MS in Criminal Justice | Law Enforcement Leadership

Credit Hours

100% online, 8-week courses

Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total

Next Start Dates: January 19, 2026 | February 16, 2026 | March 23, 2026

Earn Your Law Enforcement Administration Degree Online with Liberty

Good leadership is critical to the success of any agency. The right leader can make all the difference — especially in law enforcement.

If you’ve got what it takes to lead others and are dedicated to serving and protecting your community, conferring Liberty University’s Master of Science (MS) in Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Leadership degree could be a great fit. Pursuing a law enforcement master’s degree can make you eligible for more positions, boost your income potential, and help you stand out to employers.

Agencies within the criminal justice system are looking for trained law enforcement professionals to place in leadership positions. Having a law enforcement administration degree can set you apart from your peers and identify you as someone who values their role as an executor of justice and public policy.

Liberty’s MS in Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Leadership degree can help prepare you for success in a variety of administrative roles. Our law enforcement master’s degree covers the laws and guidelines that govern modern law enforcement policies and helps equip you in areas such as homeland security and intelligence operations. Partner with Liberty and earn a master’s in criminal justice that can train you to incorporate your integrity into all areas of leadership, from personnel to policy.

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600+ Online Degrees
No Standardized Testing for Admission
Transfer in up to 75% of an Undergrad Degree
Transfer in up to 50% of a Grad/Doctoral Degree

Top 10 Reasons to Choose Liberty

Why Choose Liberty’s MS in Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Online?

At Liberty University, integrity matters. All of your classes will be taught from a biblical worldview by faculty with years of law enforcement experience and terminal degrees in criminal justice. A degree grounded in biblical principles can make you extremely valuable to criminal justice organizations because you can be trained to lead not only effectively, but also ethically.

Choosing Liberty University for your online master’s degree in criminal justice can open doors to advanced positions in your field. By taking your current skills to the next level, you can demonstrate your readiness to step into a leadership role. Our criminal justice master’s degree is designed to help prepare you for supervisory roles among police officers, detectives, firefighters, and many other public administration positions.

Leaders in these areas typically possess specific skill sets. Law enforcement agencies look for leaders who have strong communication, planning, and relational skills. Liberty incorporates training in these skill sets, as well as others like conflict resolution and problem-solving, into your courses because we are committed to your success as a person and as a professional. With a master’s degree in law enforcement leadership from Liberty, you can confidently influence public safety and keep your sector, state, or government organization above reproach.

What Will You Study in Your Law Enforcement Master’s Degree Online?

With anything, it’s important to know what your goals are and what you hope to get out of achieving them. Pursuing a law enforcement master’s degree online is no different. Liberty’s MS in Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Leadership is designed to prepare you with both theoretical and practical applications for your career.

Study under faculty who have years of field experience and hold terminal degrees in criminal justice. Under their guidance, you can learn how to apply relevant research and communication principles to any public administration setting. Introduce current field research and industry best practices to your work as you solve problems common to the criminal justice field.

Our leadership in criminal justice organizations master’s program can help you understand how municipal law enforcement organizations operate as well as how to connect with your community. Community relations make up a large part of law enforcement administration. Our seasoned faculty can help you gain a deeper understanding of these issues — and more.

Some of the other key concepts you will explore include:

How to integrate a Christian worldview into ethical decision-making
Human resources and how law enforcement leaders can address today’s civil rights issues
Strategic intelligence and how to create sound strategies and tactics based on effective planning, decision-making, and threat assessment
The evolution of homeland security, the history of terrorist threats, and U.S. responses

Additionally, you will be tasked with researching law enforcement leadership best practices in the administration of law enforcement members, groups, and agencies. In our master’s in criminal justice and law enforcement degree online, you can choose to write a thesis under the direction of a trained faculty committee, including a chair and a reader.

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Tuition & Aid

At Liberty University, a private Christian education is less expensive than you think. Over the last 10 years, Liberty University’s Online Program has only raised its standard tuition costs by less than 5% – and most of our online tuition rates rank in the top 35% for affordability for 2025 when compared to our leading online competitors.

Graduate Full Time	$580/Credit
Graduate Part Time	$645/Credit
Military Graduate	$290/Credit

These rates are reflective of academic year 2025-2026. Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.

