2023 Best Special Education Master's Degree Schools in California
Finding the Best Special Education Master's Degree School for You
With 2,861 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, special education is the #45 most popular major in California.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
The Best Special Education Master's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 30 schools in California to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences 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 Master’s Degree Schools in California
The following schools top our list of the Best Special Education Master's Degree Colleges.
Top 10 Best Special Education Master's Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Brandman University the best school in California for special education students working on their master’s degree. Brandman is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Irvine.
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The excellent master’s degree programs at Fresno Pacific University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in California. Located in the city of Fresno, Fresno Pacific is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Point Loma Nazarene University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Special Education Master’s Degree Schools in California list. PLNU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Diego.
Full Special Education at Point Loma Nazarene University Report
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means California State University - Los Angeles is a great place for special education students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Los Angeles, Cal State LA is a public school with a very large student population.
Full Special Education at California State University - Los Angeles Report
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Out of the 30 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Notre Dame de Namur University landed the # 5 spot on the list. NDNU is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Belmont.
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Loyola Marymount University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree special education programs. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
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California State University - San Marcos ranked #7 on this year’s Best Special Education Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the large suburb of San Marcos, CSUSM is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Full Special Education at California State University - San Marcos Report
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University of Redlands landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree special education programs. University of Redlands is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Redlands.
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California State University - Long Beach came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Special Education Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. CSULB is a fairly large public school located in the city of Long Beach.
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Concordia University, Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for special education students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Concordia University, Irvine is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Irvine.
Read full report on Special Education at Concordia University, Irvine
Request InformationBest Special Education Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Special Education Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 238 |
| Oregon | 234 |
| Nevada | 215 |
| Hawaii | 49 |
| Alaska | 52 |
More Special Education Rankings in California
Special Education Related Rankings by Major
One of 14 majors within the area of study, special education has other similar majors worth exploring.
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 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 woodleywonderworks.
More about our data sources and methodologies.