2023 Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice Studies in California (With Aid)
18
Ranked Colleges
4,834
Degrees Awarded
$13,900
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Criminal Justice Studies is the 16th most popular major in the country with 46,814 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.
Across California, there were 4,834 criminal justice studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 18 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in criminal justice studies. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent criminal justice studies programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the criminal justice studies program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
One Size Does Not Fit All
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
Top 18 Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice Studies in California (With Aid)
Out of the 18 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Los Angeles landed the #1 spot on the list. Cal State LA is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 330 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Cal State LA also made our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for Cal State LA is $3,302 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at California State University - Los Angeles
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Dominguez Hills. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid. Located in Carson, California, this fairly large public school handed out 295 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice studies students in 2020-2021.
CSUDH did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $4,026 for california criminal justice studies students with aid per year to attend CSUDH.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full CSUDH Criminal Justice Studies Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Fullerton. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Fullerton, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminal justice studies degrees to 365 students in 2020-2021.
Cal State Fullerton also made our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #6. It costs about $8,003 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid per year to attend Cal State Fullerton.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full California State University - Fullerton Criminal Justice Studies Report
Out of the 18 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #4 spot on the list. California State University - Long Beach is a public institution located in Long Beach, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 321 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california criminal justice studies students with aid list, CSULB has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California State University - Long Beach is $10,054 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at California State University - Long Beach
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Stanislaus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. Stan State is a fairly large public school situated in Turlock, California. It awarded 193 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california criminal justice studies students with aid list, Stan State has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Stan State is $6,566 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Stan State Criminal Justice Studies Report
California State University - San Bernardino landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. CSUSB is a fairly large public school situated in San Bernardino, California. It awarded 266 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
CSUSB did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $8,107 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid per year to attend California State University - San Bernardino.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at California State University - San Bernardino
With a ranking of #7, California State University - Sacramento did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Sacramento is a large public school situated in Sacramento, California. It awarded 493 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
Sac State also took the #4 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Sac State is $11,178 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Criminal Justice Studies at California State University - Sacramento
California State University - Bakersfield did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #8. Bakersfield, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminal justice studies degrees to 189 students in 2020-2021.
CSUB also took the #15 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $7,454 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid per year to attend CSUB.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at CSUB
San Diego State University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school awarded 391 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice studies students in 2020-2021.
SDSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for SDSU is $13,845 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full SDSU Criminal Justice Studies Report
California State University - East Bay did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #10. Hayward, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminal justice studies degrees to 242 students in 2020-2021.
Cal State East Bay also made our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #10. The yearly cost to attend California State University - East Bay is $13,298 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at Cal State East Bay
San Jose State University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. San Jose State is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 237 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
San Jose State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $16,542 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at San Jose State
San Francisco State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. San Francisco, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s criminal justice studies degrees to 233 students in 2020-2021.
SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $14,459 for california criminal justice studies students with aid per year to attend SFSU.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Criminal Justice Studies at SFSU
With a ranking of #14, California State University - Chico did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Chico is a fairly large school located in Chico, California that handed out 171 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
Chico State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Chico is $16,218 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at Chico State
Sonoma State University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #15. SSU is a medium-sized public school situated in Rohnert Park, California. It awarded 79 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at SSU, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SSU is $17,563 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at SSU
La Sierra University ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid list. La Sierra University is located in Riverside, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 60 ’s criminal justice studies degrees to qualified students.
La Sierra also made our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list, coming in at #16. The estimated yearly cost for La Sierra is $22,909 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full La Sierra Criminal Justice Studies Report
Platt College - Ontario did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #17. Platt College - Ontario is a small private for-profit school situated in Ontario, California. It awarded 17 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
Platt College - Ontario did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #17 on our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” list. It costs about $26,421 for California Criminal Justice Studies students with aid per year to attend Platt College - Ontario.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Criminal Justice Studies at Platt College - Ontario
Platt College - Riverside came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California For Those Getting Aid ranking. This small school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 18 ’s criminal justice studies degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california criminal justice studies students with aid list, Platt College - Riverside has also earned the #18 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Platt College - Riverside is $29,078 for california criminal justice studies students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Criminal Justice Studies at Platt College - Riverside
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Notes and References
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
