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2024 Best Special Education Schools in Alabama

10 Colleges in Alabama
437 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$43,377 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #29 in popularity, special education is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 10 schools in Alabama to determine which ones were the best for special education students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 437 degrees in special education during the 2020-2021 academic year.

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

Choosing a Great Special Education School

Best Special Education Schools in Alabama Your choice of special education school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for special education schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

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

The special ed school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Special Education Schools in Alabama. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Special Education in Alabama

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the special ed degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Alabama Schools in Special Ed

1
Auburn crest
Auburn University
Auburn, AL
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
90 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$40,254 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in special education needs to check out Auburn University. Auburn is a very large public university located in the city of Auburn. A Best Colleges rank of #154 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Auburn is a great university overall.

There were about 90 special education students who graduated with this degree at Auburn in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, special ed degree recipients generally earn around $40,254 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in special education from Auburn University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
57 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$41,366 Median Starting Salary

The University of Alabama is a wonderful option for students pursuing a degree in special education. Located in the small city of Tuscaloosa, UA is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #139 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UA is a great university overall.

There were about 57 special education students who graduated with this degree at UA in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, special ed degree recipients usually make about $41,366 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in special education from The University of Alabama

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
135 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
9.6% Growth in Graduates

Any student who is interested in special education needs to take a look at University of West Alabama. Located in the rural area of Livingston, University of West Alabama is a public university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #416 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University of West Alabama is a great university overall.

There were approximately 135 special education students who graduated with this degree at University of West Alabama in the most recent year we have data available. Special Education degree recipients from University of West Alabama get an earnings boost of around $4,598 above the average earnings of special education graduates.

More information about a degree in special education from University of West Alabama

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$45,296 Median Starting Salary

University of Alabama at Birmingham is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in special education. Located in the city of Birmingham, UAB is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #260 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UAB is a great university overall.

There were approximately 19 special education students who graduated with this degree at UAB in the most recent data year. After graduating, special ed degree recipients typically earn around $45,296 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in special education from University of Alabama at Birmingham

5

Athens State University is a small public university located in the town of Athens. This university ranks 11th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were roughly 20 special education students who graduated with this degree at Athens State University in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the special ed program report average early career wages of $35,832.

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

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
43 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
53.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small suburb of Jacksonville, Jacksonville State University is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 18th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were about 43 special education students who graduated with this degree at Jacksonville State University in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the special education program at Jacksonville State University get $2,806 more than the average graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

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

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$44,026 Median Starting Salary

USA is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Mobile. A Best Colleges rank of #825 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means USA is a great university overall.

There were about 13 special education students who graduated with this degree at USA in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, special ed degree recipients generally make an average of $44,026 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in special education from University of South Alabama

8

Located in the city of Montgomery, AUM is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 36th out of 40 colleges for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were roughly 17 special education students who graduated with this degree at AUM in the most recent year we have data available. Those special education students who get their degree from Auburn University at Montgomery receive $7,843 more than the standard special ed graduate.

More information about a degree in special education from Auburn University at Montgomery

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In AL

Located in the city of Normal, AAMU is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 39th out of 40 colleges for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were approximately 14 special education students who graduated with this degree at AAMU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in special education from Alabama A & M University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In AL
46.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Florence, UNA is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 15th out of 40 colleges for overall quality in the state of Alabama.

There were about 15 special education students who graduated with this degree at UNA in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in special education from University of North Alabama


 

Best Special Education Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 423
Florida 282 999
North Carolina 279 372
Virginia 274 994
Tennessee 269 344
South Carolina 248 255
Kentucky 244 573
Louisiana 242 68
Mississippi 234 269
Arkansas 234 274
West Virginia 207 46

View All Rankings >

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

Special Ed Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Special Education 332
Other Special Education & Teaching 90
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments 11
Education/Teaching of the Gifted & Talented 2
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs 2

View All Special Ed Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 2,521
Teacher Education Subject Specific 722
Educational Administration 618
Student Counseling 329
Instructional Media Design 141
General Education 115
Teaching English or French 74
Other Education 51
Curriculum & Instruction 28
Educational Assessment 26

View All Special Ed Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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