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Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

20 Colleges
$49,862 Avg Salary
$22,246 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate School for You

With 36,792 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, special education is the #4 most popular major in the United States.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which teaching program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Teaching Degree Search has created its Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 20 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones offered the best graduate certificate programs for teaching students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Check out the special ed graduate certificate programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools

#1

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

Our analysis found Purdue University - Main Campus to be the best school for special education students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the Great Lakes Region . Purdue is a fairly large public school located in the small city of West Lafayette.

Full Special Education at Purdue University - Main Campus Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Indiana University - Bloomington. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the small city of Bloomington, IU Bloomington is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Special Education at Indiana University - Bloomington

#3

Ball State University

Muncie, IN

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Ball State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Ball State is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Muncie.

Full Special Education at Ball State University Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Illinois State University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the midsize suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Special Education at Illinois State University Report

#5

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Olivet Nazarene University is a great place for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Bourbonnais.

Read More…

#6

Viterbo University

La Crosse, WI

With a ranking of #6, 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.

Read full report on Special Education at Viterbo University

University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. UW - Eau Claire is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Eau Claire.

Full Special Education at University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire Report

#8

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH

University of Dayton 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 #8 on the list. UDayton is a large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Dayton.

Read More…

Baldwin Wallace University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. Located in the suburb of Berea, Baldwin Wallace College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Special Education at Baldwin Wallace University

Loyola University Chicago 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 #10 on the list. Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Full Special Education at Loyola University Chicago Report

Best Special Education Colleges by State

Explore the best special education colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Ohio 1,329
Illinois 1,153
Indiana 2,282
Michigan 607
Wisconsin 598

One of 14 majors within the teaching area of study, special education has other similar majors worth exploring.

Special Ed Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Special Education 24,497
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs 3,111
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities 1,789
Elementary Special Education 1,625
Other Special Education & Teaching 1,227
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism 1,133
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Secondary Special Education Programs 655
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities 540
Education/Teaching of the Gifted & Talented 504
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments 415
Education of the Deaf 363
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances 226
Education/Teaching of Individuals Who are Developmentally Delayed 222
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Junior High/Middle School Special Education Programs 181
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Vision Impairments Including Blindness 134
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities 122
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Orthopedic & Other Physical Health Impairments 47
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injuries 1

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 20 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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