Criminal Justice and Corrections at Washburn University

Washburn's criminal justice program delivers exactly what the market offers for this degree—nothing spectacular, but nothing alarming either. Starting at $40,052, graduates earn slightly above both the Kansas median ($39,317) and the national median ($37,856), landing in the 60th percentile statewide. More importantly, they carry just $20,822 in debt, roughly $5,000 less than typical Kansas criminal justice graduates and well below the national median of $26,130. That 0.52 debt-to-earnings ratio means your child would owe roughly half their first year's salary, which is manageable territory for a field that doesn't command high starting wages.

The challenge here isn't Washburn—it's the criminal justice field itself. Even top Kansas programs like Southwestern College ($60,820) can't change the fundamental reality that this career path typically leads to public sector jobs with compressed salary scales. Washburn's 18% earnings growth to $47,413 by year four suggests steady progression, but you're still looking at modest middle-class earnings. Some Kansas schools produce graduates earning 50% more, though whether that's the program or self-selection is impossible to determine from this data.

For families who understand that criminal justice isn't a path to financial affluence, Washburn offers a reasonable deal: respectable earnings for the field with below-average debt. The low debt load matters more here than in high-earning fields—it preserves financial flexibility in a career where passion for the work often matters more than the paycheck.