Best Online Criminal Justice Programs in Princeton, NJ (2026)

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

Princeton, New Jersey has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs. Princeton has a population of about 30,451. Median household income is $184,113 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 84.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area, the top-earning criminal justice-related role is Judge or Magistrate at a median $204,160 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Criminal Justice Schools to Princeton

The 5 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 5 schools in our directory that offer criminal justice programs near Princeton. Distances are calculated from Princeton 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 Princeton. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

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

Criminal Justice Wages Near Princeton

Princeton is part of the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area (BLS area code 45940). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to New Jersey statewide.

Occupation	Median Wage	Source	COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Attorney	$138,760	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$134,457
Judge or Magistrate	$204,160	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$197,829
Police Supervisor	$132,610	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$128,498
Detective or Criminal Investigator	$110,750	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$107,316
Police or Sheriff’s Patrol Officer	$69,160	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$67,016
Correctional Officer	$94,770	NJ statewide	$91,831
Probation Officer	$80,610	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$78,110
Forensic Science Technician	$63,220	NJ statewide	$61,260
Paralegal or Legal Assistant	$73,250	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$70,979
Information Security Analyst	$129,540	Trenton-Princeton, NJ	$125,523

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.

Princeton at a Glance

Metric	Value	Source
Population	30,451	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income	$184,113	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+	84.6%	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)	103.2 (above U.S. average)	BEA RPP 2024

Other Princeton-Area Cities With Criminal Justice Programs

Trenton, NJ – 10.4 mi away (293,697 pop)
New Brunswick, NJ – 14.9 mi away (56,910 pop)
Sayreville, NJ – 19.7 mi away (44,905 pop)
South Plainfield, NJ – 20.2 mi away (24,221 pop)
North Plainfield, NJ – 21.9 mi away (22,073 pop)

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited criminal justice schools are near Princeton, NJ?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs near Princeton. The closest is Rider University in Lawrenceville, NJ (4.6 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Rutgers University-New Brunswick (15.3 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying criminal justice roles near Princeton?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying criminal justice-related roles near Princeton are: Judge or Magistrate ($204,160), Attorney ($138,760), Police Supervisor ($132,610). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with New Jersey statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Trenton instead of Princeton?

Trenton, NJ is 10.4 miles from Princeton 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 Princeton an affordable place to study criminal justice?

Princeton’s median household income of $184,113 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Princeton while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and New Jersey 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 Princeton

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

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.

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