2025 Best Special Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region
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.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 7 schools in the Southwest Region to determine which ones were the best for special education students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 933 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
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:
- Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to special education students as compared to other majors.
- Major Demand - How many other special education students want to attend this school to pursue a bachelor's degree.
- Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
- Student Debt - How easy is it for special education to pay back their student loans after receiving their bachelor's degree.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized special education related body.
Our full 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
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Special Education Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that 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 Southwest Region
Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for special education students seeking a a bachelor's degree.
Top Southwest Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Special Ed
Northern Arizona University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in special education. Located in the city of Flagstaff, NAU is a public university with a very large student population.
Special Education bachelor's degree recipients from Northern Arizona University receive an earnings boost of about $4,667 over the typical income of special education graduates.
More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Northern Arizona University
It's hard to beat Grand Canyon University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in special education. Located in the large city of Phoenix, Grand Canyon University is a private for-profit university with a fairly large student population.
Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the special ed program make an average of $43,258 for their early career.
More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Grand Canyon University
It is difficult to beat Arizona State University - Tempe if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in special education. ASU - Tempe is a very large public university located in the city of Tempe.
Those special education students who get their bachelor's degree from Arizona State University - Tempe earn $6,939 more than the typical special ed student.
More information about a bachelor’s in special education from Arizona State University - Tempe
University of Arizona is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in special education. Located in the large city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public university with a very large student population.
After graduating, special ed bachelor's recipients typically earn an average of $35,023 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a bachelor’s in special education from University of Arizona
UNM is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Albuquerque.
Soon after graduating, special ed bachelor's recipients generally earn an average of $41,947 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a bachelor’s in special education from University of New Mexico - Main Campus