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2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k

9 Ranked Colleges
1,459 Degrees Awarded
$16,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2020-2021, 11,039 people earned their degree in criminology, making the major the 80th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, criminology graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $33,568 and had an average of $24,453 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 1,459 criminology graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,821 and $20,932 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 9 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in criminology. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality criminology programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the criminology program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. 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 in California For Those Making $30-$48k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 9 Best Value Colleges for Criminology (Income $30-$48k) in California

1

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Fresno. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Fresno, California, this large public school awarded 404 diplomas to qualified ’s criminology students in 2020-2021.

Fresno State also took the #2 spot in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Fresno is $4,655 for california criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, 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 undergraduate students.

Read full report on Criminology at California State University - Fresno

2

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Irvine landed the #2 spot on the list. UC Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 498 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UC Irvine not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for UC Irvine is $8,449 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%.

Full UC Irvine Criminology Report

3

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - San Marcos landed the #3 spot on the list. California State University - San Marcos is a fairly large school located in San Marcos, California that handed out 266 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.

CSUSM not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. It costs about $10,348 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend CSUSM.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Criminology at California State University - San Marcos

4

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State Polytechnic University - Pomona. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. This large school is located in Pomona, California, and it awarded 48 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.

Cal Poly Pomona not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly Pomona is $12,992 for california criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Criminology at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

5
San Jose State crest
San Jose State University
San Jose, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Jose State University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in San Jose, California, this large public school handed out 12 degrees to qualified ’s criminology students in 2020-2021.

San Jose State also made our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list, coming in at #4. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $13,378 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Criminology at San Jose State University

6
Humboldt State University crest
Humboldt State University
Arcata, California

With a ranking of #6, Humboldt State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Humboldt State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Arcata, California. It awarded 49 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.

Humboldt State University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend Humboldt State University is $12,298 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Criminology at Humboldt State University

7
ULV crest
University of La Verne
La Verne, California

University of La Verne landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. ULV is a private not-for-profit institution located in La Verne, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 57 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

ULV also made our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend University of La Verne is $29,675 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Criminology at ULV

8
Azusa Pacific crest
Azusa Pacific University
Azusa, California

With a ranking of #8, Azusa Pacific University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Azusa Pacific is a medium-sized school located in Azusa, California that handed out 21 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our california criminology students whose families make $30-$48k list, Azusa Pacific has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Azusa Pacific University is $27,031 for California Criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Azusa Pacific University Criminology Report

9
MSMU crest
Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, California

Mount Saint Mary’s University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 21 degrees to qualified ’s criminology students in 2020-2021.

MSMU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend MSMU is $28,838 for california criminology students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Criminology at Mount Saint Mary’s University

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

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