Begin with your institution, degree level, course load and expected graduation date. Then identify what the award actually covers. A credit-limited tuition scholarship is not a cash grant for living expenses, and an academic scholarship does not grant a professional credential or guarantee employment.
The verified routes below separate a current national/international anti-fraud application from institution-specific support and campus research leads. This is not an exhaustive open-now list.
Compare the main routes
| Route | Verified benefit | Main fit | Timing/limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACFE Foundation Ritchie-Jennings Memorial | $10,000, $7,500, $5,000 or $2,000; one year of ACFE membership; payment to college/university | Relevant declared major/minor and anti-fraud career interest; qualifying enrollment through 2027–2028 | Open September 1, 2026–February 1, 2027; application specifies 11:59 p.m. CST |
| Columbia Southern Criminal Justice Scholarship | Tuition for up to 60 undergraduate, 18 graduate or 30 doctoral credits toward one online degree | Current CSU criminal justice students or applicants planning a related degree | Posted August 11–October 27 and March 17–May 29 windows omit year; confirm current call |
| Sam Houston State criminal justice campus route | Individual amounts not verified | Eligible SHSU criminal justice majors | Catalog describes spring awards for following academic year; full current individual calls needed |
The ACFE award is career-focused; CSU is school-specific. The campus route is a lead, not a confirmed portable award or a current dollar amount. (Sources: acfe.com, app.smarterselect.com, columbiasouthern.edu, catalog.shsu.edu)
1. Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship: criminal justice with an anti-fraud focus
The ACFE Foundation’s Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship supports students pursuing fraud examination or a related anti-fraud career. Criminal justice is one of the eligible declared majors/minors, alongside accounting, business administration, finance and similar fraud-related disciplines. (Source: acfe.com)
The provider lists award levels of $10,000, $7,500, $5,000 and $2,000, paid directly to the recipient’s college or university, plus one year of ACFE membership. The current application overview lists 23 awards totaling $85,000 and says the award is nonrenewable. Those are program-level figures, not an amount each applicant receives. (Sources: acfe.com, app.smarterselect.com)
Current application dates
The 2027–2028 application opened September 1, 2026 and closes February 1, 2027. The linked application specifies 11:59 p.m. CST. The provider expects to announce recipients and distribute awards in May 2027. (Sources: acfe.com, app.smarterselect.com)
The scholarship is not restricted to a U.S. criminal justice program solely because amounts are expressed in dollars: the application describes support for students worldwide. Nevertheless, your actual institution and enrollment must satisfy the full current rules. (Source: app.smarterselect.com)
Enrollment through 2028 matters
The public provider page requires enrollment through the 2027–2028 academic year, with undergraduates taking at least nine semester hours/equivalent per term and graduate students at least six. It excludes high school students, past award recipients, ACFE chapter directors/officers and students graduating in 2027. (Source: acfe.com)
Do not count this award toward a degree finishing before the required enrollment period. A plan to begin another credential later is not automatically an exception; ask the foundation about your exact timeline.
Junior-college applicants need clarification
The public page says junior-college students in their second year or with an associate degree can apply, but also says they need enrollment at a four-year institution. The application overview’s phrasing can be read differently: second-year junior-college students, or associate-degree completers enrolled at a four-year institution. (Sources: acfe.com, app.smarterselect.com)
If you have not yet transferred, obtain written clarification before assuming eligibility. This guide does not resolve the difference by silently choosing the broader reading.
Next action: Use the official provider page and its linked current application. Check degree, credit load, graduation and transfer status before investing time in the documents.
Build the ACFE application around real preparation
The current application requires official transcripts and two recommendations from people who know you professionally, such as professors, employers or colleagues. Recommenders receive a link to submit forms on your behalf. A recommendation from a Certified Fraud Examiner is preferred but not required. (Source: app.smarterselect.com)
Select people who can discuss your actual anti-fraud education, activities, interests or goals. Do not pay for an endorsement, invent a relationship with a credentialed examiner or treat a preference as an absolute requirement.
Show the career connection, not just the major
A criminal justice student could discuss a genuine course project on evidence evaluation, financial misconduct or research methods if it connects to their goals. Explain the task, your role, the limits of your analysis and what further education would add.
Keep simulated exercises labeled as simulations. Studying an investigation is not conducting one professionally, and a scholarship application is not a place to imply investigative authority or certification you do not hold.
Use the requested official academic records. An unofficial screenshot or degree audit should not be substituted merely because another scholarship accepts it. Allow time for transcript issuance and recommender submissions before the February deadline.
