Cheapest Online Criminal Justice Degree Programs (2027)

UPR Carolina's Bachillerato en Artes en Ciencias Sociales en Justicia Criminal is a 127-credit interdisciplinary program with concentrations in Psicología Forense, which combines the study of human behavior with the legal processes of the criminal justice system, and Ley y Sociedad, which centers on criminal investigation and the administration of justice. Students can add another concentration for 21 more credits. The program is offered completely at a distance or in person at the Carolina, Puerto Rico campus, and students can combine both formats.

Anyone who has finished high school and meets the University of Puerto Rico admission requirements may apply, so the degree can be started straight from high school. The campus schedules its programs in cuatrimestre terms, and it describes the online criminal justice program as unique within the University of Puerto Rico system.

The Criminal Justice Bachelor of Science requires a minimum of 121 credits: 45 general education credits and 76 core credits. Core courses include Patrol Procedures, Criminal Investigations, Parole and Probation, Constitutional Law and Research Methods, and the program outcomes ask graduates to assess the effectiveness of the criminal justice system at the state, federal and tribal levels. UTTC lists the bachelor's degree as available online.

Students who enroll must be 18 years of age, hold a valid driver's license from their home state and provide official documentation of a criminal background check. The department, which also offers an Associate of Science, aims the program at students who want entry and intermediate level careers in criminal justice.

The degree totals 120 hours: the 42-hour Core IMPACTS curriculum; 18 lower-division field-of-study hours that include Introduction to Criminal Justice, Introduction to Criminology, Introduction to Criminal Law and Introduction to Corrections; a 39-hour upper-level core made up of 24 required hours (Research Methods Criminal Justice, Ethics in Criminal Justice, Theories of Criminal Behavior, Criminal Procedure & Evidence, Police Systems, Practices, and Administration, The American Judicial System, Juvenile Justice System and Delinquency, and Criminal Justice Report Writing), a capstone taken as a Criminal Justice Internship/Capstone or a Criminal Justice Independent Study/Capstone, and 12 hours of criminal justice electives; and 21 hours of general electives. Students who choose the Homeland Security and Emergency Management track take White Collar and Cyber Crime, Homeland Security, Terrorism and Emergency Management. MGA lists the program as 100% online.

Students may declare the major during admission to MGA or at any point in their studies, freshmen and sophomores follow the catalog's curriculum outline, and transfer students are welcome, though a transferred grade meant to satisfy a criminal justice core or major elective course must be at least a C. All criminal justice core and major electives need a C or higher, and students must keep a 2.00 GPA to stay in good standing. MGA also lists campus transfer pathways into the online degree, and its program page points to internships with agencies such as the MGA Police Department and the Bleckley County Sheriff's Office.

GSW's bulletin describes the degree as an online program offered through a Cooperative Academic Arrangement among GSW, Dalton State College, Georgia Highlands College and the University of West Georgia, and the program page explains that eMajor is a partnership of University System of Georgia institutions supported by the USG's eCampus unit, which also supports eCore. The curriculum builds a foundation in the knowledge, principles, theories and functions of the American criminal justice system, and its stated outcomes cover critical analysis of criminal justice concepts and theory, academic and professional writing, research and scholarship, and professional and ethical values; the bulletin lists performance in CRJU 4700 Ethical Issues in CJ among its outcome assessments. As with every GSW bachelor's degree, graduation requires at least 120 semester hours.

The bulletin says the program is designed for adult learners, military students, working adults and returning students seeking degree completion, and the program page lists credit for prior learning among its features. GSW notes that the drop/add period for eMajor criminal justice courses may differ from its own calendar. The university also offers a Criminal Justice Certificate through the eMajor collaborative program with Dalton State College, with all classes online.

Inter American University of Puerto Rico's Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice totals 121 credits: 48 in general education, 40 in core courses, 21 in the major, and the rest in prescribed distributive requirements and electives. The Ponce, Puerto Rico campus lists the Criminal Investigation and Forensic Investigation majors, and the university catalog names this campus among those authorized to offer the Criminal Investigation major through online education.

Admission follows the university-wide undergraduate rules: high school graduation with a 2.00 grade point average plus results from the PAA university admission test or an equivalent test and a qualifying admission index, or high school graduation with a 3.00 grade point average, which needs no admission test results. Both options start from high school graduation, so students can begin straight from high school. A practice course in criminal or forensic investigation is an option within the distributive requirements; students who take it must complete it in Puerto Rico, and it may be replaced by an investigation project.

Inter American University of Puerto Rico's Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice totals 121 credits: 48 in general education, 40 in core courses, 21 in the major, and the rest in prescribed distributive requirements and electives. The curriculum is interdisciplinary and stresses the causes and spread of crime and the methods and modern techniques of criminal justice. At the Barranquitas, Puerto Rico campus, students choose a major in Criminal Investigation or Forensic Investigation, and the catalog lists this campus among those authorized to offer both majors through online education.

Admission follows the university-wide undergraduate rules: high school graduation with a 2.00 grade point average plus results from the PAA university admission test or an equivalent test and a qualifying admission index, or high school graduation with a 3.00 grade point average, which needs no admission test results. Both options start from high school graduation, so students can begin straight from high school. A practice course in criminal or forensic investigation is an option within the distributive requirements; students who take it must complete it in Puerto Rico, and it may be replaced by an investigation project.

The degree totals 121 credits: general education, a criminal justice core that includes Introduction to Criminology, Social-Scientific Research Methodology and a Seminar in Criminal Justice, prescribed distributive requirements, and a major. The Criminal Investigation major includes Interviews and Interrogations, Criminal Investigation and Evidence Management, and the Forensic Investigation major includes Forensic Investigation I and Analysis of Data for Forensic Investigation. A practice course in criminal or forensic investigation is an option within the prescribed distributive requirements, and students who take it must complete the practice in Puerto Rico. The university catalog lists the Aguadilla, Puerto Rico campus among the campuses authorized to offer the Criminal Investigation major through online education, and the campus lists that major in its online academic offering.

Undergraduate admission rests on completing an accredited high school with at least a 2.00 GPA or its equivalent, and the campus online admission page asks applicants for a high school transcript.

The Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice covers crime, criminality and correctional systems, principles of criminal law, race, gender and special populations in the justice system, evidence-based practices, and contemporary issues and reform in policing, courts and corrections. The program page lists focus areas in forensics, sociology and substance abuse, and students can take the degree online or in person, with all major coursework available online.

Online students must transfer in all of UNCP's general education requirements, because general education and non-major courses may not be offered online, so the online route suits students who arrive with those credits. The department cites agreements with many North Carolina community colleges for transfer students, and internships give students a chance to apply what they learn.

The Criminal Justice (BS) takes 120 credit hours: 38 in the university core and 82 in criminal justice. Courses include introduction to law enforcement, introduction to criminal justice, criminological theory and criminal justice ethics, with electives such as police and society, drugs and crime, white collar crime and comparative criminal justice. After the 38 core credits and four 200-level required criminal justice courses, students can complete the upper-level major courses and electives face to face or online.

The online degree completion option is for students who have finished their general education requirements: FSU says its online completion programs are not for first-time college students and require at least 30 transferable credit hours and a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher, plus approval from the academic department. Transfer students must complete at least 30 credit hours at FSU and can apply up to 90 transfer credit hours.