Criminologist education requirements

Q: What degree do you need to be a criminologist?

You need a bachelor's degree in criminal justice, psychology, or sociology to be a criminologist. Many colleges and universities have degree programs in criminology but, if not, there is also the option of majoring in sociology or psychology with a minor in statistics or computer science. Criminologists also need to understand laws and law enforcement procedures, so you may take criminal justice courses.

Q: What job can you get with a criminology degree?

You can get many jobs with a criminology degree, such as police detective, criminology professor, or forensic psychologist. These all require specialized requirements, but a degree in criminology can be extremely beneficial to all of these career paths. Police Detective Police detectives solve special crimes that need more resources than a police officer would have. To do their job well, police detectives need to be able to think like a criminal. A degree in criminology will aid them in this and give them the tools necessary to solve crimes. Criminology Professor If you are passionate about criminology as well as teaching, becoming a criminology professor is a great fit. Criminology professors will generally hold doctorate degrees in criminology or a related field. They will work in university settings, and may choose to publish scholarly articles in criminology. Forensic Psychologist Forensic psychologists will generally hold a degree in psychology as well as criminology. Forensic psychology is where psychology and criminology meet, as you will try to understand the reason and motive behind a criminal's actions and activities. You will often work closely with detectives and police officers.

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a criminologist. Criminologists usually study criminal justice, criminology, or sociology. 50% of criminologists hold a bachelor's degree, and 42% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 19 real criminologist resumes to see exactly what criminologist education sections show.

The most common colleges for criminologists are the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pennsylvania.

There are also many online criminologist courses to help get the education required to be a criminologist.

What education do you need to become a criminologist?

What degree do you need to be a criminologist?

The most common degree for criminologists is bachelor's degree, with 50% of criminologists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 42% and master's degree degree at 8%.

Bachelor's, 50%

Master's, 42%

Diploma, 8%

What should I major in to become a criminologist?

You should major in criminal justice to become a criminologist. 23% of criminologists major in criminal justice. Other common majors for a criminologist include criminology and sociology.

Criminal Justice, 23%

Criminology, 23%

Sociology, 8%

Psychology, 8%

Other Majors, 38%

Most common colleges for criminologists

Criminologists often get their degrees at University of Pennsylvania, California Baptist University, and San Diego State University. Here are the most common colleges for criminologists in the US based on their resumes.

Criminologist common college	Percentages
University of Pennsylvania	11.11%
California Baptist University	11.11%
San Diego State University	11.11%
University of Maryland - College Park	11.11%
Indiana University South Bend	11.11%

Show more common criminologist colleges

Best majors for criminologists

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Criminal Justice	23.1%
2	Criminology	23.1%
3	Sociology	7.7%
4	Psychology	7.7%
5	Mental Health Counseling	7.7%

Show more common criminologist majors

Best colleges for criminologists

The best colleges for criminologists are Columbia University in the City of New York, University of Pennsylvania, and Northwestern University.

A criminologist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for criminologists. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become criminologists.

1. University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$10,595

Enrollment

30,184

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

3. University of California, Irvine

Irvine, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$13,700

Enrollment

29,722

4. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$55,695

Enrollment

6,596

5. SUNY at Albany

Albany, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$10,011

Enrollment

13,434

6. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

7. University of Washington

Seattle, WA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,207

Enrollment

30,905

8. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

In-state tuition

$53,399

Enrollment

7,356

9. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$14,184

Enrollment

30,845

10. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

20 best online courses for criminologists

Advertising disclosure

1. Crisis Communications

Crisis Communications is designed to empower professionals with the knowledge and skills to effectively navigate and respond to crisis situations through interviews...

2. Psychological First Aid

Learn to provide psychological first aid to people in an emergency by employing the RAPID model: Reflective listening, Assessment of needs, Prioritization, Intervention, and Disposition. Utilizing the RAPID model (Reflective listening, Assessment of needs, Prioritization, Intervention, and Disposition), this specialized course provides perspectives on injuries and trauma that are beyond those physical in nature. The RAPID model is readily applicable to public health settings, the workplace, the...

3. Crisis Intervention Seminar

4.4

(634)

The emphasis is on the development of fundamental clinical skills in the area of crisis intervention...

4. Public Relations: Media Crisis Communications

4.6

(2,248)

Public Relations: You Can Shape and Control Your Media Messages at The Worst Possible Times...

5. Violence Against Healthcare

At the global level, there are many countries marked by violence affecting health care. The 'Health care in danger' project aims to establish practical measures and recommendations that can be implemented on the ground by policy-makers, humanitarian organizations and health professionals. In view of the multiplicity of actors and latitudes concerned, it is essential to be able to make available the tools needed to make informed decisions, guide behaviour in high-risk areas and provide everyone...

