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Special Education Major

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Special Education

9,368 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
21,759 Master's Degrees Annually
#3 in Popularity
$62,500 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Special Education Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many special education graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Master’s Degree 21,797
Bachelor’s Degree 9,368
Graduate Certificate 3,157
Associate Degree 1,328
Basic Certificate 713
Undergraduate Certificate 225
Doctor’s Degree 204

What Special Education Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, special ed majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Special Ed Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

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  • Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

Skills for Special Ed Majors

A major in special ed prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

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  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Abilities for Special Ed Majors

A major in special ed will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

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  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Special Education Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with special ed:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Adapted Physical Education Specialists 9.9% $56,680
Interpreters and Translators 17.7% $49,930
Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School 7.4% $59,390
Special Education Teachers, Middle School 7.2% $60,250
Special Education Teachers, Preschool 11.3% $55,840
Special Education Teachers, Secondary School 7.4% $60,600

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Special Education?

9,368 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
90% Percent Women
19% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
This is one of the most frequently chosen teaching majors. It is the 3rd most popular in the country with 9,368 students graduating with a bachelor’s in special ed in 2021. This major is dominated by women with about 90% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of special ed majors is as follows:

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 116
Black or African American 401
Hispanic or Latino 987
White 7,315
International Students 36
Other Races/Ethnicities 513

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Special Ed, too. About 0.4% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

  • Saudi Arabia
  • China
  • South Korea
  • Canada
  • India

How Much Do Special Education Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a bachelor’s degree in special ed was $38,748 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $35,725 (25th percentile) and $41,583 (75th percentile).

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One thing to note here is that not all of these people may be working in careers related to special ed.

Salaries According to BLS

Special Ed majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $61,610 to $64,390 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Median Salary for a Special Education Major  ( 61610 to 64390 )
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250K
Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
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250K
Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
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250K
Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
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250K

Some degrees associated with special ed may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for special ed careers below.

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 0.1%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) 0.1%
Some College Courses 0.4%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 1.8%
Bachelor’s Degree 52.9%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. 13.8%
Master’s Degree 27.0%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level. 2.2%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. 1.5%
Doctoral Degree 1.0%

Online Special Education Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 994 schools offered some type of special education program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level Colleges Offering Programs Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) 0 0
Certificate (1-2 years) 59 5
Certificate (2-4 Years) 3 0
Associate’s Degree 94 6
Bachelor’s Degree 432 135
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 945 212
Post-Master’s 157 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 83 3
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 2 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 1 1

Is a Degree in Special Education Worth It?

The median salary for a special ed grad is $62,500 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 57% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $452,000 after 20 years!

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You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to special ed.

Major Number of Grads
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832
Student Counseling 13,858
Instructional Media Design 8,695
Teaching English or French 5,791
Other Education 4,858
Teaching Assistants 2,751
Educational Assessment 2,552
Multilingual Education 1,910
Education Philosophy 737
International Education 293

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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