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.

Compiled by PlainCollege , College outcomes data analysis

$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.

Calumet College of Saint…

$106,465
National University

$81,299
George Washington Univer…

$80,070
Quinnipiac University

$79,098
Northeastern University

$77,477
Anna Maria College

$76,013
Excelsior University

$75,828
Nichols College

$75,321
Concordia University-Sai…

$73,060
Marymount University

$73,058
Siena Heights University

$72,791
Roger Williams University

$70,747
Columbia Southern Univer…

$70,354
Franklin Pierce University

$70,125
Norwich University

$70,075

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.

The full top 100

#	School Name	State	Median Earnings	Median Debt	Completers
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.