{
  "major": "Criminal Justice",
  "slug": "criminal-justice",
  "field": "Public Safety & Recreation",
  "as_of": "2026",
  "url": "https://collegeranked.com/best-criminal-justice-schools/",
  "source": "U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2026 release); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics",
  "metric_definitions": {
    "median_earnings": "Median earnings one year after graduation (Scorecard)",
    "net_price": "Average annual cost of attendance after grant aid. For PUBLIC schools this reflects IN-STATE cost; out-of-state students pay more.",
    "roi_10yr_usd": "Ten years of earnings minus four years of net price",
    "public": "true = public university (net_price is in-state basis); false = private (residency-neutral)"
  },
  "total_colleges_with_reported_data": 569,
  "shown": 25,
  "ranking": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "school": "Siena Heights University",
      "state": "MI",
      "median_earnings": 67009,
      "net_price": 17124,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 601594,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "school": "Saint Mary's University of Minnesota",
      "state": "MN",
      "median_earnings": 64894,
      "net_price": 11704,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 602124,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "school": "Central Christian College of Kansas",
      "state": "KS",
      "median_earnings": 55453,
      "net_price": 11404,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 508914,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 4,
      "school": "California State University-East Bay",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 45387,
      "net_price": 9320,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 416590,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 5,
      "school": "Herzing University-Minneapolis",
      "state": "MN",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 16670,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 605610,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 6,
      "school": "Colorado State University Global",
      "state": "CO",
      "median_earnings": 61786,
      "net_price": 16510,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 551820,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 7,
      "school": "Utah Valley University",
      "state": "UT",
      "median_earnings": 44051,
      "net_price": 6376,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 415006,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 8,
      "school": "Ferris State University",
      "state": "MI",
      "median_earnings": 44897,
      "net_price": 8624,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 414474,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 9,
      "school": "Herzing University-Akron",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 18934,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 596554,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 10,
      "school": "Bethel University",
      "state": "TN",
      "median_earnings": 54207,
      "net_price": 12595,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 491690,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 11,
      "school": "University of Baltimore",
      "state": "MD",
      "median_earnings": 48991,
      "net_price": 13868,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 434438,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 12,
      "school": "Trinity Washington University",
      "state": "DC",
      "median_earnings": 47385,
      "net_price": 9302,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 436642,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 13,
      "school": "CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice",
      "state": "NY",
      "median_earnings": 37284,
      "net_price": 3203,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 360028,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 14,
      "school": "Herzing University-Birmingham",
      "state": "AL",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 19651,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 593686,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 15,
      "school": "Herzing University-Orlando",
      "state": "FL",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 19850,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 592890,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 16,
      "school": "Lamar University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 43707,
      "net_price": 9366,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 399606,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 17,
      "school": "San Francisco State University",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 42211,
      "net_price": 12278,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 372998,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 18,
      "school": "Worcester State University",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 41132,
      "net_price": 13381,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 357796,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 19,
      "school": "Saint Xavier University",
      "state": "IL",
      "median_earnings": 39033,
      "net_price": 10970,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 346450,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 20,
      "school": "California State University-Sacramento",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 38606,
      "net_price": 9338,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 348708,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 21,
      "school": "Charter Oak State College",
      "state": "CT",
      "median_earnings": 68956,
      "net_price": 15815,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 626300,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 22,
      "school": "Herzing University-New Orleans",
      "state": "LA",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 21269,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 587214,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 23,
      "school": "Herzing University-Brookfield",
      "state": "WI",
      "median_earnings": 67229,
      "net_price": 20514,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 590234,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 24,
      "school": "Bemidji State University",
      "state": "MN",
      "median_earnings": 49617,
      "net_price": 15261,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 435126,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 25,
      "school": "Texas A&M University-Central Texas",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 45976,
      "net_price": 1300,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 454560,
      "public": true
    }
  ]
}