California students who want to earn a bachelor’s degree in crime scene investigation online have more choices outside the state than within it. California colleges offer strong campus-based CSI and forensic programs, but the current online bachelor’s market is dominated by universities in other states that enroll distance students.
The degree titles also vary. Some schools award a B.S. in Criminal Justice with a Crime Scene Investigation concentration. Others use names such as Forensic Investigation, Forensic Science, or Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics. The title alone does not tell you how much time the program spends on photography, fingerprints, evidence recovery, scene reconstruction, chemistry, or laboratory work.
For students primarily interested in field CSI, the strongest online programs are the ones that devote substantial coursework to documenting scenes, collecting and preserving evidence, fingerprint analysis, photography, criminal investigation, and reconstruction. Students aiming for crime-laboratory work should look for much more chemistry and biology.
For campus-based California choices at every degree level, see Crime Scene Investigation Degrees in California. Students comparing broader distance programs can also review online forensic science degrees.
Online CSI Bachelor’s Programs to Compare
| School | Program | Credits | CSI / Forensic Focus | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah Valley University | B.S. in Forensic Science — Forensic Investigation | 124 | CSI, photography, fingerprints, bloodstains, reconstruction, death investigation | Online graduation plan published; verify individual lab delivery |
| Liberty University | B.S. in Criminal Justice — Crime Scene Investigation | 120 | Crime-scene management, photography, cyber forensics, criminal investigation | 100% online |
| Purdue Global | B.S. in Criminal Justice — Crime Scene Investigation | 180 quarter credits | Fingerprints, CSI, trace evidence, forensic chemistry | 100% online |
| Columbia Southern University | B.S. in Forensic Investigation | 120 | Evidence recognition, collection, preservation, criminal investigation | 100% online |
| PennWest University | B.S. in Criminal Justice — Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics | 120-credit bachelor’s pathway | Forensic investigation, cyber evidence, criminal justice | 100% online |
| Salem University | B.A. in Criminal Justice — Crime Scene Investigation | 120 | Photography, fingerprints, scene management, ballistics, digital evidence | 100% online |
| Arizona State University | B.S. in Forensic Science | 120 | Science-heavy forensic analysis with crime-investigation applications | Primarily online with required in-person lab work |
| American InterContinental University | B.S. in Criminal Justice — Forensic Science | 180 quarter credits | Criminalistics, evidence, death investigation, crime scenes | 100% online |
These programs are not equivalent. UVU and ASU contain considerably more natural science than most criminal-justice-based options. Liberty, Purdue Global, Columbia Southern, PennWest, and Salem lean more toward investigation and scene work. AIU sits between those categories but is still fundamentally a criminal justice degree rather than a chemistry- or biology-intensive forensic science bachelor’s.
Utah Valley University — B.S. in Forensic Science, Forensic Investigation Emphasis
Utah Valley University offers one of the strongest undergraduate forensic-investigation curricula available to students looking for an online-oriented pathway.
The B.S. in Forensic Science — Forensic Investigation Emphasis is designed specifically around field forensic work. UVU describes the program as preparation for careers involving crime scenes, medicolegal death investigation, latent prints, firearms, bloodstain patterns, and other investigative specialties.
The 124-credit curriculum includes much more science than the average online criminal justice degree.
What students study
The foundational curriculum includes:
- College Biology and laboratory
- General Chemistry I and II with laboratories
- Physics I and II with laboratories
- Statistics
- Criminal Law
- Laws of Evidence
- Criminalistics
- Forensic Microscopy
- Crime Scene Investigation Techniques
Upper-division forensic coursework includes:
- Forensic Photography
- Fingerprint Processing
- Fingerprint Examination
- Bloodstain Pattern Analysis
- Complex Scene Analysis and Reconstruction
- Digital Evidence in Forensic Investigations
- Forensic Pathology
- Medicolegal Death Investigations
Students can also choose electives in areas such as footwear and tire evidence, trace analysis, forensic anthropology, firearms examination, cold-case investigation, forensic genealogy, serology, DNA, and drug chemistry.
That is considerably deeper CSI training than a criminal justice degree with four concentration courses.
FEPAC accreditation
UVU’s Forensic Investigation B.S. is currently accredited by the Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission (FEPAC). UVU says its investigation program became one of the first CSI-focused bachelor’s programs in the country to receive FEPAC accreditation.
FEPAC accreditation is program-specific, so this is more meaningful than general institutional accreditation when comparing forensic curricula.
Admission to the upper-division forensic program
Beginning with the Fall 2026 requirements, students applying to matriculate into the Forensic Science B.S. need an overall GPA of at least 2.7, grades of C or better in specified math, science, and criminal justice courses, and completion of prerequisites that include English, criminal justice, mathematics, biology, and chemistry.
