Best colleges for criminal justice in Minnesota
Concordia University-Saint Paul ranks first in Minnesota for criminal justice value (#29 nationally, value score 74.7): graduates earn $73,060 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $16,222 a year.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard field of study, reporting year 2025 · 8 Minnesota colleges ranked · Updated November 4, 2026
Best criminal justice colleges in Minnesota
Concordia University-Saint Paul ranks first in Minnesota for criminal justice value (#29 nationally, value score 74.7): graduates earn $73,060 4 years after the bachelor's degree, and the average net price is $16,222 a year. 8 Minnesota colleges qualify. At the median one, criminal justice graduates earn $64,533 and the average net price is $17,507 a year.
Source: U.S. College Scorecard field of study, 2025
What the data shows
Key findings
- 8 Minnesota colleges qualify. At the median one, criminal justice graduates earn $64,533 and the average net price is $17,507 a year.
- The highest criminal justice earnings in the state are at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota ($79,464), ranked #2 in the state once cost, debt and graduation rate count.
- The lowest average net price among them is at Saint Cloud State University: $16,062 a year.
- Median earnings
- $64,533
- National: $55,481
- Median net price
- $17,507
- National: $16,222
- Median federal debt
- $20,711
- criminal justice graduates
- Public colleges
- 6 of 8
- in this list
8 colleges
The Minnesota 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.
- Rank in Minnesota 1
Concordia University-Saint Paul
Saint Paul, MN · Private nonprofit · #29 nationally
74.7Value- Earnings
- $73,060
- Net price
- $16,222
- Federal debt
- $22,083
- Graduation rate
- 50%
- Rank in Minnesota 2
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Winona, MN · Private nonprofit · #32 nationally
73.8Value- Earnings
- $79,464
- Net price
- $20,422
- Federal debt
- Not reported
- Graduation rate
- 64%
- Earnings
- $64,585
- Net price
- $19,702
- Federal debt
- $20,500
- Graduation rate
- 56%
- Earnings
- $62,220
- Net price
- $17,413
- Federal debt
- $20,711
- Graduation rate
- 59%
- Earnings
- $66,850
- Net price
- $16,062
- Federal debt
- $22,750
- Graduation rate
- 44%
- Earnings
- $58,519
- Net price
- $16,327
- Federal debt
- $19,500
- Graduation rate
- 51%
- Rank in Minnesota 7
Metropolitan State University-Minnesota
Saint Paul, MN · Public · #140 nationally
58.0Value- Earnings
- $64,481
- Net price
- $26,556
- Federal debt
- $21,445
- Graduation rate
- 46%
- Rank in Minnesota 8
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Moorhead, MN · Public · #172 nationally
53.3Value- Earnings
- $55,577
- Net price
- $17,601
- Federal debt
- $17,927
- Graduation rate
- 53%
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 Minnesota
What are the best colleges for criminal justice in Minnesota?
By CollegesRef value score, the top 3 Minnesota colleges for criminal justice are Concordia University-Saint Paul (value score 74.7), Saint Mary's University of Minnesota (value score 73.8) and Minnesota State University-Mankato (value score 69.1). The score weighs graduate earnings, debt relative to earnings, average net price and graduation rate.
Which Minnesota college has the highest earnings for criminal justice graduates?
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota: its criminal justice graduates have median earnings of $79,464 4 years after the bachelor's degree.
What is the most affordable criminal justice college in Minnesota on this list?
Saint Cloud State University has the lowest average net price of the ranked Minnesota colleges, $16,062 a year after grants. A family's own price depends on income and aid.
How many Minnesota colleges are ranked for criminal justice?
8 Minnesota 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 Minnesota.