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2025 Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama

12 Colleges in Alabama
1,369 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.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 12 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,369 degrees in criminal justice & corrections annually.

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

Choosing a Great Criminal Justice & Corrections School

Best Criminal Justice & Corrections Schools in Alabama 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. 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.

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
Master'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 Alabama. 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 Alabama

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 Alabama Schools in Criminal Justice

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
444 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$60,087 Median Starting Salary

It is hard to beat Columbia Southern University if you want to pursue a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Columbia Southern University is a large private for-profit university located in the fringe town of Orange Beach. A Best Colleges rank of #109 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Columbia Southern University is a great university overall.

There were about 444 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Columbia Southern University in the most recent data year. Those criminal justice & corrections students who get their degree from Columbia Southern University receive $19,332 more than the typical criminal justice student.

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

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
96 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$34,459 Median Starting Salary

University of Alabama at Birmingham is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in criminal justice & corrections. UAB is a very large public university located in the city of Birmingham. A Best Colleges rank of #299 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UAB is a great university overall.

There were roughly 96 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UAB in the most recent data year. After graduating, criminal justice degree recipients generally make around $34,459 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from University of Alabama at Birmingham

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
196 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$42,235 Median Starting Salary

Troy University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Located in the town of Troy, TROY is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 24th out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were about 196 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at TROY in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, criminal justice degree recipients generally earn an average of $42,235 in their early careers.

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

4
Faulkner crest
Faulkner University
Montgomery, AL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
138 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$58,649 Median Starting Salary

Faulkner University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in criminal justice & corrections. Faulkner is a small private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Montgomery. This university ranks 37th out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were about 138 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Faulkner in the most recent data year. Criminal Justice & Corrections degree recipients from Faulkner University get an earnings boost of about $17,894 over the average income of criminal justice & corrections graduates.

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

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
33 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$33,879 Median Starting Salary

Jacksonville State University is a medium-sized public university located in the small suburb of Jacksonville. This university ranks 25th out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were approximately 33 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Jacksonville State University in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, criminal justice degree recipients typically earn about $33,879 at the beginning of their careers.

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

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
43 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$36,216 Median Starting Salary

Located in the medium-sized city of Mobile, USA is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #737 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means USA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 43 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at USA in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program report average early career wages of $36,216.

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

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
52 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
25.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Florence, UNA is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #1168 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNA is a great university overall.

There were about 52 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at UNA in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the criminal justice program state that they receive average early career income of $31,595.

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

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
47 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
$32,898 Median Starting Salary

Alabama State is a small public university located in the city of Montgomery. This university ranks 38th out of 42 colleges for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were approximately 47 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Alabama State in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, criminal justice degree recipients generally make an average of $32,898 at the beginning of their careers.

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

9
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
15th Most Popular In AL

Located in the town of Athens, Athens State University is a public university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #944 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Athens State University is a great university overall.

There were roughly 10 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at Athens State University in the most recent year we have data available.

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

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
46 Criminal Justice Degrees Awarded
32.6% Growth in Graduates

AAMU is a moderately-sized public university located in the medium-sized city of Normal. This university ranks 39th out of 42 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were about 46 criminal justice & corrections students who graduated with this degree at AAMU 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 $31,682.

More information about a degree in criminal justice & corrections from Alabama A & M 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
Kentucky 244 960
Louisiana 242 972
Mississippi 234 581
Arkansas 234 641
West Virginia 207 1,291

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 487
Criminal Justice & Police Science 391
Criminal Justice Studies 389
Other Corrections & Criminal Justice 102

View All Criminal Justice Concentrations >

Majors Similar to Criminal Justice

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fire Protection 940
Homeland Security 319
Security Science and Technology 92
Other Homeland Security 9

View All Criminal Justice Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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