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Best Education Schools

2023 Best Education Schools

964 Colleges
$46,202 Avg Salary
$24,437 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Education School for You

With 327,871 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, education is the #4 most popular major in the United States.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Education Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 964 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Education Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for education majors pursuing a .

Top 25 Top Schools in Education

Our 2023 rankings named Claremont Graduate University the best school in the United States for education students. Claremont Graduate University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Claremont.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Bank Street College of Education. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Education Schools list. Located in the large city of New York, Bank Street College of Education is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#3

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Education Schools list. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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Out of the 964 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Teachers College at Columbia University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Teachers College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

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#5

Lebanon Valley College

Annville, PA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Lebanon Valley College is a great place for education students. Located in the suburb of Annville, LVC is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

On average, education graduates from LVC take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $338.

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#6

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Stanford University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for education students. It came in at #6 on the list. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

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University of California - Santa Cruz came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. UC Santa Cruz is a large public school located in the small city of Santa Cruz.

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The College of New Jersey came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Ewing, TCNJ is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

While working on their degree, education majors at TCNJ accumulate an average of around $26,128 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $296.

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Washington State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the distant town of Pullman, Wazzu is a public school with a very large student population.

While working on their degree, education majors at Wazzu accumulate an average of around $23,965 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $346.

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#10

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

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Delaware County Community College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Delaware County Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Media.

The average amount in student loans that education majors at Delaware County Community College take out is $12,997.

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With a ranking of #12, University of Washington - Tacoma Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for education students. Located in the midsize city of Tacoma, UW Tacoma is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

After completing their degree, education graduates from UW Tacoma carry an average student debtload of $15,752.

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With a ranking of #13, Middlesex Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for education students. Middlesex Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Bedford.

While working on their degree, education majors at Middlesex Community College accumulate an average of around $6,429 in student debt.

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#14

Hope College

Holland, MI

Hope College came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Hope is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Holland.

On average, education graduates from Hope take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#15

Western Washington University

Bellingham, WA

Western Washington University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. Located in the small city of Bellingham, WWU is a public college with a large student population.

Education majors at WWU take out an average of $22,247 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $178, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#16

Stanly Community College

Albemarle, NC

Stanly Community College landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. Located in the distant town of Albemarle, Stanly Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

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#17

Valley City State University

Valley City, ND

Valley City State University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the remote town of Valley City, Valley City State University is a public school with a small student population.

On average, education graduates from Valley City State University take out $25,803 in student loans while working on their degree.

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Concordia College at Moorhead ranked #18 on this year’s Best Education Schools list. Located in the suburb of Moorhead, Concordia College Moorhead is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

On average, education graduates from Concordia College Moorhead take out $26,174 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#19

Winona State University

Winona, MN

Winona State University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the distant town of Winona, Winona State is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

After completing their degree, education graduates from Winona State carry an average student debtload of $27,146. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $150, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#20

Brown University

Providence, RI

Brown University landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. Brown is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Providence.

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Concordia University, Irvine ranked #21 on this year’s Best Education Schools list. Located in the large city of Irvine, Concordia University, Irvine is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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Seattle Pacific University landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. Located in the large city of Seattle, SPU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

While working on their degree, education majors at SPU accumulate an average of around $27,500 in student debt.

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#23

Northwestern College

Orange City, IA

Northwestern College ranked #23 on this year’s Best Education Schools list. NWC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Orange City.

While working on their degree, education majors at NWC accumulate an average of around $25,995 in student debt.

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#24

Texas Christian University

Fort Worth, TX

Texas Christian University landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best education programs. TCU is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Fort Worth.

On average, education graduates from TCU take out $22,101 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#25

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Harvard University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Education Schools ranking. Located in the midsize city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

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Rest of the Top 50 Best Education Schools

