2022 Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice (Income $0-$30k) in Iowa

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 33,568 people earned their degree in criminal justice, making the major the 32nd most popular in the United States.

Across Iowa, there were 73 criminal justice graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in criminal justice. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent criminal justice programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the criminal justice program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice (Income $0-$30k) in Iowa

#1

Waldorf University

Forest City, Iowa

#1 in overall quality

$19,719 Average Net Price

$70,100 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Waldorf University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Forest City, Iowa, this small private for-profit school handed out 4 degrees to qualified ’s criminal justice students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Waldorf, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $19,719 for Iowa Criminal Justice students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Waldorf.

Read more about Criminal Justice at Waldorf University

#2

Mount Mercy University

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

#3 in overall quality

$13,992 Average Net Price

$46,060 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Mount Mercy University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k. Cedar Rapids, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s criminal justice degrees to 37 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Mount Mercy, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Mount Mercy is $13,992 for Iowa Criminal Justice students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Criminal Justice at Mount Mercy University

#3

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$23,977 Average Net Price

$45,438 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Saint Ambrose University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k. This small school is located in Davenport, Iowa, and it awarded 4 ’s criminal justice degrees in 2019-2020.

St. Ambrose University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Criminal Justice Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Saint Ambrose University is $23,977 for Iowa Criminal Justice students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Criminal Justice at St. Ambrose University

• Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice (Income $0-$30k) in the Plains States Region
• Best Value Colleges for Criminal Justice (Income $0-$30k)

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

Footnotes

• *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.

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