College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2024 Best Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools

154 Colleges in the United States
3,712 Master's Degrees
If you pursue a master's degree in early childhood education, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #50 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 154 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for early childhood education students pursuing a master's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,712 master's degrees in early childhood education during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Early Childhood Education School for Your Master's Degree

Best Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools The child development master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality child development program can vary widely even among the top schools. 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 for a Master's Degree ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Other Factors We Consider

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

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for early childhood education students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Child development Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The child development 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 Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools.


 

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Early Childhood Education in the United States

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

24 Top Schools for a Master's in Child development

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
33 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat Teachers College at Columbia University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in early childhood education. Located in the large city of New York, Teachers College is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Teachers College at Columbia University

2
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat New York University if you want to pursue a master's degree in early childhood education. Located in the large city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from New York University

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
11 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat University of Minnesota - Twin Cities if you want to pursue a master's degree in early childhood education. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
44 Annual Graduates

It is difficult to beat University of Georgia if you wish to pursue a master's degree in early childhood education. Located in the midsize city of Athens, UGA is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Georgia

5
Hunter crest
Hunter College
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
78 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of New York, Hunter is a public college with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Hunter College

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
176 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Chicago, NLU is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from National Louis University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2 Annual Graduates

SMC is a small private not-for-profit college located in the large suburb of Moraga.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Saint Mary’s College of California

7
Brooklyn College crest
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Annual Graduates

Brooklyn College is a fairly large public college located in the large city of Brooklyn.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Brooklyn College

8
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
14 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from DePaul University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5 Annual Graduates

San Jose State is a very large public university located in the large city of San Jose.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from San Jose State University

10
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
12 Annual Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Gainesville, UF is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Florida

11
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
80 Annual Graduates

Located in the remote area of Livingston, University of West Alabama is a public university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of West Alabama

12
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
12 Annual Graduates

Worcester State is a medium-sized public university located in the medium-sized city of Worcester.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Worcester State University

13
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4 Annual Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Rochester, University of Rochester is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Rochester

14
Clemson crest
Clemson University
Clemson, SC
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Clemson University

15
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
26 Annual Graduates

SDSU is a very large public university located in the large city of San Diego.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from San Diego State University

16
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
12 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Bronx, Fordham U is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Fordham University

17
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
49 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of New York, Bank Street College of Education is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly small student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from Bank Street College of Education

18
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
16 Annual Graduates

WCUPA is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of West Chester.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from West Chester University of Pennsylvania

19
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4 Annual Graduates

The American University is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from American University

20
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
10 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Grand Forks, UND is a public university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of North Dakota

21

Cumberlands is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the remote town of Williamsburg.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of the Cumberlands

22
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
21 Annual Graduates

UNLV is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Las Vegas.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Nevada - Las Vegas

23
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5 Annual Graduates

UH Manoa is a fairly large public university located in the city of Honolulu.More information about a master’s in early childhood education from University of Hawaii at Manoa

Rest of the Top Best Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Early Childhood Education students that almost earned our Best Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
26 Boston University Boston, MA
27 Widener University Chester, PA
28 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
29 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
30 Grand Canyon University Phoenix, AZ
24 Concordia University, Chicago River Forest, IL
25 Liberty University Lynchburg, VA

Early Childhood Education by Region

View the Best Early Childhood Education Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

Early Childhood Education is one of 13 different types of Teacher Education Grade Specific programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Elementary Education 8,975
Secondary Education 5,777
Teacher Education 4,966
Teacher Development & Methodology 4,032
Adult & Continuing Education 801
Junior High/Intermediate/Middle School Education & Teaching 664
Montessori Teacher Education 202
Kindergarten/Preschool Education & Teaching 181
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Educational Methods 44
Online Educator/Online Teaching 20

Notes and References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options