2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 Master’s in California” ranking - to help you make that decision.

Criminology is the 79th most popular major in the country with 10,182 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across California, there were 1,416 criminology graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 71 criminology graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,281 and $50,119 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California” ranking looked at 4 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in criminology. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great criminology programs and cost less that 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.

More Ways to Rank Criminology Schools

The criminology school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California”.

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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for california master’s degree criminology students.

Top 4 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Criminology in California

#1

University of California - Irvine

Irvine, California

#1 in overall quality

$28,456 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Irvine landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school handed out 32 degrees to qualified masters’s criminology students in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine also made our “Best Criminology Master’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #1. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Irvine are $28,456.

Read more about Criminology at UC Irvine

#2

California State University - Fresno

Fresno, California

#3 in overall quality

$17,581 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fresno. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California list. California State University - Fresno is a public institution located in Fresno, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 11 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Fresno State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Criminology Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at California State University - Fresno are $17,581, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full California State University - Fresno Criminology Report

#3

San Diego State University

San Diego, California

#2 in overall quality

$18,658 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend San Diego State University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California. San Diego, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s criminology degrees to 13 students in 2019-2020.

SDSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Criminology Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at SDSU are $18,658, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Criminology at SDSU

#4

San Jose State University

San Jose, California

#4 in overall quality

$18,790 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools for a Master’s in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Jose State University landed the #4 spot on the list. San Jose State is a large school located in San Jose, California that handed out 10 masters’s criminology degrees in 2019-2020.

San Jose State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Criminology Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at San Jose State are $18,790, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Criminology at San Jose State University

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Criminology in the Far Western US Region
• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Criminology

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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