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2024 Best Special Education Schools in Michigan

15 Colleges in Michigan
677 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$43,967 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you pursue a degree in special education, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #29 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 15 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Special Education Schools in Michigan ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 677 degrees in special education during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Special Education School

Best Special Education Schools in Michigan Your choice of special education school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Special Education School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Special Education Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Special Ed
Master's Degrees in Special Ed
Doctor's Degrees in Special Ed

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Special Education Schools in Michigan list to help you make the college decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Special Education in Michigan

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the special ed degree levels they offer.

10 Top Michigan Schools in Special Ed

1
Hope crest
Hope College
Holland, MI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
34 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
17.6% Growth in Graduates

Hope College is a good decision for students pursuing a degree in special education. Located in the city of Holland, Hope is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #398 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Hope is a great college overall.

There were about 34 special education students who graduated with this degree at Hope in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the special ed program earn around $39,887 for their early career.

More information about a degree in special education from Hope College

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
63 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$46,003 Median Starting Salary

Every student who is interested in special education needs to check out Michigan State University. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #74 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.

There were about 63 special education students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year. Special Education degree recipients from Michigan State University receive an earnings boost of about $2,036 above the typical income of special education graduates.

More information about a degree in special education from Michigan State University

3
Central Michigan crest
Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, MI
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
70 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
15.7% Growth in Graduates

Central Michigan University is a great option for students pursuing a degree in special education. Central Michigan is a fairly large public university located in the distant town of Mount Pleasant. A Best Colleges rank of #402 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Central Michigan is a great university overall.

There were approximately 70 special education students who graduated with this degree at Central Michigan in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, special ed degree recipients generally make an average of $40,909 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in special education from Central Michigan University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
52.0% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat Western Michigan University if you want to pursue a degree in special education. Located in the city of Kalamazoo, WMU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #335 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means WMU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 75 special education students who graduated with this degree at WMU in the most recent year we have data available. Those special education students who get their degree from Western Michigan University receive $2,135 more than the typical special ed graduate.

More information about a degree in special education from Western Michigan University

5
Saginaw Valley State University crest
Saginaw Valley State University
University Center, MI
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
96 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
68.8% Growth in Graduates

Located in the medium-sized suburb of University Center, Saginaw Valley State University is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 25th out of 57 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were about 96 special education students who graduated with this degree at Saginaw Valley State University in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the special ed program earn about $43,929 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in special education from Saginaw Valley State University

6
Calvin crest
Calvin University
Grand Rapids, MI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In MI

Calvin is a small private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Grand Rapids. A Best Colleges rank of #506 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Calvin is a great university overall.

There were roughly 14 special education students who graduated with this degree at Calvin in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in special education from Calvin University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
79 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$43,700 Median Starting Salary

Eastern Michigan is a large public university located in the large suburb of Ypsilanti. This university ranks 20th out of 57 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were roughly 79 special education students who graduated with this degree at Eastern Michigan in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the special ed program report average early career income of $43,700.

More information about a degree in special education from Eastern Michigan University

8
Oakland crest
Oakland University
Rochester Hills, MI
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
55 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$48,045 Median Starting Salary

Oakland is a large public university located in the suburb of Rochester Hills. A Best Colleges rank of #447 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Oakland is a great university overall.

There were approximately 55 special education students who graduated with this degree at Oakland in the most recent data year. Special Education degree recipients from Oakland University earn a boost of about $4,078 over the typical earnings of special education graduates.

More information about a degree in special education from Oakland University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$49,842 Median Starting Salary

GVSU is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Allendale. A Best Colleges rank of #399 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means GVSU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 62 special education students who graduated with this degree at GVSU in the most recent year we have data available. Those special education students who get their degree from Grand Valley State University receive $5,875 more than the standard special ed graduate.

More information about a degree in special education from Grand Valley State University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
20th Most Popular In MI
83.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Livonia, Madonna is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 14th out of 57 schools for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were approximately 6 special education students who graduated with this degree at Madonna in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in special education from Madonna University


 

Best Special Education Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Special Education Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Ohio3141,286
Illinois3041,090
Indiana2941,835
Wisconsin273527

View All Rankings >

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

Special Ed Concentrations

MajorAnnual Graduates
General Special Education343
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities113
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities64
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Vision Impairments Including Blindness43
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances38
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism36
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injuries23
Elementary Special Education6
Other Special Education & Teaching5
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments2

View All Special Ed Concentrations >

Majors Similar to Special Ed

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific1,557
Teacher Education Subject Specific1,356
Educational Administration811
General Education764
Instructional Media Design407
Curriculum & Instruction215
Student Counseling197
Teaching English or French139
Other Education48
Multilingual Education31

View All Special Ed Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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