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Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, special education was ranked #29 in the country. In fact 36,792 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this 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 students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

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

The following schools top our list of the Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Colleges.

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 . Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public school with a very large student population.

Full Special Education at Purdue University - Main Campus Report

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The excellent graduate certificate programs at Indiana University - Bloomington helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in the Great Lakes Region . IU Bloomington is a fairly large public school located in the city of Bloomington.

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#3

Ball State University

Muncie, IN

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Ball State University is a great place for special education students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the small city of Muncie, Ball State is a public school with a very large student population.

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Out of the 20 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.

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#5

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, IL

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Olivet Nazarene University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the small suburb of Bourbonnais, Olivet Nazarene is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#6

Viterbo University

La Crosse, WI

Viterbo University 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 #6 on the list. Located in the city of La Crosse, Viterbo is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Special Education at Viterbo University Report

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University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire 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 #7 on the list. Located in the city of Eau Claire, UW - Eau Claire is a public school with a fairly large student population.

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#8

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH

University of Dayton landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate special education programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Dayton, UDayton is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

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Baldwin Wallace University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Special Education Graduate Certificate Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Baldwin Wallace College is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Berea.

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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. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Special Education at Loyola University Chicago Report

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Best Special Education Colleges by State

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

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

Special Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar 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 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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