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Criminology Degree

111 schools compared · Average earnings $36,749/yr

Students study the causes, patterns, and social responses to criminal behavior, using sociological and statistical methods to analyze crime data, justice policy, and rehabilitation effectiveness. Graduates typically pursue careers in criminal justice research, policy analysis, victim advocacy, law enforcement analytics, and government agencies studying crime trends. Unlike criminal justice, criminology emphasizes the academic study of crime rather than system operations.

What Criminology Graduates Do

Your criminology degree prepares you for a career analyzing the "why" behind crime, not just the "who." Many graduates start as social science technicians, collecting data for studies on community policing or coding interview transcripts from incarcerated individuals for senior researchers. With experience or an advanced degree, you could become a sociologist designing research on the root causes of deviance or a psychologist assessing individuals for court proceedings.

Career progression often leads to management, where you’ll oversee teams and budgets in government agencies, non-profits, or corporate security. These leadership roles offer the most openings, while specialized academic and research positions are more competitive. Across these paths, AI is set to automate significant chunks of routine work, like identifying patterns in crime data or summarizing case files. The jobs aren't disappearing, but your focus will shift toward interpreting complex human factors, making nuanced judgments, and designing the real-world intervention programs that AI can't. Adaptability is key.

Schools Offering

111

Avg Grad Earnings

$36,749/yr

Avg DegreeOutlook Score

42/100

AI Automation Risk

High

55% task exposure

Common Career Paths

Where Criminology graduates typically work, ranked by salary. Salary ranges show 25th–75th percentile spread. This field has roughly 122,700 combined openings per year.

Career Path	Salary Range	Openings/yr	Growth	AI Risk
Managers, all other	$136,550 $100K$179K	106,700	+4.5%	47%
Psychologists, all other	$117,580 $74K$145K	3,900	+4.3%	44%
Sociologists	$101,690 $78K$135K	300	+3.6%	54%
Criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary	$71,470 $56K$100K	1,200	+2.0%	50%
Life, physical, and social science technicians, all other	$60,130 $46K$78K	10,600	+3.5%	55%

Managers, all other

$136,550

$100K $179K

106,700 openings/yr +4.5% growth 47% AI risk

Psychologists, all other

$117,580

$74K $145K

3,900 openings/yr +4.3% growth 44% AI risk

Sociologists

$101,690

$78K $135K

300 openings/yr +3.6% growth 54% AI risk

Criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary

$71,470

$56K $100K

1,200 openings/yr +2.0% growth 50% AI risk

Life, physical, and social science technicians, all other

$60,130

$46K $78K

10,600 openings/yr +3.5% growth 55% AI risk

Source: BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics, May 2024. Salary range shows 25th–median–75th percentile (national).

Best Schools for Criminology

Top 20 of 111 schools ranked by DegreeOutlook Score. Click any row for full AI scenario analysis and earnings projections.

