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Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois

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2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

10 Colleges
$24,668 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$37,966 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections School for You

In 2020-2021, 182 degrees and certificates were awarded to criminal justice and corrections students who went to a Illinois college or university. This makes it the #56 most popular major in the state.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. 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, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 10 schools in Illinois 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. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois

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

$13,968 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Illinois State University to be the best value school for criminal justice and corrections students who want to pursue a degree in Illinois. Located in the suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public school with a very large student population.

Illinois State undergraduate students pay an average of $13,968 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Illinois State not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list.

Read More…

#2

Governors State University

University Park, IL
$10,108 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Governors State University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list. GSU is a small public school located in the rural area of University Park.

GSU undergraduate students pay an average of $10,108 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Governors State University Report

$11,496 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in Illinois. Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SIUE are $11,496 per year.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

$13,297 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Western Illinois University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list. WIU is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Macomb.

WIU undergraduate students pay an average of $13,297 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Western Illinois University

#5

Lewis University

Romeoville, IL
$35,472 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Lewis University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best criminal justice and corrections schools in Illinois. Located in the large suburb of Romeoville, Lewis is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Lewis are $35,472 a year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Lewis University Report

#6

Aurora University

Aurora, IL
$26,760 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, Aurora University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. Located in the suburb of Aurora, Aurora is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Aurora undergraduate students pay an average of $26,760 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Aurora University Report

$11,204 Average Tuition & Fees

Chicago State University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value criminal justice and corrections programs. CSU is a small public school located in the large city of Chicago.

CSU undergraduate students pay an average of $11,204 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Chicago State University

$15,603 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Illinois at Chicago ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list. Located in the city of Chicago, UIC is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UIC are $15,603 a year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

$47,808 Average Tuition & Fees

Loyola University Chicago landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value criminal justice and corrections programs. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Loyola Chicago undergraduate students pay an average of $47,808 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

#10

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL
$60,963 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Chicago ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UChicago are $60,963 per year.

UChicago also made our Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Illinois list, coming in at #2.

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

Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 79
Ohio 236
Indiana 103
Wisconsin 43

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

Majors Similar to Criminal Justice

Related Major Annual Graduates
Homeland Security 2,759
Security Science and Technology 1,875
Other Homeland Security 456
Fire Protection 172

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 10 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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