2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Criminology
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2019-2020, 10,182 people earned their degree in criminology, making the major the 79th most popular in the United States.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 8,860 criminology graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s” ranking, we looked at 143 colleges that offer a degree in criminology. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality criminology programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the criminology program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Criminology
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - River Falls. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s. University of Wisconsin - River Falls is a medium-sized school located in River Falls, Wisconsin that handed out 24 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend UW - River Falls is $13,748 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Stout. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. University of Wisconsin - Stout is a public institution located in Menomonie, Wisconsin. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 20 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW - Stout, the school also landed the #21 spot in our “Best Criminology Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UW - Stout is $15,839 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
The low student loan default rate of 3.8% 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%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Minnesota - Duluth. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. UMN Duluth is a public institution located in Duluth, Minnesota. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 62 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
UMN Duluth not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #15 on our “Best Criminology Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for UMN Duluth is $17,067 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - Whitewater. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s. University of Wisconsin - Whitewater is a fairly large school located in Whitewater, Wisconsin that handed out 66 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $15,249 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend UW - Whitewater.
Read more about Criminology at University of Wisconsin - Whitewater
Out of the 143 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas of the Permian Basin landed the #5 spot on the list. UT Permian Basin is a medium-sized school located in Odessa, Texas that handed out 32 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend UT Permian Basin is $10,092 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania is a medium-sized public school situated in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. It awarded 61 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania is $19,926 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
Read more about Criminology at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
With a ranking of #7, University of South Florida - Main Campus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. This large school is located in Tampa, Florida, and it awarded 425 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $8,355 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students per year to attend USF Tampa.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminology at University of South Florida - Main Campus
University of Northern Iowa ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. University of Northern Iowa is located in Cedar Falls, Iowa and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 50 bachelors’s criminology degrees to qualified students.
UNI not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Criminology Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Northern Iowa is $15,620 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #9. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 75 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale is $16,945 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Criminology Report
With a ranking of #10, Missouri State University - Springfield did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. Missouri State is located in Springfield, Missouri and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 108 bachelors’s criminology degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $16,725 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students per year to attend Missouri State.
Full Missouri State University - Springfield Criminology Report
With a ranking of #11, SUNY Cortland did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. SUNY Cortland is a public institution located in Cortland, New York. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 59 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
SUNY Cortland excels when it comes to criminology quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our “Best Criminology Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for SUNY Cortland is $18,705 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
The low student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
California State University - Fresno did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #12. Fresno State is a large public school situated in Fresno, California. It awarded 430 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Fresno is $5,464 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
With a ranking of #13, Northern Arizona University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. Northern Arizona University is a large school located in Flagstaff, Arizona that handed out 270 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $12,915 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students per year to attend NAU.
With a ranking of #14, Georgia Southern University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. Located in Statesboro, Georgia, this large public school awarded 106 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s criminology students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $15,536 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend GaSou.
SUNY Old Westbury did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #15. Located in Old Westbury, New York, this medium-sized public school handed out 70 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s criminology students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for SUNY Old Westbury is $10,557 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
University of West Georgia came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. University of West Georgia is a public institution located in Carrollton, Georgia. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 142 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $16,124 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students per year to attend University of West Georgia.
Northwest Missouri State University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. Northwest Missouri State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Maryville, Missouri. It awarded 18 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Northwest Missouri State University is $12,354 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
Read more about Criminology at Northwest Missouri State University
Framingham State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #18. Framingham State is located in Framingham, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 56 bachelors’s criminology degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $20,001 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend Framingham State University.
Eastern Michigan University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #19. Eastern Michigan is a public institution located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 111 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Eastern Michigan is $15,924 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
Colorado State University - Pueblo landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. Colorado State University - Pueblo is a medium-sized public school situated in Pueblo, Colorado. It awarded 18 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Colorado State University - Pueblo is $14,653 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
Read full report on Criminology at Colorado State University - Pueblo
University of Central Arkansas ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. University of Central Arkansas is a fairly large public school situated in Conway, Arkansas. It awarded 35 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $15,376 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend UCA.
California State University - San Marcos landed the #22 spot on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. Located in San Marcos, California, this fairly large public school awarded 278 degrees to qualified bachelors’s criminology students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend CSUSM is $13,399 for Bachelor’s Degree Criminology students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - San Marcos Criminology Report
Stockton University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Galloway, New Jersey, and it awarded 157 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $19,678 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend Stockton University.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Maryville University of Saint Louis landed the #24 spot on the 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s ranking. Maryville U is located in Saint Louis, Missouri and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 12 bachelors’s criminology degrees to qualified students.
Maryville U also made our “Best Criminology Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #8. It costs about $29,064 for bachelor’s degree criminology students per year to attend Maryville University of Saint Louis.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus ranked #25 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools for a Bachelor’s list. Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus is a fairly large school located in Indiana, Pennsylvania that handed out 148 bachelors’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend IUP is $22,448 for bachelor’s degree criminology students.
Read full report on Criminology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus
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Notes and References
References
- 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
Footnotes
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
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