2023 Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Special Education 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.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Teaching Degree Search has created the Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 117 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which 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.
Featured schools near , edit
2023 Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region
Check out the special ed programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.
Top 15% Best Special Education Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Waukesha County Technical College the best value school in the Great Lakes Region for special education students. Located in the suburb of Pewaukee, WCTC is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WCTC are $6,603 per year.
Full Special Education at Waukesha County Technical College Report
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Northeast Wisconsin Technical College is a great value for special education students. NWTC is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Green Bay.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at NWTC are $6,849 a year.
NWTC excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.
Full Special Education at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Report
Out of the 117 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Olivet Nazarene University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Olivet Nazarene is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small suburb of Bourbonnais.
Olivet Nazarene undergraduate students pay an average of $37,440 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Special Education at Olivet Nazarene University
A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Alverno College is a great value for special education students. Alverno is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Milwaukee.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Alverno are $31,258 a year.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Carroll University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the small city of Waukesha, Carroll U is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Carroll U are $35,140 per year. While working on their degree, special ed majors at Carroll U accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
Carroll U excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.
Muskingum University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the distant town of New Concord, Muskingum is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Muskingum are $30,090 per year.
Read full report on Special Education at Muskingum University
Spring Arbor University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Spring Arbor is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small suburb of Spring Arbor.
Spring Arbor undergraduate students pay an average of $31,080 in tuition and fees each year. On average, special ed graduates from Spring Arbor take out $30,428 in student loans while working on their degree.
Concordia University, Chicago landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. Located in the suburb of River Forest, Concordia University, Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Concordia University, Chicago undergraduate students pay an average of $34,310 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Special Education at Concordia University, Chicago
With a ranking of #9, Northern Illinois University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Located in the small suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public college with a large student population.
NIU undergraduate students pay an average of $14,738 in tuition and fees each year. Special Ed majors at NIU take out an average of $21,750 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Special Education at Northern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public school with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SIUE are $11,496 per year. While working on their degree, special ed majors at SIUE accumulate an average of around $20,250 in student debt.
Full Special Education at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Report
With a ranking of #11, Central Michigan University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Located in the distant town of Mount Pleasant, Central Michigan is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Central Michigan undergraduate students pay an average of $13,094 in tuition and fees each year. On average, special ed graduates from Central Michigan take out $31,000 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $385, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the small city of Carbondale, SIUC is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at SIUC are $15,240 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, SIUC also did well on our Best Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Special Education at Southern Illinois University Carbondale Report
Baldwin Wallace University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. Located in the suburb of Berea, Baldwin Wallace College is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Baldwin Wallace College are $35,366 per year.
Youngstown State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #14 on the list. Youngstown State University is a fairly large public school located in the city of Youngstown.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Youngstown State University are $9,732 a year. Special Ed majors at Youngstown State University take out an average of $30,370 in student loans while working on their egree.
Full Special Education at Youngstown State University Report
University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. UW - Eau Claire is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Eau Claire.
UW - Eau Claire undergraduate students pay an average of $17,149 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that special ed majors at UW - Eau Claire take out is $29,449.
In addition to its great value ranking, UW - Eau Claire is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.
University of Saint Francis - Fort Wayne landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. University of St. Francis Fort Wayne is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Fort Wayne.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at University of St. Francis Fort Wayne are $33,390 per year.
Read full report on Special Education at University of Saint Francis - Fort Wayne
Wisconsin Lutheran College came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. WLC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Milwaukee.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WLC are $32,766 a year.
WLC did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our Best Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.
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 Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Marian University | Fond Du Lac, WI |
| 19 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 19 | Xavier University | Cincinnati, OH |
| 21 | Cardinal Stritch University | Milwaukee, WI |
| 22 | University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh | Oshkosh, WI |
| 23 | Mount Vernon Nazarene University | Mount Vernon, OH |
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 |
More Special Education Rankings in the Great Lakes Region
Majors Related to Special Ed
One of 14 majors within the teaching area of study, special education has other similar majors worth exploring.
Special Ed Focus Areas
Most Popular Majors Related to Special Ed
| 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 25 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.
Featured Schools
Request Info
|
Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |
TeachingDegreeSearch.com provides higher-education, college and university, degree, program, career, salary, and other helpful information to students, faculty, institutions, and other internet audiences. Presented information and data are subject to change. Inclusion on this website does not imply or represent a direct relationship with the company, school, or brand. Information, though believed correct at time of publication, may not be correct, and no warranty is provided. Contact the schools to verify any information before relying on it. Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. The displayed options may include sponsored or recommended results, not necessarily based on your preferences.
© TeachingDegreeSearch.com – All Rights Reserved.