#	School	DW Score	Earnings	ROI
1	University of Maryland-College Park College Park, MD	58 44–58	$43,698/yr	14.1x
2	University of Southern Maine Portland, ME	57 44–58	$47,726/yr	13.6x
3	University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL	56 44–57	$35,096/yr	38.4x
4	University at Albany Albany, NY	55 42–56	$42,257/yr	14.0x
5	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	55 43–56	$35,096/yr	22.9x
6	University of Massachusetts Global Irvine, CA	54 40–55	$42,698/yr	11.8x
7	University of Nevada-Reno Reno, NV	54 40–55	$39,804/yr	15.3x
8	North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC	54 41–54	$35,076/yr	17.0x
9	University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA	53 39–53	$43,914/yr	13.1x
10	Framingham State University Framingham, MA	53 39–53	$41,431/yr	12.0x
11	Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA	53 39–53	$40,228/yr	15.2x
12	University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Whitewater, WI	53 39–53	$40,060/yr	15.4x
13	Ohio State University-Mansfield Campus Mansfield, OH	53 39–53	$39,396/yr	14.6x
14	SUNY Old Westbury Old Westbury, NY	53 39–53	$38,764/yr	15.6x
15	State University of New York at Cortland Cortland, NY	53 41–54	$34,768/yr	16.8x
16	University of Minnesota-Duluth Duluth, MN	52 39–53	$42,562/yr	10.3x
17	University of South Florida Tampa, FL	52 39–53	$37,108/yr	19.2x
18	Central Connecticut State University New Britain, CT	51 37–51	$40,713/yr	10.9x
19	University of Houston-Clear Lake Houston, TX	51 38–51	$35,673/yr	16.6x
20	California State University-San Marcos San Marcos, CA	51 38–51	$34,694/yr	16.6x
21	CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice New York, NY	51 39–52	$33,798/yr	17.9x
22	University of Wisconsin-Stout Menomonie, WI	50 37–50	$49,004/yr	11.1x
23	University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth North Dartmouth, MA	50 37–50	$37,535/yr	9.8x
24	University of Wisconsin-River Falls River Falls, WI	49 36–50	$45,113/yr	12.1x
25	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	49 35–49	$41,780/yr	8.3x
26	Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH	49 35–49	$39,396/yr	10.2x
27	University of West Georgia Carrollton, GA	49 37–49	$33,839/yr	19.1x
28	Indiana State University Terre Haute, IN	48 34–49	$39,769/yr	11.7x
29	Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus Indiana, PA	48 34–48	$37,911/yr	11.0x
30	Wright State University-Lake Campus Celina, OH	48 35–49	$37,476/yr	14.9x
31	University of Delaware Newark, DE	48 35–48	$35,968/yr	9.1x
32	University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC	48 35–48	$34,443/yr	15.7x
33	Saint Anselm College Manchester, NH	47 34–48	$46,814/yr	3.0x
34	Mount St. Mary's University Emmitsburg, MD	46 33–47	$43,230/yr	3.1x
35	University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham, NH	46 32–46	$39,814/yr	6.8x
36	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Carbondale, IL	46 33–47	$37,645/yr	9.5x
37	Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ	46 32–46	$37,214/yr	9.6x
38	Missouri State University-Springfield Springfield, MO	46 33–46	$36,185/yr	12.3x
39	Georgia Southern University Statesboro, GA	46 33–46	$35,588/yr	14.1x
40	University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA	46 34–46	$34,522/yr	9.5x
41	Saint Joseph's University Philadelphia, PA	45 31–45	$43,283/yr	2.6x
42	The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX	45 32–46	$40,603/yr	8.1x
43	Lasell University Newton, MA	45 32–46	$40,527/yr	5.0x
44	Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA	45 32–45	$37,255/yr	9.6x
45	Delaware State University Dover, DE	45 34–45	$30,710/yr	12.2x
46	Eastern Michigan University Ypsilanti, MI	44 31–44	$36,891/yr	7.9x
47	University of Central Arkansas Conway, AR	43 29–43	$38,453/yr	8.5x
48	University of Missouri-St Louis Saint Louis, MO	43 30–43	$38,207/yr	8.3x
49	University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH	43 30–43	$38,087/yr	8.6x
50	Wright State University-Main Campus Dayton, OH	43 30–44	$37,476/yr	9.6x
51	Arkansas State University Jonesboro, AR	43 30–43	$36,732/yr	12.2x
52	Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Slippery Rock, PA	43 30–43	$36,276/yr	10.2x
53	Stockton University Galloway, NJ	43 31–43	$34,596/yr	8.1x
54	California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt Arcata, CA	43 33–43	$29,123/yr	14.3x
55	Eastern Connecticut State University Willimantic, CT	42 28–42	$39,705/yr	6.5x
56	Ohio University-Main Campus Athens, OH	42 29–43	$39,349/yr	7.8x
57	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	42 29–43	$38,520/yr	7.8x
58	Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH	42 30–42	$32,393/yr	9.4x
59	California State University-Fresno Fresno, CA	42 31–42	$31,224/yr	14.1x
60	Upper Iowa University Fayette, IA	41 27–41	$43,170/yr	5.2x
61	University of St Thomas Saint Paul, MN	41 27–41	$41,780/yr	2.3x
62	Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS	41 29–42	$33,191/yr	10.7x
63	Assumption University Worcester, MA	40 27–41	$48,600/yr	1.5x
64	Lebanon Valley College Annville, PA	40 27–41	$38,828/yr	2.4x
65	Clemson University Clemson, SC	40 27–41	$38,057/yr	5.1x
66	St. John Fisher University Rochester, NY	40 28–40	$33,623/yr	3.3x
67	Lakeland University Plymouth, WI	39 26–40	$45,276/yr	3.0x
68	University of Saint Mary Leavenworth, KS	39 25–39	$42,633/yr	2.1x
69	Southern Wesleyan University Central, SC	39 25–40	$40,834/yr	2.7x
70	Fairleigh Dickinson University-Metropolitan Campus Teaneck, NJ	39 26–39	$37,619/yr	3.1x
71	Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham Campus Madison, NJ	39 26–39	$37,619/yr	3.1x
72	Texas A & M University-Kingsville Kingsville, TX	39 29–39	$30,490/yr	10.6x
73	Concordia University-Chicago River Forest, IL	38 24–39	$41,724/yr	1.9x
74	William Peace University Raleigh, NC	38 25–39	$41,509/yr	2.1x
75	Cabrini University Radnor, PA	38 26–39	$33,632/yr	3.3x
76	Barry University Miami, FL	37 24–38	$44,015/yr	2.7x
77	Hamline University Saint Paul, MN	37 23–37	$41,204/yr	1.1x
78	Stonehill College Easton, MA	37 24–38	$40,928/yr	1.9x
79	Gonzaga University Spokane, WA	37 23–37	$38,028/yr	2.0x
80	Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY	37 26–38	$32,370/yr	6.1x
81	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	36 22–37	$40,229/yr	0.7x
82	Virginia Union University Richmond, VA	36 26–37	$30,291/yr	7.1x
83	Niagara University Niagara University, NY	35 22–35	$36,781/yr	1.4x
84	Hofstra University Hempstead, NY	35 23–36	$35,249/yr	2.0x
85	University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI	35 24–36	$31,729/yr	3.8x
86	National Louis University Chicago, IL	35 25–36	$30,170/yr	5.1x
87	Florida Southern College Lakeland, FL	34 20–35	$39,713/yr	2.0x
88	Saint Vincent College Latrobe, PA	34 21–35	$37,563/yr	2.3x
89	Emmanuel College Boston, MA	34 21–35	$36,824/yr	1.0x
90	Eastern University Saint Davids, PA	34 21–34	$34,876/yr	1.3x
91	University of La Verne La Verne, CA	34 22–35	$34,292/yr	2.3x
92	Capital University Columbus, OH	34 23–35	$32,984/yr	2.6x
93	Johnson C Smith University Charlotte, NC	34 23–35	$32,751/yr	4.6x
94	Lycoming College Williamsport, PA	33 20–34	$40,646/yr	1.7x
95	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	33 21–34	$35,650/yr	2.0x
96	The University of Tampa Tampa, FL	33 21–34	$34,137/yr	2.8x
97	Valparaiso University Valparaiso, IN	33 22–33	$30,653/yr	2.3x
98	University of Denver Denver, CO	31 18–32	$40,667/yr	0.7x
99	Loyola University New Orleans New Orleans, LA	31 18–31	$35,578/yr	1.8x
100	California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, CA	31 20–32	$31,963/yr	0.6x
101	Saint Edward's University Austin, TX	31 20–31	$31,839/yr	0.5x
102	Dominican University River Forest, IL	31 19–31	$31,758/yr	2.4x
103	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	31 21–32	$29,670/yr	1.8x
104	St. Mary's University San Antonio, TX	30 18–30	$33,978/yr	2.0x
105	Arcadia University Glenside, PA	30 18–30	$33,823/yr	1.7x
106	Flagler College Saint Augustine, FL	28 18–28	$29,240/yr	2.6x
107	Coker University Hartsville, SC	26 18–26	$25,862/yr	2.5x
108	Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Gurabo Campus Gurabo, PR	26 21–26	$19,300/yr	8.4x
109	Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico-Arecibo Arecibo, PR	25 21–25	$16,199/yr	8.5x
110	Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico-Ponce Ponce, PR	25 21–25	$16,199/yr	8.3x
111	Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Mayaguez, PR	25 21–25	$16,199/yr	8.5x

