Special Education and Teaching, General Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Special Education and Teaching, General maps to BLS occupations averaging about $64,987, with roughly 1,596,050 workers nationwide in those roles. About 5,803 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median in-state published tuition is about $3,861.
Key Statistics
Special Education and Teaching, General: what the data shows
Common questions about special education and teaching, general degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a special education and teaching, general degree?
A Special Education and Teaching, General program is classified under NCES CIP 13.1001 in the Special Education and Teaching field family (13.10).
A general program that focuses on the design and provision of teaching and other educational services to children or adults with special learning needs or disabilities, and that may prepare individuals to function as special education teachers in a collaborative or team environment. Includes instruction in diagnosing learning disabilities, developing individual education plans, teaching and supervising special education students, special education counseling, and applicable laws and policies
IPEDS counted 5,803 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of special education and teaching, general degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 13.10 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Education/Teaching of Individuals Who are Developmentally Delayed (CIP 13.1014)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1015)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1017)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Junior High/Middle School Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1018)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Secondary Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1019)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism (CIP 13.1013)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances (CIP 13.1005)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Hearing Impairments Including Deafness (CIP 13.1003)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (CIP 13.1006)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities (CIP 13.1007)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Orthopedic and Other Physical Health Impairments (CIP 13.1008)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities (CIP 13.1011)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments (CIP 13.1012)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injuries (CIP 13.1016)
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Vision Impairments Including Blindness (CIP 13.1009)
- Education/Teaching of the Gifted and Talented (CIP 13.1004)
- Special Education and Teaching (CIP 13.10)
How long does it take to get a special education and teaching, general degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 13.1001 in our file:
- 81 Associate (0.4% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 5,803 Bachelor's (29.1% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 13,894 Master's (69.7% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 155 Doctorate (0.8% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in special education and teaching, general?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing, Critical Thinking, Service Orientation, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Teachers, Postsecondary (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a special education and teaching, general degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Special Education and Teaching, General to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | 1,500,000 | — |
| Secondary School Teachers | 1,072,540 | $64,580 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a special education and teaching, general degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Special Education and Teaching bachelor's program family: median debt $28,598, median earnings $50,499 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.65.
About 0.0% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $3,861 and median net price is $9,063.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Special Education and Teaching, General and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$3,861 Median In-State Public
$26,417 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Special Education and Teaching, General majors are, on average, $3,861 for in-state public colleges, and $26,417 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Special Education and Teaching, General programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
5,803 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Special Education and Teaching, General from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Special Education and Teaching, General.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michigan State University | MI | 40,243 |
| 2 | Valencia College | FL | 35,125 |
| 3 | Miami Dade College | FL | 35,001 |
| 4 | Connecticut State Community College | CT | 32,292 |
| 5 | New York University | NY | 29,430 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Special Education and Teaching, General programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee College | TX | $2,166 |
| 2 | Fort Peck Community College | MT | $2,250 |
| 3 | Pima Community College | AZ | $2,370 |
| 4 | Gulf Coast State College | FL | $2,370 |
| 5 | Valencia College | FL | $2,474 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Special Education and Teaching, General programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gulf Coast State College | FL | $2,339 |
| 2 | Fort Peck Community College | MT | $2,449 |
| 3 | Florida State College at Jacksonville | FL | $2,760 |
| 4 | Florida Gateway College | FL | $2,915 |
| 5 | Seminole State College of Florida | FL | $3,119 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Special Education and Teaching, General programs.
