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Program ranking · CIP 43.01 bachelor's · College Scorecard · Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

Best Colleges for Criminal Justice

Using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data retrieved March-July 2026, these colleges rank highest on median earnings for Criminal Justice (CIP 43.01) bachelor's completers. Rankings use earnings only - not prestige, selectivity, or editorial judgment - and require at least 25 completers so tiny suppressed cohorts do not dominate the list.

$106,465
Highest criminal justice earnings
100
Colleges ranked
$59,563
#100 cutoff

The list in one line

Every college on this list reports at least $59,563 median earnings for Criminal Justice bachelor's (CIP 43.01) completers. Calumet College of Saint Joseph leads at $106,465.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

$106,465
#1 - Calumet College of
$59,563
#100 - the cutoff to make this list
25+
completers required per school
937
US schools offering this CIP

Earnings are field-of-study medians for federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled; see methodology for horizon and lag details.

Top 15 criminal justice programs by median completer earnings

Criminal Justice bachelor's (CIP 43.01) · higher is higher early-career pay

median earnings

What this shows Criminal justice earnings spread with local labor markets and whether graduates enter law enforcement, corrections, or graduate study - debt still matters on public-sector pay scales.

Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard Field of Study As of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

The full top 100

# School Name StateMedian EarningsMedian DebtCompleters
1 Calumet College of Saint Joseph IN $106,465 $19,500 41
2 National University CA $81,299 $25,000 115
3 George Washington University DC $80,070 $19,500 86
4 Quinnipiac University CT $79,098 $27,000 32
5 Northeastern University MA $77,477 $20,889 62
6 Anna Maria College MA $76,013 $25,500 37
7 Excelsior University NY $75,828 $14,583 55
8 Nichols College MA $75,321 $27,000 32
9 Concordia University-Saint Paul MN $73,060 $23,112 33
10 Marymount University VA $73,058 $25,000 28
11 Siena Heights University MI $72,791 $19,286 62
12 Roger Williams University RI $70,747 $26,000 88
13 Columbia Southern University AL $70,354 $20,209 245
14 Franklin Pierce University NH $70,125 $27,000 26
15 Norwich University VT $70,075 $26,000 112
16 Utica University NY $69,898 $24,345 53
17 University of Maryland Global Campus MD $69,848 $20,406 353
18 Merrimack College MA $69,615 $27,000 66
19 American Public University System WV $69,546 $20,888 632
20 George Mason University VA $69,511 $17,750 329
21 Lynn University FL $68,824 $17,250 36
22 Utah Valley University UT $68,296 $19,586 76
23 Monmouth University NJ $67,842 $27,000 33
24 Salve Regina University RI $67,622 $27,000 52
25 Minot State University ND $67,554 $15,753 34
26 Westfield State University MA $67,363 $21,500 151
27 Bowie State University MD $67,303 $21,500 75
28 American University DC $66,970 $23,250 86
29 Sonoma State University CA $66,892 $20,000 69
30 Saint Cloud State University MN $66,850 $18,250 51
31 Western Connecticut State University CT $66,510 $24,000 92
32 University of Massachusetts-Lowell MA $66,258 $21,502 207
33 Tiffin University OH $66,059 $27,000 36
34 Marist University NY $65,881 $25,954 63
35 High Point University NC $65,607 - 45
36 California Baptist University CA $65,603 $26,000 64
37 Worcester State University MA $65,588 $21,050 97
38 Citadel Military College of South Carolina SC $65,574 $24,189 56
39 California State University-East Bay CA $64,835 $15,000 238
40 Minnesota State University-Mankato MN $64,585 $21,500 98
41 Metropolitan State University MN $64,481 $16,146 87
42 Curry College MA $64,406 $25,000 71
43 Bridgewater State University MA $64,178 $24,135 164
44 DeSales University PA $64,020 $27,000 41
45 St. John's University-New York NY $63,978 $25,552 178
46 San Francisco State University CA $63,764 $14,992 266
47 Pace University NY $63,514 $24,098 62
48 University of Scranton PA $63,483 $27,000 36
