The Ohio State Department of Corrections oversees and manages the incarceration and subsequent community transitions of more than 51,729 inmates across 32 state facilities. Incarcerated persons in Ohio are supervised by 12,310 first line correctional officers who are committed to maintaining an environment of peace, order, and respect within the facilities where they work. In addition to state-run and privately contracted prisons, Ohio also has an extensive county jail system used to hold offenders before their trial and during shorter sentences. Finally, Ohio has one federal penitentiary, the Federal Correctional Institution at Elkton that draws on state resources for its operations. As the corrections industry evolves, it is no surprise that the state and national economists predict an upward trend in job creation throughout the state even as incarceration rates fall. Total roles for front line correctional officers are expected to exceed 12,900 in total by 2022. This prediction of economic growth, coupled with job vacancies due to senior officer retirement, attrition, and promotion, the state of Ohio has began an active campaign for correctional officer recruits. To learn more about this exciting field and opportunities in Ohio, read on.
Top Schools Supporting Careers in Criminal Justice & Corrections
The following rankings are based on student data, published surveys, and other school and career data collected from several sources which include the following government agencies:
Data Sources
- National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
By obtaining our base data set from the above data sources, schools were ranked using the criteria below:
- Schools with less than 10 total graduates per year were omitted in order to maintain statistical integrity
- Schools must have at least 1 graduate in the field of criminal justice
- Only 4-year, 2-year, and technical public and private non-profit schools were included
Schools were sorted in order of the highest percentage of total students graduating with a degree in the field of criminal justice (CIPCODES: 43.0102, 43.0110, 43.0113, 43.0103, 43.0104, 43.0107, 43.0109, 43.0111, 43.0112, 43.0199).
Greene County Vocational School District
Greene County Vocational School District ranks 1st in our latest rankings with fifty-four students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 208 graduates.
Union Institute & University
Union Institute & University ranks 2nd in our rankings with 338 students completing programs in law enforcement administration out of a total 1,414 graduates in the 2012-2013 school year.
Delaware Area Career Center
Delaware Area Career Center ranks 3rd in our rankings with 60 students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 346 students.
Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical Schools
Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical Schools ranks 4th in our latest rankings with sixty-eight students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 398 students from the 2012-2013 school year.
Medina County Career Center
Medina County Career Center ranks 5th in our latest rankings with nineteen students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total 124 graduates in the 2012-2013 school year.
Butler Tech
Butler Tech-D Russel Lee Career Center ranks 6th in our rankings with eighty-three students completing programs in corrections out of a total 544 graduates in the 2012-2013 school year.
Tiffin University
Tiffin University ranks 7th in our rankings with 150 students graduating from programs in law enforcement administration and corrections out of a total 1,792 graduates.
Ohio University- Lancaster
Ohio University-Lancaster Campus ranks 8th in our latest rankings with 17 students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 214 students.
Buckeye Hills Career Center
Buckeye Hills Career Center ranks ninth in our latest rankings with eleven students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total 166 students in the 2012-2013 school year.
Polaris Career Center
Polaris Career Center ranks 10th in our rankings with 31 students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total 518 graduates from the 2012-2013 school year.
Urbana University
Urbana University ranks 11th in our rankings with nineteen students graduating from programs in law enforcement administration and criminal justice out of a total 358 graduates in the 2012-2013 school year.
Kent State University
Kent State University at Stark ranks twelfth in our latest rankings with thirteen students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total 264 graduates.
Zane State College
Zane State College ranks 13th in our latest rankings with forty-two students completing programs in criminal justice, criminal justice, and corrections out of a total a thousand students from the 2012-2013 school year.
Remington College-Cleveland Campus
Remington College-Cleveland Campus ranks 14th in our latest rankings with twenty-two students completing programs in law enforcement administration out of a total 566 graduates.
University of Cincinnati-Clermont College
University of Cincinnati-Clermont College ranks 15th in our rankings with 42 students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total a thousand students in the 2012-2013 school year.
Central State University
Central State University ranks 16th in our rankings with 19 students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 518 students in the 2012-2013 school year.
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus ranks 17th in our latest rankings with 597 students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total seventeen thousand students.
Defiance College
Defiance College ranks 18th in our rankings with 13 students completing programs in criminal justice out of a total 398 graduates from the 2012-2013 school year.
Youngstown State University
Youngstown State University ranks nineteenth in our latest rankings with 131 students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total four thousand students.
Scioto County Career Technical Center
Scioto County Career Technical Center ranks twenty in our latest rankings with eleven students graduating from programs in criminal justice out of a total 382 graduates from the 2012-2013 school year.
