Bachelor's · San Diego, California

Is Criminal Justice and Corrections at Point Loma Nazarene University worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back slowly: graduates typically recover the cost in about 9.7 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $52,156; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $63,570; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $18,750; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $172k (likely $172k – $172k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $23k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 9.7 years (likely 7.0–15.2); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$151k (likely −$260k – −$39k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $148k (likely −$86k – $406k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 77%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26