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2025 Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region

59 Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region
4,888 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded
Ranked #16 in popularity, criminal justice studies is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 59 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region to determine which ones were the best for criminal justice studies students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 4,888 degrees in criminal justice studies to qualified students.

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

Choosing a Great Criminal Justice Studies School

Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region The criminal justice studies program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Criminal Justice Studies rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for criminal justice studies 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 Studies Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Criminal Justice Studies
Bachelor's Degrees in Criminal Justice Studies
Master's Degrees in Criminal Justice Studies
Doctor's Degrees in Criminal Justice Studies

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 Studies Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

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.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Criminal Justice Studies in the Middle Atlantic Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the criminal justice studies degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

11 Top Middle Atlantic Region Schools in Criminal Justice Studies

1
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In DC
79 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

George Washington University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in criminal justice studies. Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #25 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means GWU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 79 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from George Washington University

2
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In DC
97 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Any student pursuing a degree in criminal justice studies has to check out American University. Located in the city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #61 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means The American University is a great university overall.

There were about 97 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at The American University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from American University

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BS in Criminal Justice - Criminology & Crime Analysis Program Name

Track and understand criminal behavior by earning a BS in Criminal Justice with a concentration in Criminology & Crime Analysis.

More information about a degree in BS in Criminal Justice - Criminology & Crime Analysis from Southern New Hampshire University
3
Temple crest
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In PA
201 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Temple University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in criminal justice studies. Temple is a very large public university located in the city of Philadelphia. A Best Colleges rank of #97 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Temple is a great university overall.

There were approximately 201 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at Temple in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from Temple University

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MD
353 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

University of Maryland Global Campus is a great choice for students interested in a degree in criminal justice studies. Located in the large suburb of Adelphi, UMGC is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #179 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UMGC is a great university overall.

There were approximately 353 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at UMGC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from University of Maryland Global Campus

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In NJ
194 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of New Brunswick, Rutgers New Brunswick is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #74 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Rutgers New Brunswick is a great university overall.

There were about 194 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at Rutgers New Brunswick in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from Rutgers University - New Brunswick

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In NJ
212 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Rutgers Newark is a large public university located in the large city of Newark. A Best Colleges rank of #164 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Rutgers Newark is a great university overall.

There were about 212 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at Rutgers Newark in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from Rutgers University - Newark

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type

Pitt is a fairly large public university located in the city of Pittsburgh. A Best Colleges rank of #85 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Pitt is a great university overall.More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
21st Most Popular In PA
36 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Located in the small city of Scranton, University of Scranton is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #202 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means University of Scranton is a great university overall.

There were about 36 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at University of Scranton in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from University of Scranton

9
SUNY Oneonta crest
SUNY Oneonta
Oneonta, NY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In NY
57 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

SUNY Oneonta is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Oneonta. This school ranks 37th out of 136 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were approximately 57 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at SUNY Oneonta in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from SUNY Oneonta

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In NJ
74 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Located in the small city of Camden, Rutgers Camden is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #248 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Rutgers Camden is a great university overall.

There were approximately 74 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at Rutgers Camden in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from Rutgers University - Camden

11
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In PA
84 Criminal Justice Studies Degrees Awarded

Located in the town of Shippensburg, Ship is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 45th out of 103 colleges for overall quality in the state of Pennsylvania.

There were about 84 criminal justice studies students who graduated with this degree at Ship in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice studies from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Criminal Justice Studies students in the Middle Atlantic Region that almost earned our Best Criminal Justice Studies Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region award.

Rank College Location
12 Suffolk County Community College Selden, NY
13 DeSales University Center Valley, PA
14 SUNY Oswego Oswego, NY
15 University at Albany Albany, NY
16 Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Kutztown, PA
17 Mercyhurst University Erie, PA
18 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
19 SUNY Plattsburgh Plattsburgh, NY

Best Criminal Justice Studies Colleges by State

Explore the best criminal justice studies schools for a specific state in the Middle Atlantic Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
New York 1,026 1,373
Pennsylvania 978 1,844
Maryland 618 574
New Jersey 614 1,032
District of Columbia 441 238
Delaware 345 14

View All Rankings >

Criminal Justice Studies is one of 21 different types of Criminal Justice & Corrections programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice 6,122
Criminal Justice & Police Science 3,591
Other Corrections & Criminal Justice 561
Corrections 346
Securities Services Administration/Management 211
Law Enforcement Investigation & Interviewing 73
Criminal Justice and Corrections, General 58
Corrections Administration 20
Juvenile Corrections 10
Security & Loss Prevention Services 3

View All Criminal Justice Studies Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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