Continued List of All Criminal Jusitice Programs in Ohio
Program | Website |
---|---|
Heidelberg University 310 E Market St, Tiffin, OH 44883-2462 Phone: (419) 448-2000 | heidelberg.edu |
Clark State Community College 570 E Leffel Ln, Springfield, OH 45501-0570 Phone: (937) 325-0691 | clarkstate.edu |
James A Rhodes State College 4240 Campus Dr, Lima, OH 45804 Phone: (419) 221-1112 | rhodesstate.edu |
North Central State College 2441 Kenwood Circle, Mansfield, OH 44901-0698 Phone: (419) 755-4800 | ncstatecollege.edu |
Lakeland Community College 7700 Clocktower Drive, Kirtland, OH 44094-5198 Phone: (440) 525-7000 | lakelandcc.edu |
University of Mount Union 1972 Clark Ave., Alliance, OH 44601-3993 Phone: (800) 992-6682 | mountunion.edu |
Terra State Community College 2830 Napoleon Rd, Fremont, OH 43420-9670 Phone: (419) 334-8400 | terra.edu |
University of Cincinnati - Blue Ash College 9555 Plainfield Rd, Blue Ash, OH 45236-1096 Phone: (513) 745-5600 | ucblueash.edu |
Northwest State Community College 22600 State Route 34, Archbold, OH 43502-9542 Phone: (419) 267-5511 | northweststate.edu |
Owens Community College 30335 Oregon Rd, Perrysburg, OH 43551 Phone: (567) 661-7000 | owens.edu |
Bowling Green State University - Firelands One University Drive, Huron, OH 44839-9791 Phone: (419) 433-5560 | firelands.bgsu.edu |
EHOVE Career Center 316 W Mason Rd, Milan, OH 44846 Phone: (419) 499-4663 x280 | ehove.net |
Southern State Community College 100 Hobart Dr, Hillsboro, OH 45133 Phone: (937) 393-3431 | sscc.edu |
Lorain County Community College 1005 North Abbe Rd, Elyria, OH 44035-1691 Phone: (440) 366-5222 | lorainccc.edu |
Hocking College 3301 Hocking Parkway, Nelsonville, OH 45764 Phone: (740) 753-3591 | hocking.edu |
Lourdes University 6832 Convent Blvd, Sylvania, OH 43560-2898 Phone: (419) 885-3211 | lourdes.edu |
University of Toledo 2801 W Bancroft, Toledo, OH 43606-3390 Phone: (419) 530-4636 | utoledo.edu |
Eastern Gateway Community College 4000 Sunset Blvd, Steubenville, OH 43952-3598 Phone: (740) 264-5591 | egcc.edu |
Lake Erie College 391 W Washington St, Painesville, OH 44077-3389 Phone: (440) 375-7000 | lec.edu |
Edison State Community College 1973 Edison Dr, Piqua, OH 45356-9239 Phone: (937) 778-8600 | catalog.edisonohio.edu |
Wilberforce University 1055 N Bickett Rd, Wilberforce, OH 45384-1001 Phone: (937) 376-2911 | wilberforce.edu |
Sinclair Community College 444 W. Third St., Dayton, OH 45402-1460 Phone: (937) 512-3000 | sinclair.edu |
Warren County Career Center 3525 North State Route 48, Lebanon, OH 45036-1099 Phone: (513) 932-8145 x5249 | mywccc.org |
Washington State Community College 710 Colegate Dr, Marietta, OH 45750 Phone: (740) 374-8716 | wscc.edu |
University of Akron Main Campus 302 Buchtel Common, Akron, OH 44325-4702 Phone: (330) 972-7111 | uakron.edu |
Central Ohio Technical College 1179 University Drive, Newark, OH 43055-1767 Phone: (740) 366-1351 | cotc.edu |
Bowling Green State University 220 McFall Ctr, Bowling Green, OH 43403 Phone: (419) 372-2531 | bgsu.edu |
Marion Technical College 1467 Mount Vernon Ave, Marion, OH 43302-5694 Phone: (740) 389-4636 x229 | mtc.edu |
Wilmington College 1870 Quaker Way, Wilmington, OH 45177 Phone: (800) 341-9318 | wilmington.edu |
The University of Findlay 1000 North Main Street, Findlay, OH 45840-3653 Phone: (419) 422-8313 | findlay.edu |
Xavier University 3800 Victory Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45207-1092 Phone: (513) 745-3000 | xavier.edu |
Cuyahoga Community College District 700 Carnegie Ave, Cleveland, OH 44115-2878 Phone: (800) 954-8742 | tri-c.edu |
Bluffton University 1 University Drive, Bluffton, OH 45817-2104 Phone: (419) 358-3000 | bluffton.edu |
Mount Vernon Nazarene University 800 Martinsburg Rd, Mount Vernon, OH 43050-9500 Phone: (740) 392-6868 | mvnu.edu |
Baldwin Wallace University 275 Eastland Rd, Berea, OH 44017-2088 Phone: (440) 826-2900 | bw.edu |
Stark State College 6200 Frank Ave NW, North Canton, OH 44720 Phone: (330) 494-6170 x4785 | starkstate.edu |
Columbus State Community College 550 E Spring St, Columbus, OH 43215 Phone: (614) 287-5353 | cscc.edu |
Cedarville University 251 N. Main Street, Cedarville, OH 45314-0601 Phone: (937) 766-2211 | cedarville.edu |
