Criminal Justice & Corrections is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #7 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 807 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for criminal justice & corrections students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 109,996 degrees in criminal justice & corrections annually.
Choosing a Great Criminal Justice & Corrections School
Your choice of criminal justice & corrections school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Criminal Justice & Corrections 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 & Corrections Degree Level
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.
You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.
In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you.
When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.
Best Schools for Criminal Justice & Corrections in the United States
Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the criminal justice degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
It's difficult to beat Union Institute & University if you wish to pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the city of Cincinnati, Union is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 4th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were about 159 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Union in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections degree program at Union Institute & University earn $83,481 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
It's hard to beat Santa Rosa Junior College if you want to pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections. SRJC is a large public college located in the medium-sized city of Santa Rosa. A Best Colleges rank of #121 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SRJC is a great college overall.
There were about 504 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at SRJC in the most recent year we have data available. Criminal Justice & Corrections degree recipients from Santa Rosa Junior College receive an earnings boost of around $70,894 over the average income of criminal justice & corrections majors.
It is hard to beat George Mason University if you wish to pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections. GMU is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Fairfax. A Best Colleges rank of #92 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means GMU is a great university overall.
There were about 362 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at GMU in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections major at George Mason University earn $4,184 above the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.
Arizona State University - Tempe is a wonderful option for students interested in a degree in criminal justice & corrections. ASU - Tempe is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Tempe. A Best Colleges rank of #108 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means ASU - Tempe is a great university overall.
There were about 393 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Tempe in the most recent data year. Criminal Justice & Corrections degree recipients from Arizona State University - Tempe earn a boost of approximately $7,881 over the average earnings of criminal justice & corrections majors.
GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington. A Best Colleges rank of #25 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means GWU is a great university overall.
There were approximately 86 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent year we have data available. Criminal Justice & Corrections degree recipients from George Washington University earn a boost of about $10,501 above the typical income of criminal justice & corrections graduates.
Located in the city of New York, John Jay is a public college with a large student population. This college ranks 17th out of 136 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were approximately 1888 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at John Jay in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program state that they receive average early career earnings of $38,586.
Located in the suburb of West Haven, University of New Haven is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 8th out of 18 colleges for overall quality in the state of Connecticut.
There were approximately 473 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at University of New Haven in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections major at University of New Haven make $2,180 more than the typical college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.
Located in the medium-sized city of Tallahassee, Florida State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #117 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Florida State is a great university overall.
There were about 675 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Florida State in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, criminal justice degree recipients usually make about $37,842 at the beginning of their careers.
Northeastern is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Boston. A Best Colleges rank of #33 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Northeastern is a great university overall.
There were about 122 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Northeastern in the most recent year we have data available. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Northeastern University receive $9,404 more than the standard criminal justice graduate.
Located in the rural area of Oroville, Butte College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 63rd out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 179 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Butte College in the most recent year we have data available.
Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #54 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.
There were about 232 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections program at Michigan State University earn $4,280 more than the typical graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
Located in the city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 8th out of 26 colleges for overall quality in the state of Arizona.
There were about 410 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Skysong in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Arizona State University - Skysong make $7,881 more than the typical criminal justice graduate.
UC is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Cincinnati. This university ranks 6th out of 91 colleges for overall quality in the state of Ohio.
There were approximately 388 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UC in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus receive $6,302 more than the average criminal justice grad.
Located in the town of Huntsville, SHSU is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 18th out of 115 colleges for overall quality in the state of Texas.
There were approximately 983 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at SHSU in the most recent data year. After graduation, criminal justice degree recipients generally earn around $39,180 in their early careers.
UOPX - Arizona is a very large private for-profit university located in the city of Phoenix. A Best Colleges rank of #83 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UOPX - Arizona is a great university overall.
There were about 1395 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UOPX - Arizona in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections program at University of Phoenix - Arizona earn $6,570 above the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.
Located in the town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 25 schools for overall quality in the state of West Virginia.
There were approximately 959 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at American Military University in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections major at American Public University System get $19,552 more than the average college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Fort Lauderdale. This university ranks 3rd out of 70 colleges for overall quality in the state of Florida.
There were roughly 163 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program report average early career income of $38,146.
Located in the large suburb of Lowell, UMass Lowell is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 17th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.
There were approximately 391 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UMass Lowell in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the criminal justice & corrections program at University of Massachusetts - Lowell earn $9,564 more than the average graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
Located in the city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 11th out of 52 schools for overall quality in the state of Minnesota.
There were about 99 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Minnesota State Mankato in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Minnesota State University - Mankato earn $8,264 more than the standard criminal justice graduate.
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 #120 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SWC Chula Vista is a great college overall.
There were roughly 199 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at SWC Chula Vista in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, criminal justice degree recipients typically make around $30,983 at the beginning of their careers.
UofSC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Columbia. A Best Colleges rank of #99 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UofSC is a great university overall.
There were roughly 228 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UofSC in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the criminal justice program make around $35,781 in their early career salary.
Located in the fringe town of Orange Beach, Columbia Southern University is a private for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #109 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Columbia Southern University is a great university overall.
There were about 444 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Columbia Southern University in the most recent year we have data available. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Columbia Southern University receive $19,332 more than the typical criminal justice graduate.
Located in the city of Kenosha, Gateway Technical College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 4th out of 46 schools for overall quality in the state of Wisconsin.
There were approximately 193 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Gateway Technical College in the most recent data year. Criminal Justice & Corrections degree recipients from Gateway Technical College receive an earnings boost of around $9,624 over the typical income of criminal justice & corrections graduates.
IU Bloomington is a very large public university located in the small city of Bloomington. A Best Colleges rank of #30 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means IU Bloomington is a great university overall.
There were about 127 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at IU Bloomington in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, criminal justice degree recipients usually earn an average of $35,572 in their early careers.
Located in the city of Indianapolis, Ivy Tech Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 4th out of 41 colleges for overall quality in the state of Indiana.
There were approximately 488 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Ivy Tech Community College in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the criminal justice program earn about $34,292 for their early career.
This list represents the remainder of the schools awarded a Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools badge.
Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 20% of the 807 different United States criminal justice & corrections schools we analyzed.
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools award.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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 the rest 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).
Your choice of criminal justice & corrections school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Criminal Justice & Corrections School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.
