St. John’s criminal justice program has been ranked nationally at number 19 by bestvalueschools.com as one of the best value colleges to obtain a criminal justice degree.

The list was compiled in December 2017 and the rankings are based off of criminal justice program popularity, the total number of criminal justice programs, acceptance rate, graduation rate, retention rate and net price, according to the website.

The website states that, like the website’s name, they focus on affordability, and they write “we also limited consideration to schools with an average annual net price below $30,000. Lastly, we created a minimum threshold for quality by only researching schools with retention and graduation rates greater than 50% and admission rates below 85%.”

Marissa Fenn, a junior criminal justice student, agrees that the ranking is deserved and believes the program’s alumni have contributed to its success.

“I think that the reason why this program is so successful is in part due to its connections,” Fenn said. “We have an unparalleled alumni network in the field, which gives us unique access to a diversity of internship opportunities that other schools would not have such easy access to.”

St. John’s ranked before schools in the Northeast like York College of Pennsylvania, Kean University and St. Thomas Aquinas College.

Some other local schools who ranked before St. John’s included St. Joseph’s College, The College of New Jersey, Penns State and the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.  

Bestvalueschools.com mentions the opportunities the program offers to students is top of the line. Aspiring police officers can join the NYPD Cadet Program but if practicing law is a student’s focus they can join the Legal Society to meet and network with legal luminaries.

Katia Passerini, dean of the College of Professional Studies, where the criminal justice program lives, said she is glad this rank recognizes the multiple factors that go into presenting students with a distinguished criminal justice program.

“This ranking reflects St. John’s enduring mission to provide quality, affordable education to all,” Passerini said.

She also noted that the University is committed to the expansion of essential degree programs as evidenced by a Master Program in Homeland Security and Criminal Justice Leadership, and the recent opening of the new Doctor of Professional Studies in Homeland Security.

Senior and Criminal Justice major Nate Woodcock said that although he’ll be commissioning as an Infantry Officer in the Army after graduating this May, he believes his degree in criminal justice from St. John’s will set him up for success following his time in the Army.

“The professors have vast amounts of knowledge to share from their experiences on the job, which only better prepares the students for their futures,” he said. “With all the successful professors from the criminal justice field teaching at St. John’s it is no surprise that it was ranked as a top program.”

Fenn added about the faculty they “aren’t just teaching from a book, they’re teaching from 10, 15, 20 years in the exact jobs that these college students will soon fulfill, and that gives the educational value of this program an incredible edge on other school’s programs.”