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2025 Best Special Education Schools in New York

33 Colleges in New York
4,242 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$52,862 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 33 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Special Education Schools in New York ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 4,242 degrees in special education annually.

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

Choosing a Great Special Education School

Best Special Education Schools in New York 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

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 New York 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 New York

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 New York Schools in Special Ed

1
Hunter crest
Hunter College
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
261 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$77,182 Median Starting Salary

Hunter College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in special education. Located in the city of New York, Hunter is a public college with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #296 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Hunter is a great college overall.

There were roughly 261 special education students who graduated with this degree at Hunter in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the special education program at Hunter College earn $24,320 above the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in special education from Hunter College

2
Brooklyn College crest
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
145 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$77,678 Median Starting Salary

Brooklyn College is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in special education. Brooklyn College is a fairly large public college located in the large city of Brooklyn. This college ranks 62nd out of 136 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were about 145 special education students who graduated with this degree at Brooklyn College in the most recent data year. Those special education students who get their degree from Brooklyn College receive $24,816 more than the standard special ed graduate.

More information about a degree in special education from Brooklyn College

3
Syracuse crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
80 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
20.0% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat Syracuse University if you wish to pursue a degree in special education. Syracuse is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Syracuse. A Best Colleges rank of #62 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Syracuse is a great university overall.

There were approximately 80 special education students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent data year. Those special education students who get their degree from Syracuse University earn $5,935 more than the standard special ed student.

More information about a degree in special education from Syracuse University

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
88 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$76,836 Median Starting Salary

Every student pursuing a degree in special education needs to look into The City College of New York. Located in the city of New York, CCNY is a public college with a large student population. This college ranks 65th out of 136 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were about 88 special education students who graduated with this degree at CCNY in the most recent year we have data available. Those special education students who get their degree from The City College of New York receive $23,974 more than the standard special ed student.

More information about a degree in special education from The City College of New York

5
LIU Post crest
LIU Post
Brookville, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
118 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$75,868 Median Starting Salary

LIU Post is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Brookville. A Best Colleges rank of #216 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means LIU Post is a great school overall.

There were about 118 special education students who graduated with this degree at LIU Post in the most recent data year. Those special education students who get their degree from LIU Post receive $23,006 more than the average special ed graduate.

More information about a degree in special education from LIU Post

6
QC crest
Queens College
Queens, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
80 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$74,496 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Queens, QC is a public college with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #545 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means QC is a great college overall.

There were roughly 80 special education students who graduated with this degree at QC in the most recent year we have data available. Special Education degree recipients from Queens College earn a boost of around $21,634 above the typical income of special education majors.

More information about a degree in special education from Queens College

7
Hofstra crest
Hofstra University
Hempstead, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
41 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$76,264 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large suburb of Hempstead, Hofstra is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #285 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Hofstra is a great university overall.

There were roughly 41 special education students who graduated with this degree at Hofstra in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the special education program at Hofstra University earn $23,402 more than the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in special education from Hofstra University

8
Molloy crest
Molloy College
Rockville Centre, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
92 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
$53,653 Median Starting Salary

Molloy is a small private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Rockville Centre. A Best Colleges rank of #98 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Molloy is a great college overall.

There were roughly 92 special education students who graduated with this degree at Molloy in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, special ed degree recipients usually make about $53,653 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in special education from Molloy College

9
Adelphi crest
Adelphi University
Garden City, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
77 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
24.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Garden City, Adelphi is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #183 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Adelphi is a great university overall.

There were about 77 special education students who graduated with this degree at Adelphi in the most recent year we have data available. Special Education degree recipients from Adelphi University get an earnings boost of around $14,711 above the average income of special education graduates.

More information about a degree in special education from Adelphi University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
109 Special Ed Degrees Awarded
19.3% Growth in Graduates

STJ is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Queens. A Best Colleges rank of #298 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means STJ is a great university overall.

There were about 109 special education students who graduated with this degree at STJ in the most recent data year. Special Education degree recipients from St John's University - New York receive an earnings boost of about $22,579 over the average income of special education graduates.

More information about a degree in special education from St John’s University - New York

Best Special Education Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 334 1,757
Maryland 279 337
New Jersey 273 722
District of Columbia 188 88
Delaware 175 165

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 1,341
Elementary Special Education 1,222
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs 836
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Secondary Special Education Programs 438
Other Special Education & Teaching 149
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments 60
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Junior High/Middle School Special Education Programs 45
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities 39
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities 23
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism 23

View All Special Ed Concentrations >

Majors Similar to Special Ed

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 5,922
Teacher Education Subject Specific 5,653
Educational Administration 3,810
Teaching Assistants 1,194
Teaching English or French 1,013
Student Counseling 857
General Education 766
Instructional Media Design 419
Multilingual Education 367
Curriculum & Instruction 348

View All Special Ed Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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