2023 Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Plains States Region
10
Ranked Colleges
282
Degrees Awarded
$26,100
Avg Cost*
When it comes to choosing a college, veterans have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Criminal Justice is the 27th most popular major in the country with 32,891 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.
Across the Plains States region, there were 1,617 criminal justice graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s” ranking, we looked at 10 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 offer a lot of support to veterans and active service members.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the criminal justice program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran population. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
More Ways to Rank Criminal Justice Schools
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 “Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s
The colleges and universities below are the best for plains states region master’s degree vets studying criminal justice.
Top 10 Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Colleges for Veterans in the Plains States Region
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Columbia College. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s list. Columbia College Missouri is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Columbia, Missouri. It awarded 26 masters’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Columbia College Missouri, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking.Of the 8,347 students enrolled at Columbia College Missouri, 6 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $750. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Columbia College Missouri]](/colleges/columbia-college-missouri/student-life/veterans/)
Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Bellevue University landed the #2 spot on the list. Bellevue, Nebraska is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s criminal justice degrees to 16 students in 2020-2021.
Bellevue University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list.Among the 13,059 students enrolled at Bellevue University, 1 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $0. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Bellevue University does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of St Thomas Minnesota. The school came in at #3 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s. UST MN is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It awarded 10 masters’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
UST MN did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list.Of the 9,792 students enrolled at UST MN, 2 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at UST MN]](/colleges/university-of-st-thomas-minnesota/student-life/veterans/)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Central Missouri. The school came in at #4 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s. University of Central Missouri is a fairly large school located in Warrensburg, Missouri that handed out 13 masters’s criminal justice degrees in 2020-2021.
UCM also made our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #9.Of the 9,959 students enrolled at University of Central Missouri, 9 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 10 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,238. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. University of Central Missouri offers credit for military training for eligible students.
Read More…
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Saint Ambrose University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s list. St. Ambrose University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Davenport, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 4 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
St. Ambrose University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list.Our most recent data shows that 88 of the 3,003 students enrolled at Saint Ambrose University were GI Bill® students, of which 42 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $7,054. On top of their other funding sources, 17 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Saint Ambrose University Veteran Student Life Report
Mount Mercy University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s ranking. Cedar Rapids, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s criminal justice degrees to 21 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree vets studying criminal justice list, Mount Mercy has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking.According to our most recent data, Mount Mercy University supports 1,705 students, and 58 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 33 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $7,227. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Mount Mercy University does offer credit for military training for eligible students.
Full Mount Mercy Veteran Student Life Report
Saint Cloud State University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s ranking. Saint Cloud, Minnesota is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s criminal justice degrees to 4 students in 2020-2021.
St. Cloud State University also took the #5 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 291 of the 11,841 students enrolled at St. Cloud State University were GI Bill® students, of which 126 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $5,067. During this same period, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
Washburn University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s list. Washburn University is a public institution located in Topeka, Kansas. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 8 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Washburn University also took the #8 spot in our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking.Of the 5,880 students enrolled at Washburn University, 306 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 147 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $5,535. During this same period, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.
Read More…
Walden University did quite well in the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #9. Walden University is a private for-profit institution located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school has a large population, and it awarded 150 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Walden University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list.Our most recent data shows that 2,721 of the 49,695 students enrolled at Walden University were GI Bill® students, of which 1,568 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,240. In addition to receiving other benefits, 3 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read More…
Concordia University, Saint Paul came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Veteran Friendly in the Plains States Region for Criminal Justice for a Master’s ranking. Located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 27 degrees to qualified masters’s criminal justice students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our plains states region master’s degree vets studying criminal justice list, Concordia University, Saint Paul has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Criminal Justice Master’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 196 of the 5,585 students enrolled at Concordia University, Saint Paul were GI Bill® students, of which 118 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $8,143. In addition to receiving other benefits, 7 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
[Read full report on veteran student life at Concordia University, Saint Paul]](/colleges/concordia-university-saint-paul/student-life/veterans/)
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