Criminal Justice and Corrections at West Texas A & M University

West Texas A&M's Criminal Justice program delivers what you'd expect: graduates find work quickly in law enforcement or corrections, but they're not making dramatically more money than someone with just a high school diploma and a year of training. Starting at $38,000, graduates earn slightly above the national median for criminal justice programs and rank in the 60th percentile among Texas schools—meaning they're outearning three out of five similar programs in the state. The debt load of $24,365 is manageable, coming in below both state and national averages.

The bigger question is whether criminal justice as a field justifies four years of college. Graduates see modest earnings growth to $42,373 by year four, but even this puts them well below top Texas programs like Wayland Baptist ($53,000) or Texas A&M-Central Texas ($46,000). The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.64 suggests your child can pay off loans within a reasonable timeframe, though it's worth asking whether they could achieve similar outcomes through community college or police academy training at a fraction of the cost.

If your child is committed to criminal justice and wants the full university experience, West Texas A&M represents a solid mid-tier choice in Texas with predictable outcomes. But this isn't a career field where the bachelor's degree commands a significant premium, so cheaper educational paths deserve serious consideration.