2. Columbia Southern: a tuition award with credit and time limits
Columbia Southern University describes two Criminal Justice Scholarships for current CSU criminal justice students or applicants planning a criminal-justice-related degree. The award covers tuition for up to 60 undergraduate, 18 graduate or 30 doctoral credit hours toward one online degree. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
It applies directly to tuition for up to three years or degree completion, whichever comes first. It is not a portable scholarship for a different university, a guaranteed full-degree award or an unrestricted living-cost payment. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
Check the academic and start requirements
Posted conditions include meeting CSU admission requirements, starting coursework within 90 days of the award, remaining in good standing, maintaining continuous enrollment and maintaining a 2.0 undergraduate GPA or 3.0 graduate/doctoral GPA. Current students must already meet the stated requirements to be considered. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
Ask the institution how continuous enrollment is defined and what happens if you need an approved interruption. Do not assume medical, employment or family circumstances automatically preserve the benefit; obtain the written award terms.
The posted date windows omit their year
The page lists application periods March 17–May 29 for a June award and August 11–October 27 for a December award, with one scholarship per listed award month. It does not label those periods with a year in the visible table. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
Although the latter window resembles the season of this October review, that is not sufficient to assert “open now through October 27, 2026.” Confirm the year, deadline cutoff and working application with the scholarship office. The institution says applicants will be notified by the final day of the award month. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
Next action: Contact the scholarship liaison through the CSU provider page. Supply your intended degree and transfer-credit situation, and request a current dated call and coverage calculation.
Calculate what credit-based support would actually pay
A credit cap does not tell you every remaining cost. Ask the institution which courses count, how transfer credits affect the plan, whether repeated coursework is eligible and which fees/materials remain your responsibility.
Make a budget with tuition, fees, books, technology, transport or field-placement costs and living expenses. Match payment dates to bills. A three-year limit is a maximum award period, not an instruction to ignore your academic schedule or a guarantee every needed course fits the cap.
Compare the degree’s educational fit and net cost, not only the scholarship headline. Confirm how outside aid interacts with the institutional award and what happens if you change program or withdraw. Do not enroll solely because an unconfirmed scholarship appears available.
3. Search your own criminal justice department first
School-specific awards may be more relevant than national association funding. Sam Houston State’s official undergraduate catalog, for example, describes scholarships for criminal justice majors awarded in spring for the following academic year. Except for incoming-freshman scholarships, it says students must have completed at least one long semester at SHSU. (Source: catalog.shsu.edu)
That supports a campus research route, not a verified award amount or a current application deadline. A student elsewhere should not assume the same rules apply to their department.
Next action: Ask your own college for the current scholarship portal and individual calls. Provide your exact major, degree level, transfer status and expected graduation date. Ask whether a common application covers several departmental awards and whether nominations are required.
Distinguish degree aid from other justice-related funding
Criminal justice, criminology, law school, police academy training and professional continuing education can lead to overlapping interests without being interchangeable credentials. An award for a law-enforcement employee’s dependent can use family/employment criteria rather than a criminal justice major. A research or conference award may cover a paper or travel rather than tuition.
Keep those routes in separate sections of your shortlist. Record the actual eligible expense, applicant type and any membership or service conditions. Do not add an agency grant to a student scholarship list simply because its purpose mentions justice or public safety.
No professional license, police appointment, certification or job placement is established by the scholarships reviewed here. Check any occupational qualification with the appropriate institution or authority separately.
Protect confidential information in essays
A useful application can describe academic learning or supervised experience without revealing a case file. Avoid names, allegations, private records, investigative details and combinations of facts that could identify a victim, client or colleague.
Distinguish your responsibility from your supervisor’s and a completed activity from an aspiration. Do not exaggerate public-policy impact or claim successful prosecutions, fraud recoveries or investigative outcomes you cannot support. An honest account of a research question and educational goal is more credible than an invented professional narrative.
Frequently asked questions
Must I intend to become a police officer?
Not for every scholarship. Ritchie-Jennings focuses on fraud examination and related anti-fraud careers. CSU’s award is tied to its eligible criminal justice degree route. Each provider’s criteria, not a stereotype about the major, determine fit. (Sources: acfe.com, columbiasouthern.edu)
Can a high school senior apply to Ritchie-Jennings?
The current public criteria exclude high school students. Do not confuse an intended future major with current qualifying college enrollment. (Source: acfe.com)
Is a CFE recommendation mandatory?
No. The current application says a CFE recommendation is preferred, not required. Two qualifying professional recommendations are required. (Source: app.smarterselect.com)
Does CSU’s award cover an entire degree?
Not necessarily. It has degree-level credit caps and a three-year-or-completion limit. Ask CSU to map coverage against your actual remaining courses and expenses. (Source: columbiasouthern.edu)
What should I do first?
Check degree, enrollment, graduation and career focus. Investigate the verified ACFE current call if it fits; request clarification for transfer cases. For CSU, obtain a dated current call and written cost calculation. Keep campus leads separate from confirmed awards and count only written funding offers in your enrollment budget.
