Seminole State College of Florida Criminal Justice (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Associate's in Criminal Justice and Corrections
  • Public college
  • Sanford, FL
  • About 17 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Seminole State College of Florida criminal justice graduates earn about what criminal justice graduates earn nationally, $36,589 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $12,942 in federal loans, close to the national median of $12,524. One other Florida program reports higher pay.

First-year earnings$36,58965th percentile of 246 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$48,67733% more than year one
Median federal debt$12,9424th lowest of 6 Florida programs
Debt-to-earnings35%Florida median 37%, national 37%

How it compares

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

Five years out, Seminole State College of Florida graduates earn more than the national figure and about $4,740 more than the Florida median.

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

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

Seminole State College of FloridaOther Florida 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 33% between the first and fifth year.

Seminole State College of Florida grads, year 1$36,589
Seminole State College of Florida grads, year 5$48,677
All Florida criminal justice grads, year 5$43,937

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

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $137 a month, or 4.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the Orlando area are about 1% above the national average, so a $36,589 salary here buys what about $36,077 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

$35,900

Median pay in Florida. 95,370 people work in this job in Florida. 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%: $29,470Top 10%: $46,090

Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers

$74,470

Median pay in Florida. 43,630 people work in this job in Florida. 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%: $51,330Top 10%: $98,190

Compliance Officers

$74,920

Median pay in Florida. 29,680 people work in this job in Florida. 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%: $44,130Top 10%: $127,420

Child, Family, and School Social Workers

$56,550

Median pay in Florida. 14,000 people work in this job in Florida. 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%: $39,760Top 10%: $79,580

About Seminole State College of Florida

Criminal Justice ranks 6th of 10 associate's programs at Seminole State College of Florida by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($70,052), Diagnostic and Treatment Professions ($65,841), and Paralegal Studies ($44,783).

Other criminal justice associate's programs near Sanford

Common questions

The median graduate earns $36,589 one year after graduating and $48,677 five years after. The median across criminal justice associate's programs in Florida is $33,950.

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 Florida 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

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

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