How much debt do Kent State criminal justice graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $25,937, which ranks 4th lowest of 17 criminal justice bachelor's programs in Ohio. That works out to about $275 a month over 10 years.

Is a criminal justice degree from Kent State worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 76% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 67%. Compare the cost with other Ohio programs before deciding.

Do Kent State criminal justice graduates stay in Ohio?

Most do. 87% (213 of 245) were working in Ohio one year after graduating.

Kent State Criminal Justice (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Criminal Justice and Corrections
Public university
Kent, OH
About 155 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Kent State criminal justice graduates earn less than graduates of most criminal justice programs nationally, $33,980 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $25,937 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,000. Several Ohio programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$33,98024th percentile of 557 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$47,15939% more than year one

Median federal debt$25,9374th lowest of 17 Ohio programs

Debt-to-earnings76%Ohio median 70%, national 67%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Ohio and national columns are the medians across all criminal justice bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Kent State	Ohio	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$33,980	$38,103	$37,641
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$47,159	$52,771	$53,142
Median federal debt at graduation	$25,937	$27,000	$26,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	76%	70%	67%
Programs compared		17	557

Five years out, Kent State graduates earn less than the national figure and about $5,612 less than the Ohio median. Several Ohio programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Ohio criminal justice program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Ohio medians.

Kent StateOther Ohio programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

What graduates earn over time

Pay rises about 39% between the first and fifth year.

Kent State grads, year 1$33,980

Kent State grads, year 5$47,159

All Ohio criminal justice grads, year 5$52,771

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Does family income change the outcome?

Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned about the same in their first year as other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $28,850 against $23,250.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$34,021Median debt $28,850

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$33,928Median debt $23,250

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $275 a month, or 9.7% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (315 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	5–9%
Paying down the balance	15–19%
Paused payments (forbearance)	25–29%
In default	5% or less

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 76 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $25,734.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

87% of graduates (213 of 245) were working in Ohio one year after graduating. Prices in the Akron area are about 7% below the national average, so a $33,980 salary here buys what about $36,393 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to criminal justice, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Security Guards

$35,770

Median pay in Ohio. 34,450 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 156,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $29,030Top 10%: $55,440

Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers

$77,020

Median pay in Ohio. 23,430 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 51,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $51,110Top 10%: $103,210

Compliance Officers

$75,030

Median pay in Ohio. 11,240 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 32,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,230Top 10%: $124,230

Child, Family, and School Social Workers

$51,520

Median pay in Ohio. 16,050 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 33,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $39,810Top 10%: $75,850

About Kent State

In-state tuition and fees	$13,232 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$23,082 / year
Average net price after aid	$20,787 / year
Admission rate	86%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	64%
Undergraduate students	19,320

Criminal Justice ranks 35th of 56 bachelor's programs at Kent State by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($66,990), Construction Management ($64,652), and Computer Science ($60,051).

Other criminal justice bachelor's programs near Kent

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Kent StateKent, OH · public		$33,980	$25,937
University of AkronAkron, OH · public	10 mi	$38,547	$27,000
University of Mount UnionAlliance, OH · private nonprofit	21 mi	$38,440	$27,000
Baldwin Wallace UniversityBerea, OH · private nonprofit	31 mi	$42,407	$27,000
Youngstown StateYoungstown, OH · public	36 mi	$37,325	$24,465
Thiel CollegeGreenville, PA · private nonprofit	53 mi	$33,652	$27,000
Ashland UniversityAshland, OH · private nonprofit	55 mi	$42,172	$29,406

Common questions

The median graduate earns $33,980 one year after graduating and $47,159 five years after. The median across criminal justice bachelor's programs in Ohio is $38,103.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Ohio comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the criminal justice program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Criminal Justice bachelor's programs in Ohio, ranked17 programs by pay and debt Criminal Justice bachelor's programs in the US, ranked557 programs by pay and debt All Kent State programs, ranked66 programs by pay and debt