2023 Best Special Education Schools
Finding the Best Special Education School for You
In 2020-2021, 25,158 special education students received their degrees and certificates, making the major the #10 most popular in the country.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
The Best Special Education Schools ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 544 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Special Education Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Special Education Colleges.
Top 25 Top Schools in Special Education
Our analysis found University of Virginia - Main Campus to be the best school for special education students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public school with a very large student population.
Full Special Education at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Purdue University - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Special Education Schools list. Purdue is a fairly large public school located in the small city of West Lafayette.
Read full report on Special Education at Purdue University - Main Campus
Out of the 544 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Teachers College at Columbia University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of New York, Teachers College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The excellent programs at Johns Hopkins University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in the United States. Located in the large city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bank Street College of Education. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Special Education Schools list. Bank Street College of Education is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.
Full Special Education at Bank Street College of Education Report
With a ranking of #6, Saint Mary’s College of California did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students. SMC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Moraga.
Full Special Education at Saint Mary’s College of California Report
Gonzaga University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Schools ranking. Located in the city of Spokane, Gonzaga is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.
Brandman University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Schools ranking. Brandman is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Irvine.
Read full report on Special Education at Brandman University
Minnesota State University - Mankato landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best special education programs. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school located in the city of Mankato.
The College of New Jersey ranked #10 on this year’s Best Special Education Schools list. TCNJ is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Ewing.
University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best special education programs. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public college with a very large student population.
Fresno Pacific University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Schools ranking. Located in the city of Fresno, Fresno Pacific is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
University of California - Berkeley ranked #13 on this year’s Best Special Education Schools list. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the city of Berkeley.
Full Special Education at University of California - Berkeley Report
With a ranking of #14, Point Loma Nazarene University did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students. PLNU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Diego.
Read full report on Special Education at Point Loma Nazarene University
With a ranking of #15, University of Scranton did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students. Located in the small city of Scranton, University of Scranton is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Olivet Nazarene University landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best special education programs. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small suburb of Bourbonnais.
Read full report on Special Education at Olivet Nazarene University
Augusta University landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best special education programs. Augusta University is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Augusta.
Elizabethtown College landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best special education programs. Etown is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Elizabethtown.
Manhattan College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for special education students. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the large city of Riverdale, Manhattan is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Winona State University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Special Education Schools list. Winona State is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Winona.
Viterbo University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Special Education Schools list. Viterbo is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of La Crosse.
Seattle University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Special Education Schools list. Located in the large city of Seattle, Seattle U is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Vanderbilt University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Schools ranking. Vanderbilt is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville.
Read full report on Special Education at Vanderbilt University
California State University - Los Angeles did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for special education students. It came in at #24 on the list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Cal State LA is a public college with a very large student population.
Full Special Education at California State University - Los Angeles Report
Westminster College Pennsylvania came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Schools ranking. Located in the fringe town of New Wilmington, Westminster New Wilmington is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Full Special Education at Westminster College Pennsylvania Report
Rest of the Top 50 Best Special Education Schools
Additional Award Winners
This list represents the rest of the schools awarded a Best Special Education Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 544 different United States special education schools we analyzed.
Honorable Mentions
Here are some additional great schools for Special Education students that almost earned our Best Special Education Schools award.
Special Education by Region
View the Best Special Education Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Special Education Rankings
Special Education Related Rankings by Major
One of 14 majors within the area of study, special education has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Educational Administration | 45,458 |
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 34,451 |
| General Education | 21,189 |
| Teacher Education Subject Specific | 20,616 |
| Curriculum & Instruction | 19,784 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to woodleywonderworks.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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