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2022 Most Popular Doctor's Degree Colleges for Special Education

74 Colleges in the United States
278 Doctor's Degrees
$62,300 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your doctor's degree in special education, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #79 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many colleges that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2022 ranking, College Factual looked at 74 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the most popular for special education students pursuing a doctor's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 278 doctor's degrees in special education during the 2019-2020 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Other Rankings

Choosing a Great Special Education School for Your Doctor's Degree

Most Popular Doctor's Degree Colleges for Special Education The special ed doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. We created our Most Popular Doctor's Degree Colleges for Special Education ranking to make it a little easier to choose the right one for you.

Being popular does not always equate to overall quality, but a school with a large number of special education students usually has them for a reason. This may be due to it being a great value, it offering a stellar educational experience, or the subject is a major focus of the school.

More Ways to Rank Special Education Schools

Associate Degrees in Special Ed
Bachelor's Degrees in Special Ed
Master's Degrees in Special Ed
Overall Popularity in Special Ed

This is not our only ranking, nor the only degree level we have ranked. In addition to this ranking, you may want to take at the rankings for different degree levels as called out above. You can also narrow your search by location by filtering for a certain area of the country. On top of that, you can visit our other rankings for special education.


 

The following list ranks the most popular colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in special education. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

14 Most Well Attended Schools for Special Ed Students Working on Their Doctorate

1
15 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

Columbia University in the City of New York is a popular option for students interested in a doctor's degree in special education. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.

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

More information about a doctorate in special education from Columbia University in the City of New York

1
15 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In NY
#1 Best Quality In NY

Teachers College at Columbia University is a popular choice for students pursuing a doctor's degree in special education. Located in the city of New York, Teachers College is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in New York.

There were roughly 15 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at Teachers College in the most recent data year.

More information about a doctorate in special education from Teachers College at Columbia University

3
KU crest
University of Kansas
Lawrence, KS
12 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In KS
#1 Best Quality In KS

University of Kansas is a popular option for students interested in a doctor's degree in special education. KU is a very large public university located in the small city of Lawrence. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Kansas.

There were approximately 12 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at KU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Kansas

3
12 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In IL
#1 Best Quality In IL

Every student pursuing a degree in a doctor's degree in special education has to look into University of Illinois at Chicago. UIC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Chicago. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Illinois.

There were approximately 12 special education students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Illinois at Chicago

5
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
11 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In TN
#1 Best Quality In TN

Vanderbilt is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Nashville. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Tennessee.

There were roughly 11 special education students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent data year.

More information about a doctorate in special education from Vanderbilt University

5
11 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In TX
#1 Best Quality In TX

Located in the city of Austin, UT Austin is a public university with a fairly large student population. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Texas.

There were roughly 11 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at UT Austin in the most recent data year.

Students who graduate with their doctorate from the special ed program report average early career income of $62,300.

More information about a doctorate in special education from The University of Texas at Austin

5
11 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In OK
#1 Best Quality In OK

Located in the midsize suburb of Norman, University of Oklahoma is a public university with a very large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Oklahoma.

There were about 11 special education students who graduated with this degree at University of Oklahoma in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Oklahoma Norman Campus

8
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
9 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In FL
#1 Best Quality In FL

Located in the city of Gainesville, UF is a public university with a fairly large student population. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Florida.

There were about 9 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at UF in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Florida

8
9 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In OR
#1 Best Quality In OR

UO is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Eugene. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Oregon.

There were approximately 9 special education students who graduated with this degree at UO in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Oregon

10
8 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In CO
#1 Best Quality In CO

University of Northern Colorado is a fairly large public university located in the city of Greeley. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Colorado.

There were about 8 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at University of Northern Colorado in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Northern Colorado

11
7 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In PA
#2 Best Quality In PA

SRU is a moderately-sized public university located in the distant town of Slippery Rock. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #2 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Pennsylvania.

There were approximately 7 special education students who graduated with this degree at SRU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

11
7 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In UT
#1 Best Quality In UT

Located in the small city of Logan, USU is a public university with a fairly large student population. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Utah.

There were roughly 7 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at USU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from Utah State University

11
7 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In NV
#1 Best Quality In NV

UNLV is a fairly large public university located in the city of Las Vegas. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in Nevada.

There were approximately 7 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at UNLV in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a doctorate in special education from University of Nevada - Las Vegas

11
7 Annual Doctor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In DC
#1 Best Quality In DC

GWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for doctor's degrees in special education in District of Columbia.

There were about 7 special education individuals who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent data year.

More information about a doctorate in special education from George Washington University

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Special Education students that almost earned our Most Popular Doctor's Degree Colleges for Special Education award.

Rank College Location
15 Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO
15 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
15 Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, MI
15 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX
15 Lamar University Beaumont, TX

Special Education by Region

View the Most Popular Doctor's Degree Colleges for Special Education for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

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

Special Ed Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Special Education 234
Other Special Education & Teaching 13
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Orthopedic & Other Physical Health Impairments 10
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances 9
Education of the Deaf 8
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities 3
Education/Teaching of the Gifted & Talented 1

Related Major Annual Graduates
Educational Administration 6,974
General Education 2,292
Curriculum & Instruction 1,471
Teacher Education Subject Specific 550
Teacher Education Grade Specific 400
Student Counseling 354
Other Education 347
Educational Assessment 244
Instructional Media Design 210
Education Philosophy 114

Notes and References

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