UVU created its A.S. in Forensic Science as a preparatory route into the bachelor’s program.
How online is it?
The current UVU catalog publishes an online graduation plan for the Forensic Investigation B.S. and directs students to the university’s online course listings. California students should still verify the delivery of individual laboratory and upper-division forensic courses before assuming the entire 124-credit sequence can be completed without any travel or local arrangements.
For fully online undergraduate students living outside Utah, UVU currently lists a flat rate of $285 per credit.
For a student who wants serious science plus CSI rather than a general criminal justice degree, UVU is one of the strongest programs to investigate.
Liberty University — B.S. in Criminal Justice, Crime Scene Investigation
Liberty University offers a 120-credit B.S. in Criminal Justice — Crime Scene Investigation that is delivered 100% online.
The degree uses Liberty’s criminal justice core as its foundation, then adds technical CSI coursework. It is less science-intensive than UVU but considerably more focused on field investigation than a general criminal justice bachelor’s.
CSI coursework
The concentration includes courses such as:
- Crime Scene Photography
- Crime Scene Management
- Computer and Cyber Forensics
- Criminal Investigations
Liberty describes the degree as preparation in gathering and processing evidence, documenting scenes, working with investigative forensics, and understanding how physical evidence moves through the criminal justice process.
The curriculum is designed around the investigation side of forensics rather than laboratory chemistry. Students interested in civilian CSI, law-enforcement investigation, evidence work, or related field roles may find that alignment useful.
Online structure and transfer credit
Courses are generally offered in eight-week online terms, and Liberty allows students to transfer in up to 75% of the bachelor’s degree when prior coursework qualifies.
For 2026–27, Liberty lists online undergraduate tuition at $390 per credit for full-time students and $455 per credit for part-time enrollment. The university also publishes a reduced military rate.
Because Liberty is a Christian university, biblical and religious studies are incorporated into the general education curriculum. Students comparing programs should account for that institutional emphasis as well as the CSI coursework.
The program is a more direct fit for field investigation than for California laboratory criminalist positions, which typically demand a stronger natural-science major.
Purdue Global — B.S. in Criminal Justice, Crime Scene Investigation Concentration
Purdue Global offers a 100% online B.S. in Criminal Justice with a Crime Scene Investigation concentration.
The bachelor’s requires 180 quarter credits, equivalent to 120 semester credits under the university’s stated conversion. Students complete the criminal justice core and then use four concentration courses to specialize in CSI.
The four-course CSI concentration
Current concentration requirements are:
- CJ328 — Forensic Fingerprint Analysis
- CJ345 — Supervisory Practices in Criminal Justice
- CJ370 — Crime Scene Investigation II
- CJ385 — Forensic Chemistry and Trace Evidence Analysis
The inclusion of forensic chemistry and trace evidence gives Purdue’s concentration some scientific content, although the degree as a whole remains a criminal justice program rather than a natural-science forensic degree.
Purdue Global also offers a separate Crime Scene Technician Certificate using many of the same courses. Credits from that certificate can apply toward a later Purdue Global bachelor’s degree, which can be useful for students who want a smaller credential first.
Flexibility and cost
Purdue Global lists the B.S. as 100% online, with 10-week courses and an average four-year completion timeline for students following the standard full-time sequence.
Current standard undergraduate tuition is $371 per quarter credit. Purdue Global lists a total standard tuition figure of $66,780 for the full bachelor’s before transfer credit, financial aid, military reductions, or other adjustments.
An optional internship can add real-world exposure, and certified law-enforcement personnel may be eligible for prior-learning or training credit.
For someone who wants an online criminal justice bachelor’s with a clearly defined CSI concentration, Purdue Global is a legitimate option. Students seeking extensive laboratory science should compare UVU or ASU instead.
Columbia Southern University — B.S. in Forensic Investigation
Columbia Southern University is unusual because the entire bachelor’s degree is titled B.S. in Forensic Investigation rather than placing forensics inside a criminal justice concentration.
The 120-credit program is offered 100% online and is designed around recognizing, collecting, preserving, and interpreting evidence for law-enforcement and investigative work.
Curriculum and forensic emphasis
The degree includes 36 credits of major requirements along with general education, program electives, and open electives.
Columbia Southern describes its learning outcomes around:
- Applying forensic analysis to crime scenes and evidence
- Using forensic techniques in criminal investigation
- Understanding outside disciplines that affect forensic work
- Applying criminal and civil law to evidence collection and admissibility
The program is more investigation-oriented than laboratory-oriented. It includes natural-science general education, but students should not confuse it with a chemistry or biology bachelor’s designed for crime-laboratory criminalists.
Online delivery, transfer credit, and California authorization
The program is 100% online, with 11 start dates per year. Columbia Southern permits up to 90 transfer credits toward the 120-credit bachelor’s when accepted.