Highest Earning Criminology Programs

Schools where Criminology graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.

School	1-Year Earnings	DW Score
University of Wisconsin-Stout	$49,004/yr	50
Assumption University	$48,600/yr	40
University of Southern Maine	$47,726/yr	57
Saint Anselm College	$46,814/yr	47
Lakeland University	$45,276/yr	39
University of Wisconsin-River Falls	$45,113/yr	49
Barry University	$44,015/yr	37
University of Northern Iowa	$43,914/yr	53
University of Maryland-College Park	$43,698/yr	58
Saint Joseph's University	$43,283/yr	45

Best ROI for Criminology

Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Criminology.

School	ROI Multiple	Earnings	DW Score
University of Florida-Online	38.4x	$35,096/yr	56
University of Florida	22.9x	$35,096/yr	55
University of South Florida	19.2x	$37,108/yr	52
University of West Georgia	19.1x	$33,839/yr	49
CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice	17.9x	$33,798/yr	51
North Carolina State University at Raleigh	17.0x	$35,076/yr	54
State University of New York at Cortland	16.8x	$34,768/yr	53
California State University-San Marcos	16.6x	$34,694/yr	51
University of Houston-Clear Lake	16.6x	$35,673/yr	51
University of North Carolina Wilmington	15.7x	$34,443/yr	48

Want to compare two Criminology programs side by side? Use the comparison tool →

Related Majors

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Consider the Trade Route

Not sure a 4-year degree is the right path? Trade programs in Criminology offer shorter timelines, lower debt, and strong AI resilience for hands-on careers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do Criminology graduates earn?

Across 111 schools, Criminology graduates earn an average of $36,749 per year in their first year after graduation. Earnings range from $16,199 to $49,004 depending on the school.

What is the AI automation risk for Criminology?

Criminology is rated "High" for AI automation risk, with an average of 55% of job tasks exposed to large language models and AI tools. This means most career tasks in this field could be augmented or replaced by AI over the next decade.

Which school has the best Criminology program?

Based on our DegreeOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), University of Maryland-College Park ranks #1 for Criminology with a score of 58/100 and graduate earnings of $43,698/yr.

What's the outlook for a Criminology degree?

On average, Criminology graduates earn 8.0x their in-state tuition over 10 years. This is a moderate return — school choice matters significantly.

Scores use College Scorecard earnings, BLS employment projections, and AI task-exposure research. See full methodology →