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2024 Best Special Education Schools in Washington

10 Colleges in Washington
238 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$52,785 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 10 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Special Education Schools in Washington ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 238 degrees in special education to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Special Education School

Best Special Education Schools in Washington The special ed program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Special Education rankings. 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.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Special Education Rankings by Degree Level

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

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Special Education Schools in Washington ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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 Washington

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 Washington Schools in Special Ed

1
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
93 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
8.6% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat Western Washington University if you wish to pursue a degree in special education. Located in the small city of Bellingham, WWU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #215 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means WWU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 93 special education students who graduated with this degree at WWU in the most recent data year. After graduation, special ed degree recipients usually make about $49,253 at the beginning of their careers.

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

2
Gonzaga crest
Gonzaga University
Spokane, WA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$49,990 Median Starting Salary
$25,500 Median Student Debt

It is difficult to beat Gonzaga University if you wish to pursue a degree in special education. Gonzaga is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Spokane. A Best Colleges rank of #172 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Gonzaga is a great university overall.

There were approximately 22 special education students who graduated with this degree at Gonzaga in the most recent data year. After graduation, special ed degree recipients usually make about $49,990 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in special education from Gonzaga University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
32 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
9.4% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat University of Washington - Seattle Campus if you wish to pursue a degree in special education. UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the city of Seattle. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.

There were approximately 32 special education students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available. Special Education degree recipients from University of Washington - Seattle Campus receive an earnings boost of around $12,499 over the average earnings of special education majors.

More information about a degree in special education from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$57,992 Median Starting Salary

Whitworth University is a good decision for students interested in a degree in special education. Located in the large suburb of Spokane, Whitworth is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 13th out of 51 schools for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were about 30 special education students who graduated with this degree at Whitworth in the most recent data year. Those special education students who get their degree from Whitworth University receive $5,207 more than the typical special ed grad.

More information about a degree in special education from Whitworth University

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$58,369 Median Starting Salary

Wazzu is a very large public university located in the town of Pullman. A Best Colleges rank of #175 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Wazzu is a great university overall.

There were roughly 9 special education students who graduated with this degree at Wazzu in the most recent data year. Special Education degree recipients from Washington State University receive an earnings boost of around $5,584 over the typical income of special education majors.

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

6
Seattle U crest
Seattle University
Seattle, WA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In WA

Located in the city of Seattle, Seattle U is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #155 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Seattle U is a great university overall.

There were about 3 special education students who graduated with this degree at Seattle U in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in special education from Seattle University

6

CWU is a medium-sized public university located in the distant town of Ellensburg. This university ranks 7th out of 51 schools for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were about 16 special education students who graduated with this degree at CWU 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 $47,108.

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

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In WA

Located in the city of Lacey, Saint Martin's is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 22nd out of 51 colleges for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were approximately 5 special education students who graduated with this degree at Saint Martin's in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in special education from Saint Martin’s University

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In WA

Located in the city of Seattle, SPU is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 10th out of 51 colleges for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were about 4 special education students who graduated with this degree at SPU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in special education from Seattle Pacific University

9

EWU is a fairly large public university located in the town of Cheney. This university ranks 14th out of 51 colleges for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were about 24 special education students who graduated with this degree at EWU in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, special ed degree recipients generally earn about $41,502 at the beginning of their careers.

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


 

Best Special Education Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Special Education Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 330 2,631
Oregon 266 217
Nevada 192 215
Hawaii 164 49
Alaska 119 27

View All Rankings >

One of 14 majors within the Education area of study, Special Education has other similar majors worth exploring.

Special Ed Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Special Education 223
Education/Teaching of the Gifted & Talented 8
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs 6
Education/Teaching of Individuals Who are Developmentally Delayed 1

View All Special Ed Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Special Ed

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 4,883
General Education 728
Teacher Education Subject Specific 602
Educational Administration 424
Curriculum & Instruction 180
Student Counseling 166
Teaching English or French 77
Educational Assessment 16
Instructional Media Design 13
Teaching Assistants 13

View All Special Ed Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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