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Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California

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2023 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California

66 Colleges
$32,381 Avg Salary
$19,225 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections School for You

Criminal Justice & Corrections is one of the most popular subjects to study in California. With 13,151 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 8th out of all the majors we track in the state.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California ranking. This report analyzed 66 schools in California to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California

Check out the criminal justice programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools

#1

University of San Diego

San Diego, CA

Our analysis found University of San Diego to be the best school for criminal justice and corrections students who want to pursue a degree in California. USD is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Diego.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of San Diego

#3

Moreno Valley College

Moreno Valley, CA

Out of the 66 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Moreno Valley College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

While working on their degree, criminal justice majors at Moreno Valley College accumulate an average of around $19,500 in student debt.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Moreno Valley College

#4

National University

La Jolla, CA

The excellent programs at National University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in California. Located in the large city of La Jolla, National University is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Criminal Justice majors at National University take out an average of $27,265 in student loans while working on their egree.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Napa Valley College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California list. Napa Valley College is a small public school located in the small city of Napa.

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#6

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, CA

Santa Rosa Junior College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for criminal justice and corrections students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Santa Rosa, SRJC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, criminal justice graduates from SRJC carry an average student debtload of $13,875.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Santa Rosa Junior College

#7

Golden West College

Huntington Beach, CA

With a ranking of #7, Golden West College did quite well on this year’s best schools for criminal justice and corrections students. Golden West College is a large public school located in the suburb of Huntington Beach.

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California State University - East Bay landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best criminal justice and corrections programs. Located in the large suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public college with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, criminal justice majors at Cal State East Bay accumulate an average of around $15,500 in student debt.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at California State University - East Bay

University of Phoenix - California came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California ranking. UOPX - California is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Costa Mesa.

On average, criminal justice graduates from UOPX - California take out $46,951 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $170.

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#10

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA

San Diego State University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a very large student population.

On average, criminal justice graduates from SDSU take out $13,000 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $271.

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Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in California award.

Rank College Location
11 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
12 Santa Ana College Santa Ana, CA
13 California State University - Chico Chico, CA

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 553
Oregon 477
Nevada 684
Hawaii 173
Alaska 73

Criminal Justice & Corrections is one of 4 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fire Protection 13,766
Homeland Security 7,140
Security Science and Technology 6,888
Other Homeland Security 1,695

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 the rest 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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