Current undergraduate tuition is $278 per credit. If a student completed all 120 credits at that rate, base tuition would be $33,360 before any applicable fees or discounts.
Columbia Southern has also explicitly addressed California distance enrollment: the university states that it is registered with the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education because California is not part of NC-SARA.
That makes its California enrollment status clearer than many out-of-state online schools.
Columbia Southern works best for students who want a flexible, investigation-centered bachelor’s at a comparatively low published tuition rate and do not need the heavy chemistry sequence associated with laboratory criminalistics.
PennWest University — B.S. in Criminal Justice, Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics
PennWest University offers its B.S. in Criminal Justice with a Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics concentration through PennWest Global Online.
One potentially confusing detail: PennWest has a campus called California, but that campus is in California, Pennsylvania—not the state of California. California residents interested in this degree would be using the university’s Global Online option.
PennWest explicitly says the criminal justice bachelor’s and its concentrations are offered 100% online.
Physical and digital investigation
The concentration combines traditional criminal investigation with cyber forensics rather than treating CSI as exclusively physical evidence.
That can be useful for students who want a broader investigative skill set as agencies increasingly encounter cases involving phones, computers, online activity, and other digital evidence alongside conventional scenes.
Students receive the broader B.S. in Criminal Justice while specializing in Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics. This makes the program less narrowly focused on scene photography and fingerprints than Liberty or Salem, but potentially more versatile for investigations that cross physical and digital evidence.
Cost for California residents
PennWest Global Online publishes separate rates for Pennsylvania and out-of-state students. For 2026–27, the out-of-state Global Online rate is:
- $354 per credit in tuition
- $48 per credit technology fee
- $56.90 per credit instructional support fee
The university lists a combined rate of $458.90 per credit before books and any course-specific charges.
For students interested in both CSI and digital evidence, PennWest gives the bachelor’s a broader investigative orientation than programs focused entirely on physical crime scenes.
Salem University — B.A. in Criminal Justice, Crime Scene Investigation
Salem University offers another degree with CSI directly in the specialization title: a B.A. in Criminal Justice — Crime Scene Investigation.
The program can be completed 100% online and uses a one-course-per-month schedule. Salem says full-time students can complete the bachelor’s in approximately 40 months, although actual timelines vary.
A 15-credit CSI specialization
The degree includes 75 foundational and elective credits, 30 credits in the criminal justice core, and 15 credits specifically in Crime Scene Investigation.
Those five specialization courses are:
- Introduction to Crime Scene Photography
- Fingerprints and Impression Evidence
- Crime Scenes Management
- Ballistics and Firearm Identification
- Digital Evidence
The criminal justice core also includes Criminal Investigation and Forensics, Criminal Evidence and Constitutional Procedure, criminal law, research and statistics, ethics, and a capstone.
Salem therefore provides a fairly balanced field-investigation curriculum: photography, prints, impressions, firearms, digital evidence, law, and criminal investigation all receive dedicated coursework.
The university also describes practical training in crime-scene analysis, evidence collection, and courtroom testimony preparation, with a final capstone and practicum component.
Students who want an exact CSI specialization and an accelerated one-course-at-a-time online schedule may find Salem appealing. As with Liberty and Purdue Global, however, the degree is rooted in criminal justice rather than the natural sciences required for many crime-laboratory jobs.
Broader Online Forensic Bachelor’s Options
Two additional programs are relevant but answer a somewhat broader search intent.
Arizona State University — Online B.S. in Forensic Science
ASU’s 120-credit online B.S. in Forensic Science is more science-intensive than most CSI programs on this page.
Students study chemistry, biology, statistics, analytical methods, forensic analysis, and evidence, with electives that can extend into forensic biology, toxicology, chemistry, photography, anthropology, DNA, and related subjects.
This can be a stronger choice for someone who wants to keep laboratory forensic science open as a career direction rather than specialize immediately in field CSI.
It is not completely remote. ASU requires hands-on laboratory components for online forensic science students, including an in-person forensic laboratory intensive. California students should plan for travel and related expenses.
For 2026–27, ASU lists tuition for most online undergraduate programs at $580 per credit, before program-specific college fees.
American InterContinental University — B.S. in Criminal Justice, Forensic Science
AIU’s 180-quarter-credit B.S. in Criminal Justice with a specialization in Forensic Science can be completed fully online.
The forensic specialization includes Criminalistics I and II, Criminal Investigation, Psychopathology and Criminality, and Medicolegal Death Investigation. Criminalistics II addresses evidence such as hair, fibers, chemicals, biological material, fingerprints, firearms, impressions, and documents while also covering crime-scene photography, notes, and sketching.
The program is broader than a pure CSI concentration because it incorporates crime-laboratory concepts and death investigation alongside criminal justice.
