Best Online Criminal Justice Programs in San Rafael, CA (2026)

Updated June 11, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

San Rafael, California has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs. San Rafael has a population of about 60,604. Median household income is $109,317 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 49.4% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, the top-earning criminal justice-related role is Attorney at a median $212,500 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Criminal Justice Schools to San Rafael

The 5 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 5 schools in our directory that offer criminal justice programs near San Rafael. Distances are calculated from San Rafael city center.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from San Rafael. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California criminal justice page.

Criminal Justice Wages Near San Rafael

San Rafael is part of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area (BLS area code 41860). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.

Occupation	Median Wage	Source	COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Attorney	$212,500	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$183,824
Judge or Magistrate	N/A	CA statewide	–
Police Supervisor	$175,840	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$152,111
Detective or Criminal Investigator	$126,700	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$109,602
Police or Sheriff’s Patrol Officer	$132,000	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$114,187
Correctional Officer	$99,880	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$86,401
Probation Officer	$135,890	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$117,552
Forensic Science Technician	$109,930	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$95,095
Paralegal or Legal Assistant	$84,030	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$72,690
Information Security Analyst	$162,310	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$140,407

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

San Rafael at a Glance

Metric	Value	Source
Population	60,604	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income	$109,317	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+	49.4%	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)	115.6 (above U.S. average)	BEA RPP 2024

Other San Rafael-Area Cities With Criminal Justice Programs

Novato, CA – 7.3 mi away (56,004 pop)
San Pablo, CA – 10.0 mi away (30,536 pop)
Richmond, CA – 10.4 mi away (109,813 pop)
El Cerrito, CA – 12.9 mi away (25,400 pop)
Hercules, CA – 14.5 mi away (25,360 pop)

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited criminal justice schools are near San Rafael, CA?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs near San Rafael. The closest is College of Marin in Kentfield, CA (2.9 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Napa Valley College (23.7 miles). 3 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying criminal justice roles near San Rafael?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying criminal justice-related roles near San Rafael are: Attorney ($212,500), Police Supervisor ($175,840), Information Security Analyst ($162,310). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with California statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Novato instead of San Rafael?

Novato, CA is 7.3 miles from San Rafael and has its own set of local criminal justice programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is San Rafael an affordable place to study criminal justice?

San Rafael’s median household income of $109,317 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in San Rafael while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and California public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Criminal Justice Programs

Other Programs Available in San Rafael

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for San Rafael:

Data verified: June 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

Back to Best Online Criminal Justice Programs in California (2026)

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