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Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama

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2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

17 Colleges
$11,576 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$35,544 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections School for You

In 2020-2021, criminal justice and corrections students earned 1,413 degrees and certificates from an Alabama school, making the subject the 10th in the state.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 17 schools in Alabama to see which 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.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

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

2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama

Check out the criminal justice programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools

#1

Columbia Southern University

Orange Beach, AL
$5,775 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Columbia Southern University to be the best value school for criminal justice and corrections students who want to pursue a degree in Alabama. Columbia Southern University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the town of Orange Beach.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Columbia Southern University are $5,775 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at Columbia Southern University take out is $24,746.

Columbia Southern University also made our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama list, coming in at #1.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Columbia Southern University Report

$14,200 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Herzing University - Birmingham. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama list. Located in the large suburb of Birmingham, Herzing University - Birmingham is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Herzing University - Birmingham are $14,200 per year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at Herzing University - Birmingham take out is $25,971.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Herzing University - Birmingham is ranked #3 for overall quality for criminal justice in Alabama.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Herzing University - Birmingham

$4,860 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Wallace State Community College, Hanceville helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in Alabama. Wallace State, Hanceville is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of Hanceville.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Wallace State, Hanceville are $4,860 a year.

Read More…

#4

Troy University

Troy, AL
$9,312 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 17 schools in Alabama that were part of this year’s ranking, Troy University landed the # 4 spot on the list. TROY is a fairly large public school located in the remote town of Troy.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at TROY are $9,312 per year. On average, criminal justice graduates from TROY take out $29,063 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Troy University Report

$8,568 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Alabama at Birmingham is a great value for criminal justice and corrections students. UAB is a very large public school located in the city of Birmingham.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UAB are $8,568 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at UAB take out is $28,450. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $184, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of Alabama at Birmingham

$8,756 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, University of South Alabama did quite well on this year’s best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. USA is a large public school located in the city of Mobile.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at USA are $8,756 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at USA take out is $28,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $264.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of South Alabama Report

$10,620 Average Tuition & Fees

University of North Alabama came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama ranking. Located in the city of Florence, UNA is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UNA are $10,620 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at UNA take out is $25,000.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of North Alabama

$9,060 Average Tuition & Fees

Athens State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama ranking. Athens State University is a small public school located in the fringe town of Athens.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Athens State University are $9,060 per year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Athens State University also did well on our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Athens State University Report

$13,515 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, Strayer University - Alabama did quite well on this year’s best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. Strayer University - Alabama is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Birmingham.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Strayer University - Alabama are $13,515 per year. After completing their degree, criminal justice graduates from Strayer University - Alabama carry an average student debtload of $56,537.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Strayer University - Alabama

$8,860 Average Tuition & Fees

Auburn University at Montgomery came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama ranking. AUM is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Montgomery.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at AUM are $8,860 per year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at AUM take out is $28,661.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Auburn University at Montgomery

Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 2,158
Virginia 2,948
North Carolina 2,702
Florida 4,869
Tennessee 1,212
Kentucky 1,015
South Carolina 993
Louisiana 972
Arkansas 665
Mississippi 581
West Virginia 1,320

One of 4 majors within the area of study, criminal justice and corrections has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Criminal Justice

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 17 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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