AIU currently lists online undergraduate tuition at $345 per quarter credit, with a published total tuition of $62,100 and total program cost of $65,110 for the 180-credit bachelor’s before transfer credit or financial aid.
For students who want a fully online program mixing crime scenes, forensic science concepts, and criminal investigation, AIU is worth comparing, but it should not be mistaken for a natural-science forensic degree.
Can You Really Learn CSI Online?
You can learn much of the academic side of CSI online:
- Crime-scene procedures
- Evidence documentation
- Photography theory
- Fingerprint principles
- Chain of custody
- Criminal law and evidence
- Report writing
- Reconstruction principles
- Forensic ethics
- Digital evidence
What an online program has more difficulty reproducing is the physical side of the job: manipulating cameras under difficult conditions, packaging fragile evidence, developing prints, taking measurements, working around contamination hazards, processing mock scenes, and using specialized laboratory or scene equipment.
Programs address that limitation differently. ASU requires in-person lab experiences. UVU’s curriculum contains substantial laboratory science and publishes an online graduation plan, but students should verify delivery for individual practical courses. Other schools use simulations, projects, practicums, internships, or work-based experience.
For someone already employed in law enforcement or an evidence unit, an online degree may pair naturally with hands-on experience at work. A student with no practical background should look for internships, agency volunteer opportunities, local certificates, or other ways to gain physical CSI experience.
CSI Bachelor’s vs. Forensic Science Bachelor’s
A CSI-oriented bachelor’s generally emphasizes the scene:
- Photography
- Evidence recognition and recovery
- Fingerprints
- Sketches and measurements
- Documentation
- Chain of custody
- Bloodstain patterns
- Reconstruction
- Interviews and investigation
- Courtroom presentation
A laboratory-oriented forensic science bachelor’s usually requires more:
- General chemistry
- Organic chemistry
- Analytical chemistry
- Biology
- Genetics
- Molecular biology
- Physics
- Statistics
- Instrumental analysis
- Wet-laboratory work
UVU is unusual because its Forensic Investigation emphasis combines a serious natural-science foundation with extensive CSI coursework.
Students who think they may want crime-laboratory work later should pay close attention to this distinction. A B.S. in Criminal Justice with a CSI concentration may prepare someone well for scene work but still lack the science required for a laboratory criminalist position.
What Degree Do California CSI Employers Require?
There is no single statewide education requirement for every CSI job.
California agencies use titles such as:
- Crime scene investigator
- Crime scene technician
- Forensic specialist
- Forensic identification specialist
- Evidence technician
- Latent-print examiner
- Forensic photographer
- Property and evidence technician
Some jobs are civilian positions. Others are performed by sworn officers who first complete a police academy and gain law-enforcement experience.
The California Employment Development Department’s current profile for forensic science technicians says employers in the state are often looking for candidates with an associate degree, while the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education nationally. The difference illustrates how much hiring standards vary among agencies and forensic specialties.
Students should review several actual California job classifications before deciding how much education they need.
Career Outlook
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a $72,060 national median annual wage in May 2025 for forensic science technicians. Employment is projected to grow 13% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,800 openings per year on average.
California’s Employment Development Department reported a statewide median wage of $50.46 per hour in the first quarter of 2026 for forensic science technicians.
Those numbers cover a broad occupational category that includes both scene and laboratory workers. They should not be treated as a guaranteed salary for a new CSI graduate.
Which Online Bachelor’s Fits Which Goal?
The online market becomes easier to sort once you know how specialized you want the degree to be.
For the strongest combination of science and CSI: UVU’s Forensic Investigation B.S. has the deepest field-forensics curriculum and current FEPAC accreditation, but students should confirm the logistics of completing practical and laboratory requirements from California.
For a straightforward 100% online CSI concentration: Liberty and Salem both devote specific courses to photography, scene management, evidence, fingerprints, and investigation.
For CSI inside a large online criminal justice program: Purdue Global offers a four-course concentration and a related stackable crime-scene technician certificate.
For a lower-cost investigation-focused bachelor’s: Columbia Southern offers a 120-credit B.S. in Forensic Investigation at a relatively low published tuition rate and explicitly maintains California distance-education registration.
For physical plus digital investigation: PennWest’s Forensic Investigation and Cyber Forensics concentration combines conventional criminal justice with a more modern digital-evidence dimension.
For students who may ultimately prefer laboratory science: ASU’s online Forensic Science B.S. gives more weight to chemistry, biology, and scientific evidence, but it also requires in-person laboratory experiences.
A bachelor’s degree is only one part of preparing for CSI work. Before enrolling, compare the curriculum with actual job postings from California agencies and ask a practical question: where will you get hands-on experience processing evidence? The strongest online program is the one that gives you the academic preparation you need without leaving that part unanswered.