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Admission Information for Liberty’s Criminal Justice Master’s Degrees

Admission Requirements

Apply online or over the phone with an admissions counselor by calling (800) 424-9596.
- A non-refundable, non-transferable $50 application fee will be posted on the current application upon enrollment (waived for qualifying service members, veterans, and military spouses – documentation verifying military status is required).
Send official college transcripts (mailed as sealed, unopened copies or sent via a direct electronic transcript system). A regionally or nationally accredited bachelor’s degree with at least a 3.0 GPA is required for admission in good standing. Applicants who have earned a master’s degree or at least 12 graduate credits from an accredited institution will be assessed on the basis of the master’s-level degree work.
- Unofficial transcripts can be used for acceptance purposes with the submission of a Transcript Request Form.
Applicants whose native language is other than English must submit official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or an approved alternative assessment. For information on alternative assessments or TOEFL waivers, please call Admissions or view the official International Admissions policy.

Preliminary Acceptance

If you are sending in a preliminary transcript for acceptance, you must:

Be in your final term and planning to start your master’s degree after the last day of class for your bachelor’s degree.
Complete a Bachelor’s Self-Certification Form confirming your completion date. You may download the form from the Forms and Downloads page or contact an admissions counselor to submit the form on your behalf.
Submit an official/unofficial transcript to confirm that you are in your final term. The preliminary transcript must show a minimum of 105 completed credit hours.
If you are a current Liberty University student completing your undergraduate degree, you will need to submit a Degree/Certificate Completion Application.
Send in an additional, final official transcript with a conferral date on it by the end of your first semester of enrollment in the new master’s degree.

Undergraduate Enrollment in Graduate Courses Policy

Transcript Policies

Unofficial College Transcript Policy

Unofficial transcripts combined with a Transcript Request Form can be used for admission. Official transcripts are required within 60 days of the admissions decision or before non-attendance drops for the first set of matriculated classes, whichever comes first, and will prevent enrollment into future terms until all official transcripts have been received.

Before sending unofficial college transcripts, please make sure they include the following:

Your previous school’s name or logo printed on the document
Cumulative GPA
A list of completed courses and earned credit broken down by semester
Degree and date conferred (if applicable)

Official College Transcript Policy

An acceptable official college transcript is one that has been issued directly from the institution and is in a sealed envelope. If you have one in your possession, it must meet the same requirements. If your previous institution offers electronic official transcript processing, they can send the document directly to luoverify@liberty.edu.

If the student uses unofficial transcripts with a Transcript Request Form to gain acceptance, all official transcripts must be received within 60 days of the admissions decision or before non-attendance drops for the first set of matriculated classes, whichever comes first. Failure to send all official transcripts within the 60-day period will prevent enrollment into future terms until all official transcripts have been received.

Admissions Office Contact Information

Submit your application online or over the phone.

Start Online Application

Apply by phone: (800) 424-9595

Liberty University is dedicated to providing world-class educational experiences to military students across the globe.

Who May Qualify?

Active Duty
Reserve/National Guard
Veterans/Retirees
Spouses of Service Members and Veterans/Retirees
Current Department of Defense Employees

Available Benefits:

Tuition discounts – $290 per credit hour for graduate courses
Additional discount for veterans who serve in a civilian capacity as a First Responder*
8-week courses, 8 different start dates each year, and no set login times (may exclude certain courses such as practicums, internships, or field experiences)

*Not applicable to certificates.

These rates are reflective of academic year 2025-2026. Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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App Fee Waived This Week*

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*Some restrictions may occur for this promotion to apply. This promotion also excludes active faculty and staff, military, non-degree-seeking, DGIA, Continuing Education, WSB, and certificate students.

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Criminal Justice Master’s – Law Enforcement Leadership Excel in Leadership

Earn Your Law Enforcement Administration Degree Online with Liberty

What Sets Us Apart?

Why Choose Liberty’s MS in Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Online?

What Will You Study in Your Law Enforcement Master’s Degree Online?

Potential Career Opportunities

Featured Courses

Degree Information

Not sure what to choose?

Tuition & Aid

Financial Aid & Scholarships

Admission Information for Liberty’s Criminal Justice Master’s Degrees

Admission Requirements

Preliminary Acceptance

Undergraduate Enrollment in Graduate Courses Policy

Transcript Policies

Admissions Office Contact Information

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Military

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to complete this degree?

What professors will we be learning under?

How will my thesis prepare me for law enforcement?

Are you ready to change your future?

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