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2024 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

18 Colleges in Illinois
1,658 Bachelor's Degrees
$35,382 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #7 in popularity, criminal justice & corrections is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 18 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,658 bachelor's degrees in criminal justice & corrections during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Criminal Justice & Corrections School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois The criminal justice bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we consider a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their bachelor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your bachelor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for criminal justice & corrections students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools

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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Criminal Justice & Corrections in Illinois

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in criminal justice & corrections.

10 Top Illinois Schools for a Bachelor's in Criminal Justice

1
192 Annual Graduates
$34,572 Median Starting Salary
$15,875 Median Student Debt

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in criminal justice & corrections needs to check out University of Illinois at Chicago. Located in the large city of Chicago, UIC is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the criminal justice program make around $34,572 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from University of Illinois at Chicago

2
258 Annual Graduates
$38,130 Median Starting Salary
$26,000 Median Student Debt

Western Illinois University is a wonderful choice for students interested in a bachelor's degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public university with a medium-sized student population.

Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their bachelor's degree from Western Illinois University make $2,748 more than the standard criminal justice graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Western Illinois University

3
145 Annual Graduates
$36,805 Median Starting Salary
$22,531 Median Student Debt

Illinois State University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in criminal justice & corrections. Illinois State is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Normal.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the criminal justice program report average early career income of $36,805.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Illinois State University

4
87 Annual Graduates
$36,200 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

Any student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in criminal justice & corrections needs to check out Loyola University Chicago. Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the criminal justice program state that they receive average early career wages of $36,200.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Loyola University Chicago

5
Lewis crest
Lewis University
Romeoville, IL
97 Annual Graduates
$33,463 Median Starting Salary
$20,000 Median Student Debt

Lewis is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Romeoville.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the criminal justice program earn about $33,463 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Lewis University

6
Aurora crest
Aurora University
Aurora, IL
66 Annual Graduates
$33,959 Median Starting Salary
$23,635 Median Student Debt

Aurora is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Aurora.

Soon after graduation, criminal justice bachelor's recipients generally earn about $33,959 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Aurora University

7
92 Annual Graduates
$33,961 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

SIUE is a large public university located in the suburb of Edwardsville.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the criminal justice program make about $33,961 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

8
33 Annual Graduates
$41,792 Median Starting Salary
$25,979 Median Student Debt

Benedictine U is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Lisle.

Bachelor's recipients from the criminal justice & corrections degree program at Benedictine University make $6,410 above the average graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Benedictine University

9
Elmhurst crest
Elmhurst University
Elmhurst, IL
31 Annual Graduates
$32,970 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the suburb of Elmhurst, Elmhurst is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the criminal justice program report average early career wages of $32,970.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Elmhurst University

10
24 Annual Graduates
$37,505 Median Starting Salary
$24,625 Median Student Debt

Roosevelt is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.

Criminal Justice & Corrections bachelor's degree recipients from Roosevelt University get an earnings boost of approximately $2,123 over the average income of criminal justice & corrections majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in criminal justice & corrections from Roosevelt University

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 1,345
Ohio 252 1,426
Indiana 235 1,444
Wisconsin 213 502

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One of 4 majors within the Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting area of study, Criminal Justice & Corrections has other similar majors worth exploring.

Criminal Justice Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice Studies 1,000
Criminal Justice 374
Criminal Justice and Corrections, General 262
Criminal Justice & Police Science 19
Securities Services Administration/Management 3

Related Major Annual Graduates
Homeland Security 73
Fire Protection 62
Security Science and Technology 42
Other Homeland Security 7

Notes and References

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