#27

University of Delaware

Newark, DE
#29

Saint Norbert College

De Pere, WI
#30

Seattle University

Seattle, WA
#31

Brandman University

Irvine, CA
#33

Juniata College

Huntingdon, PA
#34

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD
#35

University of Scranton

Scranton, PA
#36

Elizabethtown College

Elizabethtown, PA
#37

Wisconsin Lutheran College

Milwaukee, WI
#38

Westminster College Pennsylvania

New Wilmington, PA
#40

Central Washington University

Ellensburg, WA
#41

Drake University

Des Moines, IA
#42

Stevenson University

Stevenson, MD
#43

University of Redlands

Redlands, CA
#45

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WA
#46

Baylor University

Waco, TX
#46

Wagner College

Staten Island, NY
#48

Towson University

Towson, MD
#50

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

Remaining Award Winners

This list shows the rest of the schools awarded a Best Education Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 964 different United States education schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Augustana College Rock Island, IL
52 Ithaca College Ithaca, NY
53 Rasmussen University - Florida Ocala, FL
54 Trinity University San Antonio, TX
55 Saint Martin’s University Lacey, WA
56 Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN
57 Martin Luther College New Ulm, MN
58 Southern Illinois University Carbondale Carbondale, IL
59 Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA
60 University of Jamestown Jamestown, ND
61 Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC
62 University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD
63 Dakota State University Madison, SD
64 Northeast Community College Norfolk, NE
65 Illinois Wesleyan University Bloomington, IL
66 Santa Fe Community College Santa Fe, NM
67 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL
68 Wartburg College Waverly, IA
69 Calvin University Grand Rapids, MI
70 The College of Saint Rose Albany, NY
71 Front Range Community College Westminster, CO
72 California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, CA
73 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
74 Saint Edward’s University Austin, TX
75 Loyola University Maryland Baltimore, MD
76 Centenary University Hackettstown, NJ
77 University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA
78 University of St Francis Joliet, IL
79 Illinois State University Normal, IL
80 Manhattan College Riverdale, NY
81 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
82 North Central College Naperville, IL
83 Augustana University Sioux Falls, SD
84 University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire Eau Claire, WI
85 Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Green Bay, WI
86 New York University New York, NY
87 Iowa State University Ames, IA
88 Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA
89 Delaware Technical Community College - Terry Dover, DE
90 Essex County College Newark, NJ
91 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
92 York College of Pennsylvania York, PA
93 Salisbury University Salisbury, MD
94 Whitworth University Spokane, WA
95 University of Georgia Athens, GA
96 West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester, PA
97 University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln, NE
98 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI
99 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
100 University of St Thomas Minnesota Saint Paul, MN
101 Berry College Mount Berry, GA
102 Hood College Frederick, MD
103 Minnesota State University - Mankato Mankato, MN
104 Creighton University Omaha, NE
105 Nevada State College Henderson, NV
106 Saint Joseph’s University Philadelphia, PA
107 Carthage College Kenosha, WI
108 Rider University Lawrenceville, NJ
109 University of Minnesota - Duluth Duluth, MN
110 Northern State University Aberdeen, SD
111 University of Wisconsin - La Crosse La Crosse, WI
112 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX
113 Villanova University Villanova, PA
114 NHTI-Concord’s Community College Concord, NH
115 Augusta University Augusta, GA
116 George Washington University Washington, DC
117 Bradley University Peoria, IL
118 University of Wisconsin - River Falls River Falls, WI
119 Huntington University Huntington, IN
120 Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC
121 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
122 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
123 Messiah University Mechanicsburg, PA
124 University of Wisconsin - Stout Menomonie, WI
125 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
126 Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ
127 Carroll University Waukesha, WI
128 Alma College Alma, MI
129 University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN
130 University of California - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
131 Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA
132 California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA
133 Valparaiso University Valparaiso, IN
134 Fox Valley Technical College Appleton, WI
135 Notre Dame de Namur University Belmont, CA
135 San Jose State University San Jose, CA
137 California State University - San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA
138 University of Illinois at Chicago Chicago, IL
139 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
140 George Mason University Fairfax, VA
141 California State University - Fullerton Fullerton, CA
142 Minot State University Minot, ND
143 Trinity Christian College Palos Heights, IL
144 Rowan University Glassboro, NJ

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Education students that almost earned our Best Education Schools award.

Rank College Location
145 Eastern Mennonite University Harrisonburg, VA
146 Alfred University Alfred, NY
147 University of North Georgia Dahlonega, GA
148 North Dakota State University - Main Campus Fargo, ND
149 Dickinson State University Dickinson, ND
150 Ball State University Muncie, IN
151 Bethel University Minnesota Saint Paul, MN
152 University of Mary Bismarck, ND
153 Indiana University - Bloomington Bloomington, IN
154 Wilkes University Wilkes-Barre, PA
155 Lewis University Romeoville, IL
156 Viterbo University La Crosse, WI
157 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA
158 Mayville State University Mayville, ND
159 Spokane Falls Community College Spokane, WA
160 Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville, PA
161 Chadron State College Chadron, NE
162 Kean University Union, NJ
163 St John’s University - New York Queens, NY
164 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
165 Midland University Fremont, NE
166 Western Governors University Salt Lake City, UT
167 Pace University - New York New York, NY
168 Simpson College Indianola, IA
169 Elmhurst University Elmhurst, IL
170 Dominican University of California San Rafael, CA
171 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
172 American University Washington, DC
173 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
174 Piedmont College Demorest, GA
175 Loras College Dubuque, IA
176 University of Wyoming Laramie, WY
177 Wayne State College Wayne, NE
178 Olivet Nazarene University Bourbonnais, IL
179 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
180 McDaniel College Westminster, MD
181 Augsburg University Minneapolis, MN
182 Appalachian State University Boone, NC
183 Wheaton College Illinois Wheaton, IL
184 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL
185 University of the Pacific Stockton, CA
186 Dominican University River Forest, IL
187 University of Louisville Louisville, KY
188 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
189 Providence College Providence, RI
190 Aurora University Aurora, IL
191 Monmouth University West Long Branch, NJ
192 National University La Jolla, CA

Education by Region

View the Best Education Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
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

Majors Similar to Education

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 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 Horadrim.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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