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Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

33 Colleges
$3,259 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$31,065 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 33 schools in California to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for criminal justice students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for criminal justice majors pursuing a associate degree.

Top 10 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Napa Valley College the best value school in California for criminal justice and corrections students working on their associate degree. Napa Valley College is a small public school located in the city of Napa.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Napa Valley College are $1,150 a year.

Napa Valley College excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California list.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Napa Valley College Report

#2

Moreno Valley College

Moreno Valley, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Moreno Valley College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California list. Located in the suburb of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Moreno Valley College are $1,420 per year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Moreno Valley College Report

#3

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Santa Rosa Junior College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Santa Rosa, SRJC is a public school with a large student population.

SRJC undergraduate students pay an average of $1,328 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

SRJC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California list.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Santa Rosa Junior College Report

#4

Golden West College

Huntington Beach, CA

Out of the 33 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Golden West College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Golden West College is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Huntington Beach.

Golden West College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,186 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#5

Santa Ana College

Santa Ana, CA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Santa Ana College is a great value for criminal justice and corrections students working on their associate degree. SAC is a very large public school located in the large city of Santa Ana.

SAC undergraduate students pay an average of $1,180 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their Associate Degree, criminal justice graduates from SAC carry an average student debtload of $7,407.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Santa Ana College Report

#6

Southwestern College

Chula Vista, CA

Southwestern College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for criminal justice and corrections students to get a associate degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Chula Vista, SWC Chula Vista is a public college with a large student population.

SWC Chula Vista undergraduate students pay an average of $1,342 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their Associate Degree, criminal justice majors at SWC Chula Vista accumulate an average of around $8,168 in student debt.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Southwestern College Report

#7

East Los Angeles College

Monterey Park, CA

With a ranking of #7, East Los Angeles College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students working on their associate degree. Located in the large suburb of Monterey Park, East Los Angeles College is a public college with a very large student population.

East Los Angeles College undergraduate students pay an average of $1,238 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, criminal justice graduates from East Los Angeles College take out $5,047 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at East Los Angeles College Report

#8

Riverside City College

Riverside, CA

Riverside City College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California list. Riverside City College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Riverside.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Riverside City College are $1,420 per year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at Riverside City College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $10,208.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Riverside City College Report

#9

El Camino College

Torrance, CA

El Camino College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree criminal justice and corrections programs. El Camino College is a large public school located in the suburb of Torrance.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at El Camino College are $1,144 a year.

Read More…

West Hills College-Lemoore came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Associate Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the rural area of Lemoore, West Hills College-Lemoore is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at West Hills College-Lemoore are $1,380 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, criminal justice graduates from West Hills College-Lemoore carry an average student debtload of $16,062.

Read More…

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

Explore all the Best Value 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.

  • 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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