PhD in Criminal Justice Programs in Arizona

Updated September 21, 2026

Arizona State University’s School of Criminology and Criminal Justice runs Arizona’s PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice, built around comprehensive exams and a dissertation. Most admitted students get funded through a graduate assistantship covering tuition and a stipend. Expect roughly four years of full-time study on top of a related master’s degree, and confirm funding terms directly with the program.

You already know the field from the inside, and a PhD is how you turn that knowledge into research, policy work, or a professorship. It’s the terminal degree in criminal justice: built around original research rather than coursework alone. Here’s what Arizona’s actual doctoral program involves, and what the data shows about career outcomes.

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What Can You Do With a PhD in Criminal Justice in Arizona?

A criminal justice PhD is built for research, policy work, and university teaching. It’s the standard credential for CJ faculty positions, though BLS notes some postsecondary teaching roles, particularly at community colleges, accept a master’s degree instead.

Criminal justice and law enforcement professors in Arizona earn a median $71,230 a year, per May 2025 BLS wage data. Arizona is projected to add about 20 of these positions between 2024 and 2034, a 5.6% increase from the current 390, with roughly 30 openings a year once you count replacement hiring alongside new growth, per ProjectionsCentral’s state projections.

May 2025 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary figures for Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary. Long-term (2024-34) job growth projections from the US Department of Labor-sponsored resource, ProjectionsCentral. Figures reflect state-level data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed September 2026.

Outside the classroom, a CJ PhD also supports research and policy-analysis work at criminal justice agencies, government offices, and research organizations, though those paths don’t come with the same tracked occupational data as the teaching role.

What It Takes to Earn a Criminal Justice Doctorate in Arizona

ASU’s PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice, run through its School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, requires a minimum of 84 credit hours: at least 72 hours of coursework plus 12 hours of dissertation credit, a written comprehensive examination, and a dissertation that makes an original contribution to the field. If you already hold a related master’s degree or a JD, the program can apply up to 30 of those credit hours toward the 84, with your graduate committee’s approval.

Full-time students who already hold a related master’s can expect to finish in around four years. Without one, plan on longer.

Most admitted PhD students are funded through a graduate or teaching assistantship, typically a stipend plus tuition remission and health insurance in exchange for about 20 hours of work a week. Funding is contingent on continued availability and satisfactory progress, and the exact number of funded years and stipend amount have varied by cohort. Get the current terms in writing from the program directly before you commit.

Required coursework centers on criminological theory, research methods, and statistical analysis. Core courses in ASU’s program include:

Seminar on Criminological Theory
Seminar on Criminal Justice Policies and Practices
Advanced Research Design
Advanced Statistical Analysis
Special Problems in Quantitative Methods

From there, you’ll choose elective coursework across criminology, criminal justice, and related fields, such as sociology, political science, public administration, and psychology, in consultation with your supervisory committee. Electives include advanced-topics courses in theoretical criminology, policing, courts and sentencing, corrections, juvenile justice, and crime and victimization.

Where to Study a Criminal Justice Doctorate in Arizona

Arizona State University’s School of Criminology and Criminal Justice runs the state’s PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice, an on-campus program based in Tempe. It’s the doctoral-level option documented directly for this page, verified against the program’s own admissions and curriculum pages.

If you’re weighing whether a PhD is the right next step, or want a master’s first, six other Arizona institutions report a master’s-level program in the criminal-justice-family CIP codes, per U.S. Department of Education data, and a seventh offers the same coursework fully online:

Institution	City	Control	Program Area (Master’s level)
Arizona State University Campus Immersion	Tempe	Public	Criminal Justice and Corrections, Homeland Security
University of Arizona	Tucson	Public	Criminal Justice and Corrections
Grand Canyon University	Phoenix	Private for-profit	Criminal Justice and Corrections, Fire Protection
University of Phoenix-Arizona	Phoenix	Private for-profit	Criminal Justice and Corrections
Aspen University	Phoenix	Private for-profit	Criminal Justice and Corrections
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott	Prescott	Private nonprofit	Criminal Justice and Corrections

Arizona State University also runs a fully online Digital Immersion track (Criminal Justice and Corrections, Homeland Security) at the master’s level for students who don’t need a campus.

School and program data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, institution file May 2025 and field-of-study file April 2025. Data accessed September 2026.

Contact ASU’s School of Criminology and Criminal Justice directly for current admissions requirements, deadlines, and funding details before you apply.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Arizona have criminal justice PhD programs?

Yes. Arizona State University’s School of Criminology and Criminal Justice offers a PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice, an on-campus doctoral program built around required coursework, a comprehensive exam, and a dissertation.

How long does a PhD in criminal justice take?

At ASU’s program, full-time students who already hold a related master’s degree can expect to finish in around four years. Without one, plan on longer, since the degree requires a minimum of 84 credit hours plus comprehensive exams and a dissertation.

Will my PhD program pay for itself?

Most students admitted to ASU’s program are funded through a graduate or teaching assistantship, which typically includes a stipend, tuition remission, and health insurance. Funding is contingent on continued availability and your academic progress, and the exact terms have varied by cohort. Get the current offer in writing before you enroll.

What jobs can I get with a criminal justice PhD?

The degree is built for university teaching, research, and policy roles. Criminal justice and law enforcement professors in Arizona earn a median $71,230 a year, per May 2025 BLS wage data, though BLS notes some postsecondary teaching positions, especially at community colleges, accept a master’s degree instead of a doctorate.

Key Takeaways

ASU runs the state’s PhD – Arizona State University’s School of Criminology and Criminal Justice offers Arizona’s PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice, verified directly against the program’s own pages.
Plan on around four years with a master’s in hand – The 84-hour program includes a comprehensive exam and a 12-credit dissertation. Plan on longer if you’re starting without a related graduate degree.
Funding is common but not guaranteed – Most admitted students get a graduate assistantship (stipend, tuition remission, health insurance), contingent on availability and progress. Confirm current terms directly.
CJ and law enforcement professor is the clearest BLS-tracked career line – Arizona’s postsecondary CJ faculty earn a median $71,230 a year, though some teaching roles accept a master’s instead of a PhD.

Before you commit, get ASU’s current funding offer in writing: how many years it covers, what the stipend actually is, and what happens if your research runs long. If a PhD isn’t the right fit yet, the master’s-level programs listed above are a reasonable place to build toward one.

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Want the bigger picture? Read the full guide to Doctoral Degrees in Criminal Justice | DCJ and PhD.