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2025 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in South Dakota

5 Colleges in South Dakota
183 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$40,755 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #7 most popular program in the country. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 5 schools in South Dakota to determine which ones were the best for criminal justice & corrections students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 183 degrees in criminal justice & corrections to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Criminal Justice & Corrections School

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in South Dakota The criminal justice program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Criminal Justice & Corrections rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for criminal justice & corrections schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Criminal Justice & Corrections Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Criminal Justice
Bachelor's Degrees in Criminal Justice

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in South Dakota list, to help you choose the best school for you. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Criminal Justice & Corrections in South Dakota

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the criminal justice degrees they offer, see the list below.

Top South Dakota Schools in Criminal Justice

1

Southeast Technical College is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Southeast Tech is a small public college located in the midsize city of Sioux Falls. A Best Colleges rank of #482 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Southeast Tech is a great college overall.

There were about 18 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Southeast Tech in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Southeast Technical College receive $8,805 more than the standard criminal justice student.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Southeast Technical College

2

Lake Area Technical Institute is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the town of Watertown, LATI is a public school with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #274 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means LATI is a great school overall.

There were approximately 16 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at LATI in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the criminal justice program make around $41,230 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Lake Area Technical Institute

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
40 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$40,402 Median Starting Salary

Any student pursuing a degree in criminal justice & corrections needs to take a look at University of South Dakota. USD is a moderately-sized public university located in the town of Vermillion. This university ranks 7th out of 13 schools for overall quality in the state of South Dakota.

There were about 40 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at USD in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program report average early career income of $40,402.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from University of South Dakota

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$45,720 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat National American University - Rapid City if you want to pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the small city of Rapid City, National American University - Rapid City is a private for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 5th out of 13 colleges for overall quality in the state of South Dakota.

Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from National American University - Rapid City earn $4,965 more than the average criminal justice grad.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from National American University - Rapid City

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
36 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
36.1% Growth in Graduates

University of Sioux Falls is a small private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Sioux Falls. This university ranks 12th out of 13 colleges for overall quality in the state of South Dakota.

There were roughly 36 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at University of Sioux Falls in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the criminal justice program make around $38,858 for their early career.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from University of Sioux Falls

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 284 1,523
Missouri 283 1,221
Kansas 266 583
Iowa 264 627
Nebraska 238 608
North Dakota 210 225

View All Rankings >

One of 4 majors within the Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting area of study, Criminal Justice & Corrections has other similar majors worth exploring.

Criminal Justice Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice Studies 136
Criminal Justice & Police Science 42
Other Corrections & Criminal Justice 5

View All Criminal Justice Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Homeland Security 41
Security Science and Technology 3

View All Criminal Justice Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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