6. Hot Topics in Criminal Justice

The American criminal justice system is in need of reform. We incarcerate too many people. We pay insufficient attention to scientific advances that can help separate out the most and least culpable and dangerous. We grant the police far too much power to use force and technological surveillance. As a way of thinking about dealing with these problems, this course examines two over-arching issues: What should we do with people who have committed crime, and how should we identify who they are? On...

7. Abnormal Behavior & Clinical Psychology (Certificate)

4.4

(383)

Guiding students into the field of mental health services for either personal and/or professional development...

8. Internal Controls - Design, Implementation and Monitoring

4.4

(1,188)

Become a compliance specialist, maintain strong internal controls for SOX or FCPA, prepare for internal & external audit...

9. Recommender Systems

A Recommender System is a process that seeks to predict user preferences. This Specialization covers all the fundamental techniques in recommender systems, from non-personalized and project-association recommenders through content-based and collaborative filtering techniques, as well as advanced topics like matrix factorization, hybrid machine learning methods for recommender systems, and dimension reduction techniques for the user-product preference space.\n\nThis Specialization is designed to...

10. Creating Behavioral Change

In this course you will learn about understanding and changing mental and physical health behavior. We will examine both the historical context and the current science. Major topics will include fundamental behavioral principles and basic elements of empirically supported individual treatments (e.g., motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapies). Lectures and examples will illustrate both the theory and the practice of evidence-based approaches to behavior change. You will engage...

11. Digital Diversity/Cyber-Citizen/Cross-Cultural Communication

4.5

(6,325)

Learn Global Leadership, Communications, Listening, and Conflict Management Skills for Teams...

12. Professional Accredited Forensic Psychology Diploma Course

4.5

(250)

A Fascinating Insight Into The Minds Of Criminals by Using Forensic Psychology. Fully Accredited Course...

13. Professional Certification in Akashic Records (Accredited)

4.4

(641)

Become a Professional Akashic Record Reader to access and modify records and soul contract ⚫ UK Accredited Qualification...

14. Communication Skills Masterclass - Your Communication Guide

4.5

(961)

Communication Skill For Business Communication & Effective Communication In Workplace & Relationships...

15. Communication Skills for Professionals

4.6

(1,035)

Learn the Top 5 essential communication skills that every professional should put into practice...

16. ChatGPT for Better Business Communication

4.5

(548)

How to use AI to Increase Productivity and Communicate More Effectively [Improve Business Writing Skills with GPT 4]...

17. Medical Device Regulation 2017/745 EU regulatory affairs.

4.3

(764)

Understand regulations for medical devices in simple terms to gain market approval of a medical device in the EU...

18. Executive Communication Training

4.5

(272)

Being a great leader without being a great communicator is nearly impossible...

19. Bank Reconciliations & Cash Internal Controls

4.5

(645)

Mastering Internal Controls and Cash Management: Safeguarding Business Assets and Ensuring Financial Accuracy...

20. Communication Fundamentals: How To Communicate Better

4.5

(82,838)

Become an Effective Communicator And Learn How to Get Your Message Across By Learning Communication Fundamentals...

Top 10 most affordable universities for criminologists

The most affordable schools for criminologists are USF Sarasota-Manatee, hunter college of the city university of new york, and california state university - long beach.

If the best universities for criminologists are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for criminologists.

1. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

2. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

3. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

4. Queens College of the City University of New York

Queens, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,338

Cost of attendance

14,281

5. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

6. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

7. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

8. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

9. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

10. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for criminologists

The hardest universities for criminologists to get into are Columbia University in the City of New York, University of Pennsylvania, and Northwestern University.

Some great schools for criminologists are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for criminologists based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,512

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

3. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

4. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

5. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,516

6. Brown University

Providence, RI • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

7. University of Chicago

Chicago, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,520

8. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

9. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

10. Emory University

Atlanta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,449

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for criminologists

The easiest schools for criminologists to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, curry college, and felician university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a criminologist without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for criminologists.

1. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

2. Curry College

Milton, MA • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,026

3. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

4. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

5. Bluefield College

Bluefield, VA • Private

Admissions rate

95%

SAT average

980

6. The University of Texas Permian Basin

Odessa, TX • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,046

7. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

8. University of Houston - Downtown

Houston, TX • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

1,012

9. Texas A&M University - Kingsville

Kingsville, TX • Private

Admissions rate

89%

SAT average

1,035

10. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

Average criminologist salary by education level

Criminologists with a Doctorate degree earn more than those without, at $59,197 annually. With a Master's degree, criminologists earn a median annual income of $54,827 compared to $45,653 for criminologists with an Bachelor's degree.

Criminologist education level	Criminologist salary
Master's Degree	$54,827
Bachelor's Degree	$45,653
Doctorate Degree	$59,197

Criminologist education FAQs

What degree do you need to be a criminologist?

What job can you get with a criminology degree?

What is the best college for Criminologists?

Have more questions? See all answers to common life, physical, and social science questions.

Search for criminologist jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Zippia Careers
Life, Physical, and Social Science Industry
Criminologist
Criminologist Education

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse life, physical, and social science jobs