Ohio Dominican University 1216 Sunbury Road, Columbus, OH 43219 Phone: (614) 253-2741 | ohiodominican.edu |
Ohio Northern University 525 S. Main St, Ada, OH 45810-1599 Phone: (419) 772-2000 | onu.edu |
Ashland University 401 College Ave 206G Founders Hall, Ashland, OH 44805 Phone: (419) 289-4142 | ashland.edu |
University of Dayton 300 College Park, Dayton, OH 45469 Phone: (937) 229-1000 | udayton.edu |
Miami University-Oxford 501 East High St, Oxford, OH 45056 Phone: (513) 529-1809 | regionals.miamioh.edu |
Franklin University 201 S Grant Ave, Columbus, OH 43215-5399 Phone: (614) 797-4700 | franklin.edu |
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Ohio Correctional Officer Certification Requirements
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction has an ongoing recruitment campaign for individuals who are interested in becoming correctional officers employed by the state's penitentiaries and county jails. As the role is challenging, the Ohio DRC has mandated that it will ensure that only those candidates who meet all the requirements of the role will be considered for employment. To follow the standard that they have established, the department has a multi-stage hiring process that ensures that only the best candidates will be left for selection. Applicants start the process by ensuring that they have the following proof of eligibility to accompany their online application:
- Proof of age and U.S. citizenship
- Valid Ohio driver's license
- No felony charges
- Possess a high school diploma or GED
- Veterans have proof of DD-214 (honorable discharge documents)
- Proof of negative drug test
Candidates who meet the minimum eligibility requirements for the state will then be contacted to pursue additional assessments in the institutions that they chose as part of their online profile. Those who fail any part of the assessment are welcome to reapply at a later time. The assessments are as follows:
- Fitness testing
- Physical assessment by medical staff
- Video assessment
- Extensive personal and professional background check
- Fingerprinting
Candidates who pass the assessment portion of the hiring process will be contacted for an in-person interview at which time their satisfactory status will remain active for a period of 24 months. In this time, they may be scheduled for NEO (New Employee Orientation) at the start of their position. Employment will be finalized upon successful completion of the final phase of training.
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction
770 West Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43222
Phone: (614) 387-0588
http://www.drc.ohio.gov/
Ohio Correctional Officer Employment & Outlook
Correctional Officer Salary: Ohio vs National Salary Comparison
Source: BLS State Cross-Industry Estimates 2011
The state of Ohio is committed to serve and support correctional facilities in the state by encouraging growth in the field. The median income for front-line correctional officers throughout the state is higher at $42,600 than the median national income of $39,800. CareerInfoNet.org has published state and national trends at http://www.careerinfonet.org/occ_rep.asp?next=occ_rep&Level=&optstatus=011000000&jobfam=33&id=1&nodeid=2&soccode=333012&menuMode=&stfips=39&x=61&y=14 which predict that jobs in Ohio are at a 1% decline from now until 2022. The predicted job decline translates into approximately 340 jobs annually in the form of existing vacancies over the next decade.
Occupational Employment Statistics for Correctional Officers (http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes333012.htm)
Ohio Correctional Officer Salaries By Area
The table below lists career information collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for correctional officers in Ohio. The table is sorted by total employment, with the largest metropolitan areas listed first.
Area | Total Employment | Average Hourly Wage | Average Annual Salary |
---|---|---|---|
Columbus | 2,690 | $20.18 | $41,980 |
Cleveland, Elyria, Mentor | 2,140 | $20.06 | $41,720 |
Cincinnati, Middletown | 1,430 | $18.56 | $38,600 |
Youngstown, Warren, Boardman | 1,290 | $21.30 | $44,310 |
Toledo | 490 | $19.35 | $40,260 |
Dayton | 330 | $19.98 | $41,560 |
Lima | 300 | $21.52 | $44,760 |
Akron | 180 | $16.46 | $34,240 |