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General Special Education

A general program that focuses on the design and provision of teaching and other educational services to children or adults with special learning needs or disabilities, and that may prepare individuals to function as special education teachers in a collaborative or team environment. Includes instruction in diagnosing learning disabilities, developing individual education plans, teaching and supervising special education students, special education counseling, and applicable laws and policies. Examples: [Special Education Collaborative Teacher/Teaching]

Types of Degrees General Special Education Majors Are Earning

Those studying General Special Education may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	28
Associate’s Degree	81
Bachelor’s Degree	5,803
Master’s Degree	15,971
Doctor’s Degree	233

What General Special Education Majors Need to Know

Coursework for General Special Education emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that General Special Education graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in General Special Education emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set developed in a General Special Education program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to General Special Education careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, General Special Education graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.1 / 7
Assisting and Caring for Others	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.0 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.0 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	3.8 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	3.8 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	3.8 / 7
Working with Computers	3.7 / 7
Developing Objectives and Strategies	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by General Special Education professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Screen magnification software	Device drivers or system software	—
Screen reader software	Device drivers or system software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Voice activated software	Voice recognition software	—
Children’s educational software	Computer based training software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for General Special Education graduates include:

• Learning Support Teacher
• Blind Teacher
• Physically Impaired Teacher
• Braille Teacher
• Sign Language Teacher
• Lip Reading Teacher
• Special Needs Teacher
• Learning Disabled Teacher
• Reading Specialist
• Learning Specialist
• Resource Specialist
• Hearing Impaired Teacher
• Teacher
• Exceptional Student Education Teacher (ESE Teacher)
• Resource Teacher

What Can You Do With a General Special Education Degree?

Graduates with a degree in General Special Education commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Teaching Assistants, Special Education	9.5%	$96,801	$75,024–$118,577

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to General Special Education graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	48.8%
Master’s degree	23.7%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	15.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	4.5%
Some college courses	3.1%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	2.8%
First professional degree	1.2%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in General Special Education?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 86.6% of General Special Education degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	19,160	86.6%
Men	2,956	13.4%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of General Special Education graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	14,608	66.1%
Asian	565	2.6%
Hispanic or Latino	3,175	14.4%
Black or African American	1,857	8.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native	99	0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	45	0.2%
Two or More Races	604	2.7%
Race Unknown	920	4.2%
International Students	243	1.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do General Special Education Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of General Special Education graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$54,981
4 years	$54,220
5 years	$59,983

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $59,983 — roughly 9% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online General Special Education Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for General Special Education. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	1	5
Bachelor’s	35	51
Master’s	174	106
Doctoral (Research)	3	5

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in General Special Education Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, General Special Education graduates earn a median of $54,220 four years after completion — roughly 43% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Special Education and Teaching	33,988
Education, General	27,481
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs	3,548
Teacher Assistant/Aide	2,543
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs	2,055
Teaching Assistants/Aides, Other	1,322
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities	1,213
Special Education and Teaching, Other	1,070
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism	1,002
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Secondary Special Education Programs	833
Education/Teaching of the Gifted and Talented	483
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities	398

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.