Best Criminal Justice Schools in New Mexico

19 schools offering criminal justice degrees in New Mexico are in our database (see below).
Of the criminal justice programs in New Mexico, 18 offer associate’s degrees or certificates, 4 offer bachelor’s degrees and above, and 2 offer master’s or doctoral degrees.
2 schools offering online criminal justice degrees in New Mexico ranked in US News & World Report’s Best Online Bachelor’s Programs: New Mexico State University (#183), University of the Southwest (#209).
0 schools in New Mexico are on Kiplinger’s Best College Values.

Profiles of Well-Known Schools

University of New Mexico: The Department of Sociology and Criminology at the University of New Mexico offers an undergraduate degree in Criminology for students wishing to work in law or corrections. Majors can pursue their own research interests through one of the seven affiliate institutes or centers including the Center on Alcohol Substance Abuse and Addictions as well as the Institute for the Study of Race and Social Justice. Over two dozen full-time and part-time faculty teach for the Department of Sociology and Criminology with many specializing in deviance, hate crimes, and comparative criminology. One of the most notable features of the department is the active participation of students and faculty in the Presentation Series, which is held twice a month in the Sociology Commons.

New Mexico State University: Having one of the oldest programs of its kind in the nation, the Department of Criminal Justice at New Mexico State University offers both a BCJ and an MCJ, both of which can be earned completely online. The faculty are nationally acclaimed professionals, five of whom have received the Patricia Christome and Donald C. Roush Awards for teaching excellence. The department actively participates in CAMP (College Assistance Migrant Program), a program helping farm workers attend college. Those enrolled in the Master of Criminal Justice program can pursue one of three different educational avenues: the Focused Coursework Option, the Project Option, or the Thesis Option.

New Mexico Criminal Justice Salary and Jobs

Occupation	Number Employed	Average Annual Salary
Correctional Officers and Jailers	3,920	$32,630
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	550	$74,230
Detectives and Criminal Investigators	1,690	$75,170
Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers	3,950	$48,480

Data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics as of May 2015.^4,5,6,7

Respected leaders who have graduated from universities in New Mexico

Bernalillo County New Mexico Sheriff Dan Houston- University of Albuquerque, NM
Santa Fe County New Mexico Sheriff Robert Garcia- Santa Fe Community College, NM
Chaves County New Mexico Sheriff James R Coon- Eastern New Mexico University, NM
Santa Fe New Mexico City Police Chief Raymond Rael- Santa Fe Community College, NM
Las Cruces New Mexico City Police Chief Richard S Williams – New Mexico State University, NM

Police Quote: “What I was told awhile back was to always know your audience. Both in and out of the station. As a person in uniform, you are always looked at, stared at, and commented about. So act like you are always on camera. Act professionally and respectfully and all will fall into place…Approximately 1% of the applicants make it through the academy and 30% of those make it through to a full career and healthy retirement. So you gotta ask yourself ‘Do you feel lucky?’ I have been with an outstanding department and never had a bad assignment.” -Matt Findlay

New Mexico Criminal Justice Degrees

Attending a New Mexico criminal justice program provided by one of the many accredited colleges, technical institutes, universities, or online programs in New Mexico offers the chance to study in a unique environment in cities like Taos, Roswell, Las Cruces, Santa Fe, and Albuquerque. New Mexico is rich in culture, natural beauty, and ethnic diversity. This forward-looking state is at the forefront in its focus on border protection and homeland security, creating excellent job opportunities in this sector. The New Mexico Border Authority is the only state agency of its kind in the nation, charged with oversight of international ports of entry. Acquiring a bachelor’s degree can qualify you for a border patrol job. You can also train as a first responder or in national security science to jump-start a career working in New Mexico’s Counterterrorism Unit, Advisory System Taskforce, or the Transportation Security Administration on the front line of defense against security threats and in the event of a disaster.

Law enforcement occupations in the state are commonly under the umbrella of the New Mexico Justice Network, an agency that includes the Department of Public Safety, Attorney General, District Attorney. and Public Defender offices, Sentencing Commission, and more.

