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Best Forensic Psychology Schools Near Fort Walton Beach, FL
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Fort Walton Beach, Florida is home to about 20,956 residents. Median household income is $66,556 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 27.8% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Florida, the top-earning forensic psychology-related role is Psychologists, All Other at a median $134,690 annually (BLS, May 2025).
Closest Forensic Psychology Schools to Fort Walton Beach
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer forensic psychology programs near Fort Walton Beach, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Fort Walton Beach city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
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:
BOCSCORE
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 Fort Walton Beach.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Sort:
#1
Florida Institute of Technology
📍
Melbourne, FL
•
396.4 miles from Fort Walton Beach
Fort Walton Beach is part of the Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL metro area (BLS area code 18880). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Florida statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Clinical and Counseling Psychologists
$105,570
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
$108,835
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists
$54,200
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
$55,876
Detectives and Criminal Investigators
$67,750
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
$69,845
Forensic Science Technicians
$64,140
FL statewide
$66,124
Psychologists, All Other
$134,690
FL statewide
$138,856
Social and Human Service Assistants
$40,150
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
$41,392
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives
$81,090
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
$83,598
Rehabilitation Counselors
$45,990
FL statewide
$47,412
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.
Fort Walton Beach at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
20,956
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$66,556
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
27.8%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
97.0 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Fort Walton Beach-Area Cities With Forensic Psychology Programs
What are the highest-paying forensic psychology roles near Fort Walton Beach?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying forensic psychology-related roles near Fort Walton Beach are: Psychologists, All Other ($134,690), Clinical and Counseling Psychologists ($105,570), First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives ($81,090). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Florida statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Crestview instead of Fort Walton Beach?
Crestview, FL is 22.5 miles from Fort Walton Beach and has its own set of local forensic psychology programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Fort Walton Beach an affordable place to study forensic psychology?
Fort Walton Beach’s median household income of $66,556 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Fort Walton Beach while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Florida 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.
Data verified: September 5, 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.
