Saint Paul is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit institution. About 45% of students finish within six years. About 12 criminal justice degrees were awarded at Concordia University Saint Paul in the most recent year. Students who receive their criminal justice degree from Concordia University Saint Paul earn around $65,867 in the first couple years of their career. Concordia University Saint Paul graduates carry a median of $28,076 in student loans.
See the full criminal justice program report for Concordia University Saint Paul
Students looking for a strong criminal justice program will find one at Southwest Minnesota State University, which ranked #2. Set in the town of Marshall, Southwest Minnesota State University is a large public institution. Southwest Minnesota State University graduates 44% of students within six years. There were roughly 15 criminal justice students who graduated with this degree at Southwest Minnesota State University in the most recent data year. Criminal Justice graduates of Southwest Minnesota State University earn a median of $47,898 early in their careers. Typical student debt for the program is $27,000.
More information about a degree in criminal justice from Southwest Minnesota State University
Students looking for a strong criminal justice program will find one at Walden University, which ranked #3. Walden University is a very large private for-profit school located in the city of Minneapolis. Walden University awarded about 237 criminal justice degrees in the most recent data year. Graduates of the criminal justice program make about $60,276 in their early career. Walden University graduates carry a median of $48,133 in student loans.
Read more about the criminal justice program at Walden University
More Criminal Justice Rankings
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2027 edition. Schools are scored on a blend of student outcomes (graduation rate, post-graduation earnings), affordability, and program focus, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Top Ranked · 3 schools evaluated.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.