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Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region

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2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

81 Colleges
$20,866 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$34,051 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections School for You

Criminal Justice & Corrections is the #36 most popular major in the country with 7,783 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. This report analyzed 81 schools in the Southeast Region to see which ones offered the best value programs for criminal justice students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

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 the Southeast Region

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

Top 15% 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 the Southeast Region . Columbia Southern University is a large private for-profit school located in the fringe town of Orange Beach.

Columbia Southern University undergraduate students pay an average of $5,775 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Columbia Southern University Report

$28,960 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Charleston Southern University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region list. CSU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Charleston.

CSU undergraduate students pay an average of $28,960 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Charleston Southern University Report

#3

University of the Cumberlands

Williamsburg, KY
$9,875 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of the Cumberlands. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the town of Williamsburg, Cumberlands is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Cumberlands are $9,875 a year.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at University of the Cumberlands

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend American Public University System. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region list. American Military University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the fringe town of Charles Town.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at American Military University are $7,360 a year.

Read More…

#5

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA
$16,160 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Liberty University is a great value for criminal justice and corrections students. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Lynchburg.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Liberty University are $16,160 a year.

Read More…

#6

Guilford College

Greensboro, NC
$41,140 Average Tuition & Fees

Guilford College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value criminal justice and corrections programs. Located in the city of Greensboro, Guilford is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Guilford are $41,140 a year.

Read More…

#7

Columbia College

Columbia, SC
$18,218 Average Tuition & Fees

Columbia College 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 city of Columbia, Columbia College South Carolina is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Columbia College South Carolina undergraduate students pay an average of $18,218 in tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

#8

Mississippi College

Clinton, MS
$20,364 Average Tuition & Fees

Mississippi College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value criminal justice and corrections programs. Located in the suburb of Clinton, MC is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at MC are $20,364 a year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Mississippi College Report

$30,720 Average Tuition & Fees

Anderson University South Carolina came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Anderson University South Carolina is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Anderson.

Anderson University South Carolina undergraduate students pay an average of $30,720 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Criminal Justice & Corrections at Anderson University South Carolina

#9

Averett University

Danville, VA
$37,050 Average Tuition & Fees

Averett University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the distant town of Danville, AU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at AU are $37,050 per year.

Read More…

#11

Columbus State University

Columbus, GA
$17,295 Average Tuition & Fees

Columbus State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the city of Columbus, CSU is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CSU are $17,295 a year.

Read More…

#12

Bethel University

McKenzie, TN
$13,981 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #12, Bethel University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for criminal justice and corrections students. Located in the town of McKenzie, Bethel is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Bethel are $13,981 per year.

Full Criminal Justice & Corrections at Bethel University Report

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great value schools for Criminal Justice & Corrections graduate students in the Southeast Region seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Region award.

Rank College Location
13 Faulkner University Montgomery, AL
14 William Carey University Hattiesburg, MS
15 University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg, MS
16 University of North Georgia Dahlonega, GA
16 Lynn University Boca Raton, FL

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges by State

Explore the best criminal justice and corrections schools for a specific state in the Southeast region.

State Degrees Awarded
Virginia 632
Florida 631
Georgia 131
North Carolina 82
Tennessee 109
Kentucky 170
Louisiana 201
Alabama 211
South Carolina 61
Mississippi 41
Arkansas 21
West Virginia 205

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
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 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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