New Mexico Criminal Justice Salary

While a career in criminal justice offers many intrinsic benefits like serving the community and interesting work experience, the financial compensation is often competitive with other career fields. The average annual salary of police officers in New Mexico is $48,480 while first-line supervisors at police agencies in New Mexico earn an average of $74,230.^5,7 Correctional officers earn an average of $32,630 while detectives in New Mexico make an average of $75,170.^4,6 Those working in careers as paralegals and legal assistants earn an average annual salary of $41,840 in New Mexico.⁸

New Mexico’s Criminal Justice Employment Outlook

The unemployment rate for New Mexico in May 2016 was 6.2%, which was above the national average of 4.7%.⁹ The state’s unemployment peaked in October 2010 with 8%, and New Mexico’s 10-year low was 5.4% in November 2008.⁹ Government-related employment is a good indicator of criminal justice jobs in New Mexico. Projections Central includes the following criminal justice job estimates for the period through 2024:

Police and Sheriff Patrol: 150 annual openings; 46% in these positions report completing at least some college, with 24% holding an associate’s degree.^10,11
Correctional Officers: Not available; 37% in these positions report completing at least some college, with 15% holding a post-secondary certificate.^10,12
Detectives and Criminal Investigators: 50 annual openings; 37% in these positions report completing at least some college, with 21% holding an associate’s degree.^10,13
Security Guards: 100 annual openings; 4% in these positions report completing at least some college.^10,14
Paralegals and Legal Assistants: 30 annual openings; 86% in these positions report completing at least some college, with 30% holding an associate’s degree and 44% holding a bachelor’s degree.^10,15

Note that these positions are based on estimates of employment growth as well as replacements.

The Mercatus Center, a conservative think tank, rated and analyzed the long-term solvency of each state. After analyzing New Mexico’s budgeting, cash/tax collection, and pensions, the state was ranked 34th in the nation.¹⁶ This indicates that new employees should keep an eye on the state’s ability to pay out its employee pensions.

Copy and Paste the following HTML code to add this infographic to your site:<img src="https://2cka5v3o6m3z1nd8vc3innc1-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/new-mexico.png" alt="new mexico"/><br />Infographic by <a href="https://www.criminaljusticedegreeschools.com/criminal-justice-schools/new-mexico/">Criminal Justice Degree Schools</a>

Directory of New Mexico Universities Offering Campus-based and Online Criminal Justice Degrees

If you are interested in pursuing a degree in New Mexico, we recommend finding an accredited campus-based or online program for your associate’s, bachelor’s, or master’s degree in the growing field of criminal justice.

Tip: If you don’t live near a campus-based school that offers a program of interest, consider an online degree or a university in an adjacent state (Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma, or Texas).

Note: Student Reviews are based on the experiences of a few individuals and it is unlikely that you will have similar results. Please review the “Data, Student Reviews and Other Information” section in our Terms of Use and Disclaimers.

Central New Mexico Community College (Albuquerque)
Associate of Applied Science | Criminal Justice
Associate of Applied Science | Geographic Information Technology
Associate of Arts | Human Services
Associate of Arts | Criminology
Certificate of Completion | Geographical Information Systems
Certificate of Completion | Substance Abuse Counselor

Clovis Community College (Clovis)
Associate of Applied Science | Academy-Based Criminal Justice
Associate of Applied Science | Criminal Justice
Associate of Applied Science | Criminal Justice (online program)
Associate of Science | Behavioral Science
Associate of Science | Behavioral Science (online program)
Certificate of Completion | Criminal Justice (online program)

Eastern New Mexico University (Roswell)
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice
Bachelor of Science | Criminal Justice
Bachelor of Arts | Criminal Justice
Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences | Criminal Justice/Sociology Concentration

Luna Community College (Las Vegas)
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice
Certificate | Criminal Justice
Certificate | Corrections
Certificate | Law Enforcement

Mesalands Community College (Tucumcari)
Associate of Applied Science | Law Enforcement
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice

Navajo Technical College (Crownpoint)
Associate of Applied Science | Law Advocate
Associate of Applied Science | Geographical Information Technology
Certificate | Geographical Information Technology

New Mexico Junior College (Hobbs)
Associate of Applied Science | Criminal Justice
Certificate | Corrections
Certificate | Criminal Justice

New Mexico State University (Carlsbad; Las Cruces)
Bachelor of Criminal Justice degree (online program)
Bachelor of Science | Geography: Geographic Information Science and Technology
Master of Criminal Justice degree (online program)
Minor | Forensic Science
Minor | Child Advocacy Studies
Minor | Geographic Information Science and Technology
Graduate Minor | Geographic Information Science and Technology

New Mexico State University Alamogordo (Alamogordo)
Associate Degree | Criminal Justice
Associate Degree | Social Services

