2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools
Finding the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate 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.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 187 schools in the United States to see which graduate certificate programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for special ed majors pursuing a graduate certificate.
Top 25 Top Schools for a Postbaccalaureate Certificates in Special Education
Our 2023 rankings named Minnesota State University - Mankato the best school in the United States for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Minnesota State Mankato is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Mankato.
Full Special Education at Minnesota State University - Mankato Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Johns Hopkins University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Virginia - Main Campus is a great place for special education students working on their graduate certificate. 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
The excellent graduate certificate programs at Purdue University - Main Campus helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in the United States. Purdue is a very large public school located in the city of West Lafayette.
Full Special Education at Purdue University - Main Campus Report
Out of the 187 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Saint Mary’s College of California landed the # 5 spot on the list. SMC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Moraga.
Full Special Education at Saint Mary’s College of California Report
With a ranking of #6, Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Special Education at Indiana University - Bloomington
Towson University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. Located in the city of Towson, Towson is a public college with a fairly large student population.
With a ranking of #8, George Mason University did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the large suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public school with a very large student population.
Appalachian State University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. Located in the town of Boone, Appalachian State is a public school with a very large student population.
Full Special Education at Appalachian State University Report
Ball State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Ball State is a fairly large public school located in the city of Muncie.
With a ranking of #11, The College of New Jersey did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. TCNJ is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Ewing.
Read full report on Special Education at The College of New Jersey
George Washington University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Illinois State University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Olivet Nazarene University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for special education students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #14 on the list. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Bourbonnais.
Read full report on Special Education at Olivet Nazarene University
Augusta University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Augusta University is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Augusta.
Winona State University landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. Winona State is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Winona.
Minot State University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. MSU is a small public school located in the remote town of Minot.
Read full report on Special Education at Minot State University
University of Florida ranked #18 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. UF is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville.
With a ranking of #19, Viterbo University did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Viterbo is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of La Crosse.
Georgia College & State University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the distant town of Milledgeville, Georgia College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
With a ranking of #21, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on this year’s best schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public college with a very large student population.
After completing their Graduate Certificate, special ed graduates from UMN Twin Cities carry an average student debtload of $21,104.
Full Special Education at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report
University of Alaska Fairbanks ranked #22 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. UAF is a moderately-sized public school located in the small suburb of Fairbanks.
Full Special Education at University of Alaska Fairbanks Report
University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for special education students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #23 on the list. UW - Eau Claire is a large public school located in the small city of Eau Claire.
The City College of New York ranked #24 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large city of New York, CCNY is a public school with a large student population.
Rowan University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Glassboro, Rowan is a public college with a large student population.
Rest of the Top Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 29 | Hamline University | Saint Paul, MN |
| 30 | James Madison University | Harrisonburg, VA |
| 31 | East Carolina University | Greenville, NC |
| 32 | University of Dayton | Dayton, OH |
| 33 | Rider University | Lawrenceville, NJ |
| 34 | Midland University | Fremont, NE |
| 35 | California State University - Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
| 36 | Whitworth University | Spokane, WA |
| 37 | California State University - Long Beach | Long Beach, CA |
Special Education by Region
View the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate 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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