2023 Best Value Special Education Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Special Education School for You
In 2020-2021, 36,792 people earned a degree or certificate in special education, making the major the #29 most popular in the United States.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Special Education Schools ranking. This report analyzed 694 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best value programs for special ed students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 25 Best Schools for Affordable Quality in Special Education
Our 2023 rankings named La Salle University the best value school in the United States for special education students. La Salle is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.
La Salle undergraduate students pay an average of $33,150 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, special ed majors at La Salle accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Cabrini University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the suburb of Radnor, Cabrini University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cabrini University are $33,845 per year. While working on their degree, special ed majors at Cabrini University accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
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Out of the 694 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Santa Fe Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. SFCC is a small public school located in the suburb of Santa Fe.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SFCC are $4,995 per year.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Special Education Schools list. NWC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Orange City.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at NWC are $33,590 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, NWC also did well on our Best Special Education Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brigham Young University - Idaho. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the town of Rexburg, BYU - I is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BYU - I are $4,416 per year.
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Brigham Young University - Provo came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Provo, BYU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
BYU undergraduate students pay an average of $6,120 in tuition and fees each year.
In addition to its great value ranking, BYU is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Western Governors University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #7 on the list. WGU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Salt Lake City.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WGU are $7,452 a year. The average amount in student loans that special ed majors at WGU take out is $26,383.
WGU also claimed a spot on our Best Special Education Schools list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.
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Chadron State College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Chadron State College is a small public school located in the town of Chadron.
Chadron State College undergraduate students pay an average of $7,206 in tuition and fees each year.
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University of the Cumberlands ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the remote town of Williamsburg, Cumberlands is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
Cumberlands undergraduate students pay an average of $9,875 in tuition and fees each year.
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Morningside College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools ranking. Morningside is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Sioux City.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Morningside are $35,270 a year.
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With a ranking of #11, Itawamba Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. ICC is a small public school located in the remote town of Fulton.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ICC are $5,360 per year.
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Minot State University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Special Education Schools ranking. Located in the town of Minot, MSU is a public college with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at MSU are $8,163 a year.
In addition to its great value ranking, MSU is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Worcester State University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. Worcester State is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Worcester.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Worcester State are $16,666 a year.
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Pima Community College ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the city of Tucson, Pima County Community College District is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Pima County Community College District are $7,566 a year. Special Ed majors at Pima County Community College District take out an average of $15,125 in student loans while working on their egree.
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With a ranking of #15, Waukesha County Technical College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. WCTC is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Pewaukee.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WCTC are $6,603 per year.
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Concordia University, Irvine ranked #16 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the city of Irvine, Concordia University, Irvine is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Concordia University, Irvine are $38,740 a year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Concordia University, Irvine also is in the top 15% of our Best Special Education Schools ranking.
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Central Methodist University - College of Graduate & Extended Studies ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. Located in the distant town of Fayette, CMU CGES is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CMU CGES are $6,720 a year.
CMU CGES excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Minnesota State University - Mankato did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #18 on the list. Located in the city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Minnesota State Mankato are $18,200 per year. After completing their degree, special ed graduates from Minnesota State Mankato carry an average student debtload of $27,000.
In addition to its great value ranking, Minnesota State Mankato is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Wayne State College ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools list. WSC is a small public school located in the town of Wayne.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WSC are $7,458 a year.
WSC excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Northeast Wisconsin Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #20 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Green Bay, NWTC is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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 20% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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With a ranking of #21, Broward College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Located in the medium-sized city of Fort Lauderdale, BC is a public college with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BC are $8,952 per year. The average amount in student loans that special ed majors at BC take out is $15,237.
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Southwest Minnesota State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #22 on the list. Southwest Minnesota State University is a moderately-sized public school located in the remote town of Marshall.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Southwest Minnesota State University are $9,482 a year.
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With a ranking of #23, Hamline University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Hamline is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Saint Paul.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Hamline are $46,221 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Hamline also did well on our Best Special Education Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Fitchburg State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #24 on the list. Fitchburg State is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Fitchburg.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Fitchburg State are $16,735 per year.
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University of Scranton landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. University of Scranton is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Scranton.
University of Scranton undergraduate students pay an average of $48,462 in tuition and fees each year.
University of Scranton excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Special Education Schools list.
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Remaining Award Winners
This section represents the remainder of the schools awarded a Best Value Special Education Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 694 different United States special education schools we analyzed.
Additional Noteworthy Schools
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 award.
Special Education by Region
View the Best Value Special Education Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Special Education Rankings
Special Education Related Majors for Special Ed
Special Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.
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.
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