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2025 Best Special Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

55 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
2,070 Bachelor's Degrees
$43,735 Avg Early-Career Salary
Special Education is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #55 most popular bachelor's degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual reviewed 55 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of special education. Combined, these schools handed out 2,070 bachelor's degrees in special education to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

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

Best Special Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of special education for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for special education students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Special Education Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Special Ed Rankings Other Ranking Categories

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 Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision.

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.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Special Education in the Great Lakes Region

Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for special education students seeking a a bachelor's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

11 Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Special Ed

1
151 Annual Graduates
$48,358 Median Starting Salary
$16,935 Median Student Debt

Illinois State University is a great decision for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in special education. Located in the suburb of Normal, Illinois State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from Illinois State University make $4,623 more than the standard special ed graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Illinois State University

2

Ball State University is a good option for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in special education. Ball State is a very large public university located in the city of Muncie.

Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from Ball State University make $3,764 more than the average special ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Ball State University

3

It is difficult to beat Indiana University - Bloomington if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in special education. IU Bloomington is a very large public university located in the small city of Bloomington.

Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from Indiana University - Bloomington earn $7,571 more than the average special ed graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Indiana University - Bloomington

4
47 Annual Graduates
$39,139 Median Starting Salary
$45,188 Median Student Debt

Kent State University at Kent is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in special education. Kent State is a very large public university located in the suburb of Kent.

After graduation, special ed bachelor's recipients usually earn about $39,139 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Kent State University at Kent

5
203 Annual Graduates
$38,671 Median Starting Salary
$29,062 Median Student Debt

BGSU is a fairly large public university located in the town of Bowling Green.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the special ed program state that they receive average early career earnings of $38,671.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Bowling Green State University - Main Campus

6

UDayton is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Dayton.

Soon after graduating, special ed bachelor's recipients typically earn about $45,260 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from University of Dayton

7

UC is a very large public university located in the large city of Cincinnati.

After graduation, special ed bachelor's recipients generally make about $42,347 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

8

Located in the small city of Kalamazoo, WMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from Western Michigan University earn $4,133 more than the average special ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Western Michigan University

9
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
49 Annual Graduates
$40,266 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Michigan State University

10

Eastern Michigan is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Ypsilanti.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the special ed program make an average of $43,777 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Eastern Michigan University

11

Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign receive $8,187 more than the standard special ed grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in special education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Special Education students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best Special Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
12 Miami University - Oxford Oxford, OH
13 Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN
14 Ashland University Ashland, OH
15 Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL
16 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI
17 Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL
18 Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH

Best Special Education Colleges by State

Explore the best special education schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 318
Ohio 252 840
Illinois 241 522
Indiana 235 238
Wisconsin 213 310

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 1,359
Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs 317
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities 113
Other Special Education & Teaching 88
Elementary Special Education 50
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities 40
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities 37
Education/Teaching of Individuals Who are Developmentally Delayed 31
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances 22
Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism 7

Majors Similar to Special Ed

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 8,360
Teacher Education Subject Specific 3,921
General Education 1,205
Educational Administration 349
Other Education 195
Teaching English or French 46
Education Philosophy 38
Curriculum & Instruction 17
Multilingual Education 8
Student Counseling 5

Notes and References

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