Police Officer & Detective: where to study
Every U.S. school that awarded one of the 13 programs NCES links to this career in 2023-24, certificate to doctorate. A complete list, not a ranking.
NCES IPEDS
- Checked
- 21 Oct 2026
Find a school
Filter by state, program, award level and type of school. Each result links to the school's College Navigator profile (costs, admissions, graduation rates) and its own site.
Loading 737 schools…
Programs that lead to this career
The NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk links SOC 33-3021, 33-3031, 33-3051, 33-3052 to these programs. Awards in 2023-24, all levels, first majors. 4 more linked programs had no awards at an operating school that year. NCES
View source
| Program | CIP code | Awards |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services | 03.0208 | 224 |
| Signal/Geospatial Intelligence | 29.0203 | 52 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections, General | 43.0100 | 2,147 |
| Criminal Justice/Police Science | 43.0107 | 19,712 |
| Security and Loss Prevention Services | 43.0109 | 494 |
| Law Enforcement Investigation and Interviewing | 43.0114 | 300 |
| Critical Incident Response/Special Police Operations | 43.0119 | 35 |
| Protective Services Operations | 43.0120 | 56 |
| Criminalistics and Criminal Science | 43.0402 | 573 |
| Cyber/Computer Forensics and Counterterrorism | 43.0403 | 2,342 |
| Financial Forensics and Fraud Investigation | 43.0405 | 323 |
| Geospatial Intelligence | 43.0407 | 53 |
| Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysis | 43.0408 | 190 |
By award level: (awards, not schools).
Largest programs by awards
Size tells you where many students study, not which program is best for you.
| School | Location | Type | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Ana College | Santa Ana, CA | 4-year · Public | 813 |
| American InterContinental University System | Chandler, AZ | 4-year · Private for-profit | 623 |
| Rio Salado College | Tempe, AZ | 4-year · Public | 453 |
| George Mason University | Fairfax, VA | 4-year · Public | 352 |
| Grand Canyon University | Phoenix, AZ | 4-year · Private nonprofit | 322 |
| San Bernardino Valley College | San Bernardino, CA | 2-year · Public | 312 |
| Ivy Tech Community College | Indianapolis, IN | 2-year · Public | 299 |
| Camden County College | Blackwood, NJ | 2-year · Public | 293 |
| East Los Angeles College | Monterey Park, CA | 4-year · Public | 290 |
| Southwestern Illinois College | Belleville, IL | 2-year · Public | 285 |
Schools in each state
How many schools in each state awarded one of these programs in 2023-24. Each state page lists all of its schools with cost and completion.
- Alabama13 schools
- Alaska2 schools
- Arizona23 schools
- Arkansas10 schools
- California43 schools
- Colorado18 schools
- Connecticut6 schools
- Delaware1 school
- District of Columbia2 schools
- Florida44 schools
- Georgia18 schools
- Hawaii4 schools
- Idaho4 schools
- Illinois38 schools
- Indiana10 schools
- Iowa7 schools
- Kansas11 schools
- Kentucky5 schools
- Louisiana5 schools
- Maine6 schools
- Maryland20 schools
- Massachusetts13 schools
- Michigan31 schools
- Minnesota22 schools
- Mississippi5 schools
- Missouri15 schools
- Montana2 schools
- Nebraska3 schools
- Nevada4 schools
- New Hampshire5 schools
- New Jersey20 schools
- New Mexico6 schools
- New York33 schools
- North Carolina36 schools
- North Dakota3 schools
- Ohio44 schools
- Oklahoma24 schools
- Oregon6 schools
- Pennsylvania29 schools
- Rhode Island3 schools
- South Carolina2 schools
- South Dakota5 schools
- Tennessee12 schools
- Texas41 schools
- Utah5 schools
- Vermont1 school
- Virginia12 schools
- Washington12 schools
- West Virginia11 schools
- Wisconsin18 schools
- Wyoming1 school
Registered Apprenticeship
A Registered Apprenticeship Program is a model of apprenticeship validated by the Department of Labor or a State Apprenticeship Agency Linked from apprenticeship.gov/apprenticeship-occupations. Term lengths are hours of on-the-job learning; time-based programs list one figure, hybrid programs a range.USDOL
View sourceUSDOL
| Apprenticeship occupation (DOL title) | RAPIDS code | O*NET occupation | Term (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyber All Source Analyst | 3042 | Intelligence Analysts (33-3021.06) | Time-Based 6000 Hybrid 6000–7500 Competency-Based 6000 |
| Cyber Intel Planner | 3044 | Intelligence Analysts (33-3021.06) | Time-Based 6200 Competency-Based 6200 Hybrid 6200–7750 |
| FISH & GAME WARDEN (Gov Ser) | 0902 | Fish and Game Wardens (33-3031.00) | Competency-Based 4000 Hybrid 4000–5000 Time-Based 4000 |
| MASTER HOMELAND SECURITY SPECIALIST | 2003 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Competency-Based 4000 Hybrid 4000–5000 Time-Based 4000 |
| POLICE OFFICER (Alternate Title: Military Police) | 0437 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Time-Based 4000 Competency-Based 4000 Hybrid 4000–5000 |
| Police Officer (NOF) | 0437 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Competency-Based 2000 Hybrid 2000–4000 Time-Based 2000 |
| Protective Service Specialist | 2008 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Competency-Based 2000 Hybrid 2000–2500 |
| PROTECTIVE SERVICE SPECIALIST | 2008 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Time-Based 2000 |
| PROTECTIVE SERVICE SPECIALIST (Active Duty Military) | 2008 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Competency-Based 2000 Hybrid 2000–2500 |
| Security Specialist | 1137 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Time-Based 4000 |
| Security Specialist (Alternate Title: Physical Security Specialist) | 1137 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Time-Based 2000 Competency-Based 2000 Hybrid 2000–2500 |
| Working Dog Handler | 2023 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | Competency-Based 2500 Hybrid 2500–3125 Time-Based 2500 |
Search open apprenticeship jobs on Apprenticeship.gov · What a Registered Apprenticeship is
About this list
Where these facts come from
Official and primary sources only, each checked on the date shown. Rules on testing, aid, licensing and immigration change, so confirm a detail with its source before you rely on it.
- IPEDS Completions, 2023-24 (complete data file C2024_A) · National Center for Education Statistics checked 2026-10-21
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk · National Center for Education Statistics checked 2026-10-21
- College Scorecard data, Most Recent Institution-Level file (release of 15 Oct 2026) · U.S. Department of Education checked 2026-10-21
- Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) 2020, code file · National Center for Education Statistics checked 2026-10-21
- Approved occupations for Registered Apprenticeship (spreadsheet: RAPIDS code, type, minimum term) · U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship (Apprenticeship.gov) checked 2026-10-21
- College Navigator · National Center for Education Statistics checked 2026-10-07