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2025 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Kentucky

14 Colleges in Kentucky
1,681 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$40,755 Avg Early-Career Salary
Criminal Justice & Corrections is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #7 most popular major in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual looked at 14 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Kentucky ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,681 degrees in criminal justice & corrections annually.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Criminal Justice & Corrections School

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Kentucky Your choice of criminal justice & corrections school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Criminal Justice & Corrections School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Criminal Justice & Corrections Degree Level

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

The criminal justice school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Kentucky. 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 & Corrections in Kentucky

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 degree levels they offer.

10 Top Kentucky Schools in Criminal Justice

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
269 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
11.5% Growth in Graduates

University of Louisville is a good decision for students pursuing a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the city of Louisville, UofL is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #421 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UofL is a great university overall.

There were roughly 269 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UofL in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from University of Louisville receive $6,820 more than the average criminal justice grad.

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

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
249 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$32,408 Median Starting Salary

Eastern Kentucky University is a wonderful decision for students pursuing a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Eastern is a large public university located in the town of Richmond. A Best Colleges rank of #1198 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Eastern is a great university overall.

There were approximately 249 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Eastern in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, criminal justice degree recipients typically make an average of $32,408 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Eastern Kentucky University

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
189 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
39.7% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in criminal justice & corrections needs to look into University of the Cumberlands. Cumberlands is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the remote town of Williamsburg. A Best Colleges rank of #1053 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Cumberlands is a great university overall.

There were roughly 189 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Cumberlands in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, criminal justice degree recipients typically make an average of $37,564 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from University of the Cumberlands

4
NKU crest
Northern Kentucky University
Highland Heights, KY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
52 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$35,724 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in criminal justice & corrections needs to take a look at Northern Kentucky University. NKU is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Highland Heights. A Best Colleges rank of #842 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means NKU is a great university overall.

There were about 52 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at NKU 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 $35,724.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Northern Kentucky University

5
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
14th Most Popular In KY
57 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Louisville, Jefferson Community and Technical College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 13th out of 39 colleges for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were roughly 57 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Jefferson Community and Technical College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Jefferson Community and Technical College

6
Bellarmine U crest
Bellarmine University
Louisville, KY

Bellarmine U is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Louisville. A Best Colleges rank of #873 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Bellarmine U is a great university overall.

There were roughly 25 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Bellarmine U in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program report average early career wages of $30,930.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Bellarmine University

7
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In KY
275 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Lexington, Bluegrass Community and Technical College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 14th out of 39 schools for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were roughly 275 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Bluegrass Community and Technical College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Bluegrass Community and Technical College

8
Campbellsville University crest
Campbellsville University
Campbellsville, KY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
38 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
2.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the distant town of Campbellsville, Campbellsville University is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. This university ranks 23rd out of 39 schools for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were approximately 38 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Campbellsville University in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the criminal justice program earn an average of $36,849 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Campbellsville University

9

Located in the remote town of Pikeville, UPIKE is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 28th out of 39 colleges for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were roughly 25 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UPIKE in the most recent data year. After graduating, criminal justice degree recipients usually make around $27,025 at the beginning of their careers.

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

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$32,041 Median Starting Salary

Located in the distant town of Murray, Murray State is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 16th out of 39 schools for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were about 25 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Murray State in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program report average early career income of $32,041.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Murray State University

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 2,157
Florida 282 4,836
North Carolina 279 2,701
Virginia 274 2,889
Tennessee 269 1,212
South Carolina 248 993
Louisiana 242 972
Mississippi 234 581
Arkansas 234 641
Alabama 233 1,413
West Virginia 207 1,291

View All Rankings >

Criminal Justice & Corrections is one of 4 different types of Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting programs to choose from.

Criminal Justice Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice 1,288
Criminal Justice Studies 268
Criminal Justice & Police Science 42
Securities Services Administration/Management 36
Criminal Justice and Corrections, General 25
Corrections 22

View All Criminal Justice Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Criminal Justice

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fire Protection 146
Other Homeland Security 119
Homeland Security 107
Security Science and Technology 70

View All Criminal Justice Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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