Best Online Criminal Justice Programs in Madison, WI (2026)

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

Madison, Wisconsin has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs. Madison has a population of about 275,568. Median household income is $76,983 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 59.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Madison, WI metro area, the top-earning criminal justice-related role is Attorney at a median $124,130 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Criminal Justice Schools to Madison

The 5 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 5 schools in our directory that offer criminal justice programs near Madison. Distances are calculated from Madison 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 Madison. 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 programs--

Published tuitionContact school for pricing

Online programsYes

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

Criminal Justice Wages Near Madison

Madison is part of the Madison, WI metro area (BLS area code 31540). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Wisconsin statewide.

Occupation	Median Wage	Source	COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Attorney	$124,130	Madison, WI	$127,575
Judge or Magistrate	$76,620	WI statewide	$78,746
Police Supervisor	$117,080	Madison, WI	$120,329
Detective or Criminal Investigator	$102,780	Madison, WI	$105,632
Police or Sheriff’s Patrol Officer	$80,580	Madison, WI	$82,816
Correctional Officer	$76,250	Madison, WI	$78,366
Probation Officer	$60,790	Madison, WI	$62,477
Forensic Science Technician	$71,470	Madison, WI	$73,453
Paralegal or Legal Assistant	$60,800	Madison, WI	$62,487
Information Security Analyst	$104,110	Madison, WI	$106,999

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.

Madison at a Glance

Metric	Value	Source
Population	275,568	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income	$76,983	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+	59.2%	Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)	97.3 (below U.S. average)	BEA RPP 2024

Other Madison-Area Cities With Criminal Justice Programs

Fitchburg, WI – 6.8 mi away (28,875 pop)
Sun Prairie, WI – 10.6 mi away (32,820 pop)
Fort Atkinson, WI – 29.7 mi away (21,399 pop)
Janesville, WI – 33.4 mi away (70,299 pop)
Watertown, WI – 34.3 mi away (23,304 pop)

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited criminal justice schools are near Madison, WI?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering criminal justice programs near Madison. The closest is Edgewood College in Madison, WI (2.1 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Maranatha Baptist University (33.8 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

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

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying criminal justice-related roles near Madison are: Attorney ($124,130), Police Supervisor ($117,080), Information Security Analyst ($104,110). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Wisconsin statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Fitchburg instead of Madison?

Fitchburg, WI is 6.8 miles from Madison 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 Madison an affordable place to study criminal justice?

Madison’s median household income of $76,983 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Madison while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Wisconsin 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 Madison

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

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 Wisconsin (2026)

Return to Best Online Criminal Justice Programs in Wisconsin (2026)