2024 Best Value Criminology Schools in California
10
Ranked Colleges
1,459
Degrees Awarded
$18,100
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Criminology Schools in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.
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.
For this year’s “Best Value Criminology Schools in California” ranking, we looked at 10 colleges that offer a degree in criminology. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great criminology programs and cost less that 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.
One Size Does Not Fit All
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Criminology Schools in California” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Criminology Schools in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california criminology students.
Top 10 Best Value Colleges for Criminology in California
Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the #1 spot on the list. Fresno, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminology degrees to 404 students in 2020-2021.
Fresno State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Fresno is $6,230 for california criminology students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% 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%.
Read full report on Criminology at Fresno State
Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Irvine landed the #2 spot on the list. Irvine, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminology degrees to 498 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california criminology students list, UC Irvine has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $12,209 for california criminology students.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Criminology at UC Irvine
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - San Marcos. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Criminology Schools in California. CSUSM is a fairly large public school situated in San Marcos, California. It awarded 266 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.
CSUSM also made our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - San Marcos is $13,218 for california criminology students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminology at CSUSM
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Humboldt State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Criminology Schools in California. 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 also took the #5 spot in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Humboldt State University is $14,956 for California Criminology students.
Read full report on Criminology at Humboldt State University
Out of the 10 schools in the Best Value Criminology Schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #5 spot on the list. Cal Poly Pomona is a large public school situated in Pomona, California. It awarded 48 ’s criminology degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cal Poly Pomona, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is $14,304 for California Criminology students.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State Polytechnic University - Pomona Criminology Report
San Jose State University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Criminology Schools in California list. San Jose State University is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
San Jose State also took the #6 spot in our “Best Criminology Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend San Jose State University is $16,542 for California Criminology students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% 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 San Jose State University Criminology Report
San Diego State University landed the #7 spot on the 2024 Best Value Criminology Schools in California ranking. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school awarded 7 diplomas to qualified ’s criminology students in 2020-2021.
SDSU also made our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend SDSU is $13,845 for california criminology students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminology at San Diego State University
Azusa Pacific University did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Criminology Schools in California ranking, coming in at #8. Located in Azusa, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 21 diplomas to qualified ’s criminology students in 2020-2021.
Azusa Pacific not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. It costs about $30,744 for california criminology students per year to attend Azusa Pacific.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%.
Read full report on Criminology at Azusa Pacific
With a ranking of #9, Mount Saint Mary’s University did quite well on the 2024 Best Value Criminology Schools in California list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s criminology degrees to 21 students in 2020-2021.
MSMU also made our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. The yearly cost to attend MSMU is $30,938 for California Criminology students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminology at MSMU
University of La Verne did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Criminology Schools in California ranking, coming in at #10. La Verne, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s criminology degrees to 57 students in 2020-2021.
ULV did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Criminology Schools in California” list. It costs about $28,260 for california criminology students per year to attend ULV.
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 full report on Criminology at ULV
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