49 University of Washington-Tacoma Campus WA $63,311 $11,628 101
50 Western Illinois University IL $63,125 $24,859 199
51 Roosevelt University IL $63,081 $22,437 37
52 Benedictine University IL $63,033 $25,000 29
53 University of Baltimore MD $63,032 $17,250 39
54 Bethel University TN $62,967 $28,908 103
55 University of Sioux Falls SD $62,792 $23,250 36
56 Michigan State University MI $62,715 $25,000 202
57 Lewis University IL $62,640 $17,526 113
58 California State University-Sacramento CA $62,583 $13,138 568
59 Illinois State University IL $62,506 $19,000 146
60 Fitchburg State University MA $62,396 $23,685 75
61 University of Indianapolis IN $62,307 $26,254 35
62 University of Massachusetts-Boston MA $62,222 $24,271 145
63 Winona State University MN $62,220 $23,225 35
64 Weber State University UT $62,191 $18,071 115
65 Wingate University NC $62,075 $27,000 25
66 Rutgers University-New Brunswick NJ $61,817 $19,750 194
67 Rutgers University-Newark NJ $61,817 $19,750 175
68 Rutgers University-Camden NJ $61,817 $19,750 67
69 University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus OK $61,731 $24,403 46
70 Liberty University VA $61,715 $25,000 604
71 The College of New Jersey NJ $61,605 $19,500 59
72 Stevenson University MD $61,348 $26,425 42
73 Thomas University GA $61,295 $39,800 35
74 University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus CO $61,192 $16,035 88
75 Iowa State University IA $61,166 $19,500 132
76 Saint Louis University MO $61,099 $26,500 26
77 Colorado State University Global CO $61,075 $25,136 77
78 Southern New Hampshire University NH $61,027 $22,000 779
79 Aurora University IL $60,808 $19,597 83
80 Central Washington University WA $60,761 $19,500 128
81 University of New Haven CT $60,656 $27,000 237
82 Carthage College WI $60,633 $27,000 32
83 University of Dayton OH $60,583 $26,000 39
84 Western New England University MA $60,486 $26,000 42
85 Rasmussen University-Florida FL $60,483 $29,236 37
86 St. Joseph's University-New York NY $60,471 $18,750 47
87 Saint Leo University FL $60,389 $25,620 240
88 Faulkner University AL $60,384 $22,100 83
89 Western Oregon University OR $60,363 $21,500 88
90 Ferris State University MI $60,325 $18,750 249
91 York College of Pennsylvania PA $60,275 $26,000 46
92 The University of Arizona Global Campus AZ $60,144 $31,380 468
93 Oakland University MI $60,027 $23,625 77
94 Southern Utah University UT $60,008 $16,701 51
95 New England College NH $59,998 $27,000 39
96 Arizona State University Campus Immersion AZ $59,973 $20,151 349
97 Arizona State University Digital Immersion AZ $59,973 $20,151 258
98 Plymouth State University NH $59,937 $27,000 70
99 Salem State University MA $59,774 $21,750 81
100 State University of New York at Oswego NY $59,563 $22,036 100

About This Ranking

Schools are ranked by College Scorecard field-of-study median earnings for Criminal Justice (CIP 43.01) bachelor's completers. Only operating schools with at least 25 completers and a published median are included. Ties break toward larger completer cohorts. For the full program profile - including every reporting school and national distribution - see Criminal Justice (bachelor's). Methodology lives on our methodology page.

Caveats and limitations

"Best" here means highest reported median earnings for the stated CIP scope - not teaching quality, licensure pass rates, clinical placement strength, or fit for any one student. This list covers Criminal Justice and Corrections (CIP 43.01) bachelor's programs - criminology (CIP 45.04) and homeland-security majors have their own pages when demand warrants.

Figures cover federally aided completers only, use Treasury-linked earnings, and describe a lagged cohort. Regional pay scales and graduate-school paths both move the median without proving a causal school effect.

This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute academic or career advice. Earnings do not predict any individual graduate's outcome.

Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Rankings are computed directly from College Scorecard field-of-study data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals.