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2024 Best Elementary Education Master's Degree Schools

267 Colleges in the United States
8,975 Master's Degrees
Ranked #19 in popularity, elementary education is one of the most sought-after master's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 267 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for elementary education students pursuing a master's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 8,975 master's degrees in elementary education to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Elementary Education School for Your Master's Degree

Best Elementary Education Master's Degree Schools Your choice of elementary education for getting your master's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality elementary teaching program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a school's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

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

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Elementary Teaching Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The elementary teaching 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 Elementary Education Master's Degree Schools.


 

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

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in elementary education. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

25 Top Schools for a Master's in Elementary Teaching

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
20 Annual Graduates

Teachers College at Columbia University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in elementary education. Teachers College is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Teachers College at Columbia University

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

Every student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in elementary education needs to look into New York University. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York.More information about a master’s in elementary education from New York University

3
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
20 Annual Graduates

University of Pennsylvania is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in elementary education. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Pennsylvania

4
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
15 Annual Graduates

It's difficult to beat Vanderbilt University if you want to pursue a master's degree in elementary education. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Vanderbilt University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
83 Annual Graduates

UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the large city of Seattle.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
44 Annual Graduates

TCNJ is a medium-sized public college located in the suburb of Ewing.More information about a master’s in elementary education from The College of New Jersey

7
SCU crest
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
57 Annual Graduates

SCU is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Santa Clara.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Santa Clara University

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
38 Annual Graduates

UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Chicago.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Chicago

9
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
16 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Stanford University

10
Hunter crest
Hunter College
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
139 Annual Graduates

Hunter is a very large public college located in the city of New York.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Hunter College

11
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5 Annual Graduates

Located in the small city of Bellingham, WWU is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Western Washington University

12
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4 Annual Graduates

Loyola Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Loyola University Chicago

12
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Johns Hopkins University

13
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
47 Annual Graduates

GaSou is a very large public university located in the town of Statesboro.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Georgia Southern University

14
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
138 Annual Graduates

NLU is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a master’s in elementary education from National Louis University

15
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1 Annual Graduates

UIUC is a very large public university located in the small city of Champaign.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

16
UARK crest
University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, AR
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
50 Annual Graduates

UARK is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Fayetteville.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Arkansas

17
Brooklyn College crest
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
60 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Brooklyn, Brooklyn College is a public college with a large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Brooklyn College

18
WGU crest
Western Governors University
Salt Lake City, UT
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
603 Annual Graduates

Located in the suburb of Salt Lake City, WGU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Western Governors University

19
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
51 Annual Graduates

DePaul is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a master’s in elementary education from DePaul University

20
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
53 Annual Graduates

UF is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of Florida

21
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
276 Annual Graduates

University of West Alabama is a medium-sized public university located in the remote area of Livingston.More information about a master’s in elementary education from University of West Alabama

22
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
12 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from North Carolina State University

23
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
103 Annual Graduates

Mercer is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Macon.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Mercer University

24
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
15 Annual Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Worcester, Worcester State is a public university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a master’s in elementary education from Worcester State University

Rest of the Top Best Elementary Education Master's Degree Schools

26
27
28
Clemson crest
Clemson University
Clemson, SC
29
30
31
32

33

34
35
36
37
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC
38
39
40
Drake crest
Drake University
Des Moines, IA

Honorable Mentions

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

Rank College Location
41 Creighton University Omaha, NE
41 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
42 Washington State University Pullman, WA
43 Concordia University, Chicago River Forest, IL
44 Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA
45 Fresno Pacific University Fresno, CA
46 Liberty University Lynchburg, VA
47 Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS
48 Boston University Boston, MA
49 Temple University Philadelphia, PA
50 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
51 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA
52 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
53 Grand Canyon University Phoenix, AZ

Elementary Education by Region

View the Best Elementary 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 >

One of 13 majors within the Teacher Education Grade Specific area of study, Elementary Education has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Elementary Teaching

Related Major Annual Graduates
Secondary Education 5,777
Teacher Education 4,966
Teacher Development & Methodology 4,032
Early Childhood Education 3,712
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

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