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Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee

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2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

19 Colleges
$11,635 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$31,692 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections School for You

Criminal Justice & Corrections is the #12 most popular major in Tennessee with 1,212 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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.

The Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 19 schools in Tennessee 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.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges.

Top 10 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools

$4,399 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Walters State Community College the best value school in Tennessee for criminal justice and corrections students. WSCC is a moderately-sized public school located in the small city of Morristown.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WSCC are $4,399 per year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at WSCC take out is $13,650.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Walters State Community College

$4,400 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Cleveland State Community College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in Tennessee. Cleveland State Community College is a small public school located in the city of Cleveland.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cleveland State Community College are $4,400 per year. Criminal Justice majors at Cleveland State Community College take out an average of $6,525 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Cleveland State Community College

$4,372 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 19 schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Nashville State Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Nashville, Nashville State Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Nashville State Community College are $4,372 a year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Nashville State Community College Report

$9,912 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at The University of Tennessee - Martin helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in Tennessee. Located in the town of Martin, UT Martin is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

UT Martin undergraduate students pay an average of $9,912 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, criminal justice graduates from UT Martin take out $19,250 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at The University of Tennessee - Martin

$9,232 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Middle Tennessee State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee list. Middle Tennessee State University is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Murfreesboro.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Middle Tennessee State University are $9,232 a year. Criminal Justice majors at Middle Tennessee State University take out an average of $24,187 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $123.

Read More…

#6

Austin Peay State University

Clarksville, TN
$8,431 Average Tuition & Fees

Austin Peay State University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee list. Austin Peay State University is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Clarksville.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Austin Peay State University are $8,431 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at Austin Peay State University take out is $25,125.

Read More…

#7

University of Memphis

Memphis, TN
$10,056 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Memphis did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the large city of Memphis, UofM is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UofM are $10,056 a year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at UofM take out is $27,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $162, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of Memphis

#8

Bethel University

McKenzie, TN
$13,981 Average Tuition & Fees

Bethel University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee ranking. Bethel is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of McKenzie.

Bethel undergraduate students pay an average of $13,981 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, criminal justice graduates from Bethel take out $26,583 in student loans while working on their degree.

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

Read More…

#9

Tennessee State University

Nashville, TN
$8,336 Average Tuition & Fees

Tennessee State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee list. Tennessee State University is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of Nashville.

Tennessee State University undergraduate students pay an average of $8,336 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that criminal justice majors at Tennessee State University take out is $30,500. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $138.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Tennessee State University Report

$9,848 Average Tuition & Fees

The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Tennessee ranking. UT Chattanooga is a large public school located in the city of Chattanooga.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UT Chattanooga are $9,848 a year. While working on their degree, criminal justice majors at UT Chattanooga accumulate an average of around $23,090 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $123.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Report

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
Kentucky 1,015
South Carolina 993
Louisiana 972
Arkansas 665
Alabama 1,413
Mississippi 581
West Virginia 1,320

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 19 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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