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

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

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

20 Colleges
$20,928 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$49,862 Avg Salary

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.

The Best Value Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking is one of many tools that Teaching Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 20 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which graduate certificate programs offered the best value experiences for special ed students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

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

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for special ed majors pursuing a graduate certificate.

Top 10 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools

#1

Viterbo University

La Crosse, WI

Our analysis found Viterbo University to be the best value school for special education students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the Great Lakes Region . Viterbo is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of La Crosse.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Viterbo are $9,488 a year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Viterbo also did well on our Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read More…

Out of the 20 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Illinois State graduate students pay an average of $11,773 in tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Illinois State is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

Full Special Education at Illinois State University Report

#3

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Olivet Nazarene University is a great value 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.

Olivet Nazarene graduate students pay an average of $12,190 in tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Olivet Nazarene is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

Full Special Education at Olivet Nazarene University Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Baldwin Wallace University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the suburb of Berea, Baldwin Wallace College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Baldwin Wallace College are $11,363 a year.

Read full report on Special Education at Baldwin Wallace University

#5

Alverno College

Milwaukee, WI

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Alverno College is a great value for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Alverno is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Milwaukee.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Alverno are $10,402 per year.

Full Special Education at Alverno College Report

#6

Mount St. Joseph University

Cincinnati, OH

With a ranking of #6, Mount St. Joseph University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Mount St. Joe is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Cincinnati.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Mount St. Joe are $13,700 per year.

Full Special Education at Mount St. Joseph University Report

#7

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH

With a ranking of #7, University of Dayton did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. UDayton is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Dayton.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UDayton are $18,140 a year.

Read More…

University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. UW - Eau Claire is a fairly large public school located in the city of Eau Claire.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at UW - Eau Claire are $19,434 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UW - Eau Claire also is in the top 10% of our Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

Full Special Education at University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire Report

With a ranking of #9, Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students working on their graduate certificate. IWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Marion.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at IWU are $10,440 per year.

Full Special Education at Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global Report

Loyola University Chicago landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value graduate certificate special education programs. Loyola Chicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Loyola Chicago are $19,894 per year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Loyola Chicago is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

Full Special Education at Loyola University Chicago Report

Best Special Education Colleges by State

Explore the best special education schools 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.

  • 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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