Criminal Justice and Corrections at West Texas A & M University
Canyon, TX · Public · Bachelor's Degree
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
72
Optimistic
72
Base Case
70
Pessimistic
Earnings
$37,978/yr (-1% vs median)
AI Risk
Moderate (36% exposed)
Job Market
Very Large (480,600 openings/yr)
How AI Changes the Outlook
Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Criminal Justice and Corrections graduates.
| Optimistic No Disruption |
Base Case Gradual AI |
Pessimistic Aggressive AI |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-Year Earnings | $477K | $387K | $305K |
| Earnings Multiple (In-State) | 13.1x | 10.6x | 8.4x |
| Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) | 10.8x | 8.8x | 6.9x |
| Viable Career Paths | 20 of 20 | 20 of 20 | 20 of 20 |
| DegreeWorth Score | 72 | 72 | 70 |
10-Year Earnings Projection
*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.
4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$36,404
Out-of-state: $43,984
Median Debt at Graduation
$21,350
6.7 months of Year 1 earnings
Reported Earnings (5 Year)
$46,118
21% growth from Year 1
Career Paths
Where Criminal Justice and Corrections graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 480,600 combined openings per year.
| Career Path | Wage | Openings/yr | Growth | AI Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Managers, all other | $136,550 | 106,700 | +4.5% | 47% |
| First-line supervisors of police and detectives | $105,980 | 10,900 | +2.9% | 33% |
| Detectives and criminal investigators | $93,580 | 7,800 | -0.7% | 53% |
| Financial examiners | $90,400 | 5,700 | +18.5% | 50% |
| Emergency management directors | $86,130 | 1,000 | +3.0% | 42% |
| Transit and railroad police | $82,320 | 200 | +3.0% | 25% |
| Compliance officers | $78,420 | 33,300 | +3.0% | 64% |
| First-line supervisors of correctional officers | $76,310 | 4,300 | -2.8% | 28% |
Compare & Explore
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DegreeWorth Score for Criminal Justice and Corrections at West Texas A & M University?
This program scores 72/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 72 (optimistic) to 70 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Criminal Justice and Corrections career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Criminal Justice and Corrections graduates retain 20 of 20 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $304,631 (pessimistic) to $477,120 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Criminal Justice and Corrections graduates?
The career paths mapped to Criminal Justice and Corrections have roughly 480,600 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a very large job market.
Is Criminal Justice and Corrections at West Texas A & M University worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 10.6x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 8.4x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034
(employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE.
Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections.
"Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI.
Last updated 2025.