Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondarys across the U.S. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 (data.bls.gov OEWS tool /OESServices/combo/table, all-occupation crawl by area).

National mean salary $87,550 ≈ $42/hr

National median salary $76,590

Total employment 13,150 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth +2% About as fast as average

Annual openings 1,200 per year (avg)

Employment 2024→2034 16,200 → 16,500 (+300)

Typical entry education Doctoral or professional degree

Salary Map

Brighter tiles = higher average pay; dashed tiles have no data. Click a state for details.

AKME WI VT NH WA IDMT ND MN IL MI NY MA OR NV WY SD IA IN OH PA NJ CT RI CA UT CO NE MO KY WV VA MD DE AZ NM KS AR TN NC SC DC OK LA MS AL GA HI TX FL

Mean annual wage $0–$71,000 $71,000–$75,000 $75,000–$81,000 $81,000–$88,000 $88,000–$151,000 U.S. mean $87,550

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

California$150,800
Colorado$108,140
Oregon$105,590
New York$100,130
Pennsylvania$92,840

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

Kansas$58,030
Oklahoma$59,850
Arkansas$60,410
Kentucky$62,210
North Carolina$63,970

State Rankings

⇄ Compare specific states

#	State	Mean	Median	Hourly	vs. U.S.	Employment
1	California	$150,800	$139,720	$73	+72.2%	1,460
2	Colorado	$108,140	$122,050	$52	+23.5%	370
3	Oregon	$105,590	$93,960	$51	+20.6%	70
4	New York	$100,130	$82,770	$48	+14.4%	880
5	Pennsylvania	$92,840	$94,710	$45	+6%	790
6	Rhode Island	$92,540	$84,270	$44	+5.7%	70
7	Massachusetts	$91,730	$79,500	$44	+4.8%	380
8	Minnesota	$91,350	$83,060	$44	+4.3%	100
9	Louisiana	$88,910	$82,100	$43	+1.6%	70
10	Mississippi	$88,360	$78,520	$42	+0.9%	110
11	Connecticut	$86,040	$73,090	$41	-1.7%	200
12	Maryland	$85,170	$99,600	$41	-2.7%	220
13	Arizona	$84,380	$71,230	$41	-3.6%	310
14	South Carolina	$83,750	$76,960	$40	-4.3%	150
15	Delaware	$81,920	$80,510	$39	-6.4%	40
16	Wisconsin	$81,910	$81,890	$39	-6.4%	300
17	West Virginia	$81,590	$76,730	$39	-6.8%	90
18	New Hampshire	$81,460	$79,190	$39	-7%	40
19	North Dakota	$80,650	$67,720	$39	-7.9%	40
20	Michigan	$79,880	$76,770	$38	-8.8%	360
21	Texas	$79,370	$77,270	$38	-9.3%	1,150
22	Nevada	$77,140	$67,440	$37	-11.9%	60
23	Iowa	$76,240	$79,690	$37	-12.9%	80
24	Alabama	$75,810	$65,280	$36	-13.4%	130
25	Utah	$75,550	$76,650	$36	-13.7%	80
26	Ohio	$74,970	$76,610	$36	-14.4%	420
27	Indiana	$74,640	$68,340	$36	-14.7%	170
28	Washington	$74,370	$72,700	$36	-15.1%	120
29	New Jersey	$74,080	$71,610	$36	-15.4%	530
30	Missouri	$73,710	$70,500	$35	-15.8%	360
31	Wyoming	$73,390	$69,530	$35	-16.2%	40
32	Illinois	$72,770	$66,040	$35	-16.9%	480
33	Nebraska	$72,650	$61,650	$35	-17%	70
34	Tennessee	$71,420	$62,090	$34	-18.4%	190
35	Georgia	$70,540	$71,510	$34	-19.4%	320
36	Florida	$67,820	$61,550	$33	-22.5%	840
37	North Carolina	$63,970	$63,020	$31	-26.9%	1,220
38	Kentucky	$62,210	$60,280	$30	-28.9%	100
39	Arkansas	$60,410	$62,380	$29	-31%	60
40	Oklahoma	$59,850	$62,990	$29	-31.6%	90
41	Kansas	$58,030	$50,270	$28	-33.7%	70

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 78 metro areas.

#	Metro area	Median	Mean	Employment
1	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	$223,240	$200,140	150
2	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$170,070	$188,890	130
3	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$168,410	$170,200	150
4	Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA	$139,790	$145,830	50
5	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$137,340	$122,810	230
6	Bakersfield-Delano, CA	$122,730	$125,420	50
7	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	$105,680	$93,650	110
8	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$103,870	$129,070	660
9	Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA	$97,380	$93,140	30
10	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA	$93,990	$117,950	50

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondarys (BLS OEWS, by median).

#	Industry	Median	Mean	Employment
1	Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools, Local Government Owned	$208,930	$165,630	190
2	Educational Services, Local Government Owned	$84,360	$111,300	3,510
3	Local Government, including Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)	$84,360	$111,130	3,530
4	Junior Colleges, Local Government Owned	$81,890	$108,720	3,290
5	State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)	$80,080	$91,250	40
6	Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools, State Government Owned	$79,160	$82,740	4,300
7	Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	$77,890	$84,140	7,080
8	Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Schools and Hospitals and USPS	$77,270	$89,460	10,470
9	Educational Services	$76,590	$87,570	13,080
10	Cross-Industry, Private, Federal, State, and Local	$76,590	$87,550	13,150
11	Sector 61 - Educational Services	$76,590	$87,570	13,080
12	Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools, Privately Owned	$75,170	$80,510	2,590

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary make in the U.S.?

The median criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary salary in the United States is $76,590 per year (mean $87,550), and about 80% earn between $45,000 and $140,240.

How much do criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary make per hour?

Roughly $42 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $87,550 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary the most?

California has the highest average pay for criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary at $150,800 per year (median $139,720).

What is the job outlook for criminal justice and law enforcement teachers, postsecondary?

Employment is projected to change +2% from 2024 to 2034 (About as fast as average), with about 1,200 openings per year.

What People Search

Common U.S. search queries related to this occupation.

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