Best colleges for criminal justice in Illinois
University of Illinois at Chicago ranks first in Illinois for criminal justice value (#9 nationally, value score 82.5): graduates earn $59,295 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $9,540 a year.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard field of study, reporting year 2025 · 13 Illinois colleges ranked · Updated November 4, 2026
Best criminal justice colleges in Illinois
University of Illinois at Chicago ranks first in Illinois for criminal justice value (#9 nationally, value score 82.5): graduates earn $59,295 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $9,540 a year. 13 Illinois colleges qualify. At the median one, criminal justice graduates earn $57,915 and the average net price is $15,833 a year.
Source: U.S. College Scorecard field of study, 2025
What the data shows
Key findings
- 13 Illinois colleges qualify. At the median one, criminal justice graduates earn $57,915 and the average net price is $15,833 a year.
- The highest criminal justice earnings in the state are at Western Illinois University ($63,125), ranked #2 in the state once cost, debt and graduation rate count.
- The lowest average net price among them is at University of Illinois at Springfield: $7,528 a year.
- Median earnings
- $57,915
- National: $55,481
- Median net price
- $15,833
- National: $16,222
- Median federal debt
- $19,500
- criminal justice graduates
- Public colleges
- 7 of 13
- in this list
13 colleges
The Illinois ranking
Ordered by the national value score; the national rank is shown with each college. Earnings are medians 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
- Earnings
- $59,295
- Net price
- $9,540
- Federal debt
- $12,000
- Graduation rate
- 61%
- Earnings
- $63,125
- Net price
- $10,018
- Federal debt
- $22,250
- Graduation rate
- 49%
- Earnings
- $62,640
- Net price
- $17,318
- Federal debt
- $14,000
- Graduation rate
- 57%
- Earnings
- $62,506
- Net price
- $17,829
- Federal debt
- $19,500
- Graduation rate
- 67%
- Earnings
- $60,808
- Net price
- $19,385
- Federal debt
- $17,010
- Graduation rate
- 61%
- Rank in Illinois 6
University of Illinois at Springfield
Springfield, IL · Public · #73 nationally
66.5Value- Earnings
- $55,780
- Net price
- $7,528
- Federal debt
- $18,574
- Graduation rate
- 53%
- Rank in Illinois 7
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville
Edwardsville, IL · Public · #102 nationally
62.6Value- Earnings
- $57,915
- Net price
- $13,111
- Federal debt
- $21,916
- Graduation rate
- 56%
- Earnings
- $56,414
- Net price
- $10,171
- Federal debt
- $23,383
- Graduation rate
- 55%
- Earnings
- $53,121
- Net price
- $9,377
- Federal debt
- $14,937
- Graduation rate
- 25%
- Rank in Illinois 10
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · #202 nationally
49.5Value- Earnings
- $58,145
- Net price
- $36,340
- Federal debt
- $23,250
- Graduation rate
- 72%
- Rank in Illinois 11
University Park, IL · Public · #254 nationally
41.3Value- Earnings
- $55,811
- Net price
- $15,833
- Federal debt
- $23,500
- Graduation rate
- 23%
- Earnings
- $49,480
- Net price
- $23,165
- Federal debt
- $19,000
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Rank in Illinois 13
Bourbonnais, IL · Private nonprofit · #304 nationally
33.1Value- Earnings
- $51,300
- Net price
- $19,978
- Federal debt
- $23,656
- Graduation rate
- 60%
Method: the same value score as the national criminal justice ranking (earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate, each a national percentile). Data: College Scorecard, reporting year 2025; 2026–27 edition, verified Nov 2026.
Questions about criminal justice colleges in Illinois
What are the best colleges for criminal justice in Illinois?
By CollegesRef value score, the top 3 Illinois colleges for criminal justice are University of Illinois at Chicago (value score 82.5), Western Illinois University (value score 75) and Lewis University (value score 74.4). The score weighs graduate earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate.
Which Illinois college has the highest earnings for criminal justice graduates?
Western Illinois University: its criminal justice graduates have median earnings of $63,125 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
What is the most affordable criminal justice college in Illinois on this list?
University of Illinois at Springfield has the lowest average net price of the ranked Illinois colleges, $7,528 a year after grants. A family's own price depends on income and aid.
How many Illinois colleges are ranked for criminal justice?
13 Illinois colleges have a criminal justice bachelor's program with enough graduates and reported earnings, plus a published net price and graduation rate. Ranks shown are national; the state rank is their order within Illinois.