Student Review: “I really enjoyed the Criminal Justice program. When I first started, I was a little wary wondering if I was even going to pass a class with so much reading and writing. However once I started I really got into it. There weren’t a lot of students in the class however, but being a community branch of the college there were maybe only a quarter of the students there compared to main campus. I learned a lot about different court cases and legalities in the very first class I took. I remember the second class in Criminal Justice we had guest speakers from the crime scene unit of the town I lived in. They spoke about what they did and what they sometimes see. They had lots of pictures. I remember one that I will never forget: a man had a heart attack while smoking a cigarette and died. He dropped the cigarette and it lit his house on fire. The fire department and crime unit got there but he was already gone. The picture showed him on the couch with his face melted. It was really quite disturbing. The following semester we did a mock crime scene and I really enjoyed that. We documented everything that we saw and tried to solve the “case”. I think that was my most favorite of all.” – Student at New Mexico State University Alamogordo

New Mexico State University Dona Ana Community College (Las Cruces)
Associate of Criminal Justice degree
Associate of Criminal Justice degree (online program)
Associate of Applied Science | Corrections
Associate of Applied Science | Law Enforcement

New Mexico State University Grants (Grants)
Associate Degree | Criminal Justice
Associate Degree | Criminal Justice: Corrections
Bachelor Degree | Criminal Justice
Certificate | Corrections

Northern New Mexico College (Espanola)
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice
Associate of Arts | Substance Abuse Counselor
Associate of Applied Science | Police Science
Bachelor of Integrated Studies | Crime and Justice Studies
Certificate | New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy

San Juan College (Hobbs)
Associate in Applied Science | Criminal Justice
Associate in Arts | Criminal Justice

University of New Mexico (Albuquerque, Los Lunas)
Associate of Arts | Criminology

University of New Mexico – Gallup Campus (Gallup)
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice: Corrections
Associate of Arts | Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement
Associate of Arts | Human Services
Associate of Arts | Human Services: Substance Abuse
Certificate | Human Services

University of the Southwest (Hobbs)
Bachelor of Science | Criminal Justice

Western New Mexico University (Silver City)
Associate of Science | Criminal Justice
Associate of Arts | Human Services
Associate of Applied Science | Computer Technology: Cyber Security
Bachelor of Applied Science | Criminal Justice: Corrections
Bachelor of Applied Science | Criminal Justice: Corrections (online program)
Bachelor of Applied Science | Criminal Justice: Policing
Bachelor of Applied Science | Criminal Justice: Policing (online program)
Bachelor of Arts/ Science | Chemical Dependency
Bachelor Degree | Forest Wildlife/ Law Enforcement
Minor | Chemical Dependency
Minor | Criminal Justice
Minor | Digital Forensics
Certificate | Border Security Studies (pending approval)
Certificate | Detention Officer
Certificate | Digital Forensics
Certificate | Law Enforcement Training
Certificate | Private Security Officer

William Carey University (Ruidoso)
Bachelor of Science | Criminal Justice
Minor | Criminal Justice

References:
1. National Center for Education Statistics: https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
2. US News & World Report, Best Online Programs: https://www.usnews.com/education/online-education
3. Kiplinger’s Best College Values: http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-public-colleges/index.php
4. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2015 Occupational Employment and Wages, Correctional Officers and Jailers https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes333012.htm
5. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2015 Occupational Employment and Wages, First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes331012.htm
6. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2015 Occupational Employment and Wages, Detectives and Criminal Investigators: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes333021.htm
7. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2015 Occupational Employment and Wages, Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes333051.htm
8. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2015 Occupational Employment and Wages, Paralegals and Legal Assistants: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes232011.htm
9. Y Charts 10 Year Unemployment Chart: http://https://ycharts.com/indicators/new_mexico_unemployment_rate
10. Projections Central Long Term Occupational Projections: http://www.projectionscentral.com/Projections/LongTerm
11. O*Net OnLine, Police Patrol Officers: https://www.onetonline.org/link/details/33-3051.01
12. O*Net OnLine, Correctional Officers and Jailers: https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/33-3012.00
13. O*Net OnLine, Police Detectives: https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/33-3021.01
14. O*Net OnLine, Security Guards: https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/33-9032.00
15. O*Net OnLine, Paralegals and Legal Assistants: https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/23-2011.00
16. Mercatus Center, George Mason University, Ranking the States by Fiscal Condition 2016 Edition: https://www.mercatus.org/statefiscalrankings