Graduation Rates
54.98% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
54.71% Average Graduation Rate
956 Institutions Reporting
43.20% - 66.49% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Special Education and Teaching, General programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Special Education and Teaching, General is in UT (718 completions). That state represents about 12.4% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is UT (0.67% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| UT | 718 | 12.4% | 0.67% |
| PA | 515 | 8.9% | 0.30% |
| AZ | 486 | 8.4% | 0.35% |
| IL | 485 | 8.4% | 0.35% |
| NY | 348 | 6.0% | 0.13% |
| OH | 337 | 5.8% | 0.24% |
| FL | 276 | 4.8% | 0.12% |
| WI | 259 | 4.5% | 0.34% |
| GA | 178 | 3.1% | 0.15% |
| VA | 151 | 2.6% | 0.12% |
| TN | 136 | 2.3% | 0.18% |
| WA | 136 | 2.3% | 0.20% |
| MO | 133 | 2.3% | 0.19% |
| SC | 130 | 2.2% | 0.23% |
| NE | 122 | 2.1% | 0.40% |
| KY | 115 | 2.0% | 0.22% |
| IN | 109 | 1.9% | 0.10% |
| NC | 108 | 1.9% | 0.09% |
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 13.10 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Education/Teaching of Individuals Who are Developmentally Delayed CIP 13.1014
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs CIP 13.1015
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs CIP 13.1017
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Junior High/Middle School Special Education Programs CIP 13.1018
- Education/Teaching of Individuals in Secondary Special Education Programs CIP 13.1019
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Autism CIP 13.1013
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Emotional Disturbances CIP 13.1005
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Hearing Impairments Including Deafness CIP 13.1003
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities CIP 13.1006
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities CIP 13.1007
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Orthopedic and Other Physical Health Impairments CIP 13.1008
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities CIP 13.1011
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments CIP 13.1012
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injuries CIP 13.1016
- Education/Teaching of Individuals with Vision Impairments Including Blindness CIP 13.1009
- Education/Teaching of the Gifted and Talented CIP 13.1004
- Special Education and Teaching CIP 13.10
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 13.1001 in the survey year used in our extract (19,933 total across levels below).
- 81 Associate (0.4% of IPEDS total)
- 5,803 Bachelor's (29.1% of IPEDS total)
- 13,894 Master's (69.7% of IPEDS total)
- 155 Doctorate (0.8% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $64,987. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Special Education and Teaching, General graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | $36,511 | 1,500,000 |
| Secondary School Teachers | $104,813 | 1,072,540 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Special Education and Teaching CIP family (28 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Special Education and Teaching, General graduate.
- $28,598 median federal loan debt among completers
- $50,499 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.65 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 0.0% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$40,621 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Special Education and Teaching, General majors is $40,621.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Special Education and Teaching, General majors.
Occupations by Share
1,596,050 2023 Workforce
The number of Special Education and Teaching, General graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Special Education and Teaching, General by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Special Education and Teaching, General in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Special Education and Teaching, General.
Age distribution for Special Education and Teaching, General degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
5,803 Total Degrees Awarded
614 Male (10.58%)
5,189 Female (89.42%)
Gender distribution of Special Education and Teaching, General degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
4,432 White (76.37%)
656 Hispanic or Latino (11.30%)
256 Black or African American (4.41%)
169 Two or More Races (2.91%)
87 Asian (1.50%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Special Education and Teaching, General degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Special Education and Teaching, General are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Special Education and Teaching, General.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Special Education and Teaching, General field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Special Education and Teaching, General majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Special Education and Teaching, General majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Special Education and Teaching, General majors.
About
A general program that focuses on the design and provision of teaching and other educational services to children or adults with special learning needs or disabilities, and that may prepare individuals to function as special education teachers in a collaborative or team environment. Includes instruction in diagnosing learning disabilities, developing individual education plans, teaching and supervising special education students, special education counseling, and applicable laws and policies
In 2023, 5,803 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Special Education and Teaching, General.
CIP Code
13.1001 - Special Education and Teaching, General
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $28,598 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $50,499, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.65. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Special Education and Teaching, General graduate.
Women earned 86.6% of 22,116 Special Education and Teaching, General completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $64,987. The largest mapped role by headcount is Teachers, Postsecondary (1,500,000 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $3,861 in-state at public colleges and $26,417 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.