Hakia Education

Best Master's in Intellectual Disabilities Special Education Programs by Degrees Awarded

Edited by Zoe MacDougall, BS in Psychology

Published ·Last updated

Ranked by the number of master's degrees awarded each year, the most established programs. The top 6 out of 6 programs reviewed from the IPEDS database.

  1. 1

    Teachers College at Columbia University

    New York, NYPrivate nonprofit

    • 10Master's/yr
    • $96,900Metro teacher pay
    • Master of Arts in Teaching Students with Severe or Multiple Disabilities
    • On-campus
    About the program

    Teachers College, Columbia University offers a Master of Arts in Teaching Students with Severe or Multiple Disabilities, an on-campus program built around a single, concentrated focus rather than a menu of tracks. It moves quickly, a 32-credit sequence completed in one year from fall through summer with fall-only admission, and it presumes candidates arrive with momentum: applicants must already hold or be eligible for Initial Certification in Special Education. Coursework pairs with practicum placements in both inclusive and specialized settings, so students test their learning in the range of environments they will later teach in. Completion earns the New York State Annotation in the Teaching of Students with Multiple and Severe Disabilities. The design reads as an intensive, credential-adding year for special educators specializing in students with the most significant support needs. This program offers a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education in New York.

    Why it ranks here

    For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 10 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, where elementary teachers earn a median $96,900, roughly $86,085 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market.

    Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

    School site
  2. 2

    Morningside University

    Sioux City, IAPrivate nonprofitOnline available

    • 7Master's/yr
    • $62,270Metro teacher pay
    • Master of Arts in Teaching: Special Education (Instructional Strategist II: Intellectual Disabilities)
    • Online
    About the program

    Morningside University offers a Master of Arts in Teaching: Special Education carrying the Instructional Strategist II endorsement in Intellectual Disabilities, delivered entirely online. The 24-credit endorsement track sits inside the broader MAT and includes a K-12 practicum, so teachers build the credential through supervised work with the students they aim to serve rather than coursework alone. Aligned to Iowa Board of Educational Examiners and Council for Exceptional Children standards, the sequence leads to the Iowa Instructional Strategist II: Intellectual Disabilities endorsement, and its credits carry forward toward the full master's degree. That structure makes it a natural fit for working classroom teachers extending their qualifications at their own pace. Morningside University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It reads as a targeted, practice-tested route into teaching students with intellectual disabilities. It is a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education at the master's level, based in Iowa.

    Why it ranks here

    Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 7 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Sioux City, IA-NE-SD, where elementary teachers earn a median $62,270, roughly $72,027 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market.

    Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

    School site
  3. 3

    Rhode Island College

    Providence, RIPublic

    • 4Master's/yr
    • $86,720Metro teacher pay
    • Master of Education (M.Ed.) in Special Education – Severe Intellectual Disabilities (SID) concentration
    About the program

    Rhode Island College offers a Master of Education in Special Education with a concentration in Severe Intellectual Disabilities, one of five distinct pathways within the degree alongside early childhood, exceptional learning needs, elementary or secondary, and urban multicultural special education. The SID track is the most specialized of the set, preparing teachers to serve students with complex and severe intellectual disabilities, and it leads to Rhode Island special education licensure. For educators who already hold certification in mild to moderate disabilities, a related Certificate of Graduate Study offers an accelerated route into the same specialty. That range of entry points signals a program willing to meet teachers at different stages of their careers. It reads as a focused option for educators committed to students with the most significant support needs. This program offers a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education in Rhode Island.

    Why it ranks here

    A master's degree earns its rank on program-appropriate signals, not undergraduate ones: established scale, local teacher pay, and institutional strength. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 4 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Providence-Warwick, RI-MA, where elementary teachers earn a median $86,720, roughly $85,209 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market.

    Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

    School site
  4. 4

    University of St Thomas

    Saint Paul, MNPrivate nonprofitOnline available

    • 2Master's/yr
    • $79,730Metro teacher pay
    • MA in Teaching Special Education – Developmental Cognitive Disabilities (Initial or Additional Licensure)
    • Hybrid
    About the program

    The University of St. Thomas offers an MA in Teaching Special Education concentrating in Developmental Cognitive Disabilities, Minnesota's licensure category for intellectual disabilities and one of five special education areas the school supports. Candidates can enter through a 50-credit Initial License pathway or an Additional License route of roughly 9 to 33 credits, making the program workable both for those beginning in special education and for licensed teachers adding a specialty. The curriculum leans into the concrete demands of the population, with emphasis on positioning, handling, and augmentative communication strategies, and a biennial DCD Summer Institute brings working educators together for intensive study. Required student teaching and a seminar tie the coursework to classroom practice with learners from kindergarten through age 21. The program is a Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board-approved teacher preparation program. It reads as a hands-on preparation for teachers of students with significant cognitive needs. It is a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education at the master's level, based in Minnesota.

    Why it ranks here

    For a graduate program we set aside undergraduate figures and weigh three things instead: how established it is, the local market its graduates enter, and the institution's standing. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 2 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI, where elementary teachers earn a median $79,730, roughly $76,062 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market.

    Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

    School site
  5. 5

    CUNY Hunter College

    New York, NYPublic

    • 1Master's/yr
    • $96,900Metro teacher pay
    • Childhood Special Education: Severe/Multiple Disabilities (including Deafblindness), M.S.Ed.
    • Program leads to New York State certification-accredited
    • On-campus
    About the program

    Hunter College of the City University of New York offers a Master of Science in Education in Childhood Special Education focused on Severe and Multiple Disabilities, including deafblindness, taught on campus. The program splits into two tracks so it can serve very different candidates: one path leads teachers without prior New York certification to dual certification in childhood education and students with disabilities in grades 1 through 6, while a second path lets already-certified educators add the severe and multiple disabilities annotation. Whichever route students take, the preparation aims at teachers who will work in self-contained, inclusion-support, and collaborative team-teaching roles, including with children who are deafblind. Graduates earn New York State certification in Students with Disabilities Grades 1-6 along with the extension in Severe and Multiple Disabilities. The result is a program built to staff some of the most specialized classrooms in the state's schools. It is a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education at the master's level, based in New York.

    Why it ranks here

    Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 1 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort. Its graduates step into New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, where elementary teachers earn a median $96,900, roughly $86,085 once local cost of living is factored in, a real-world read on what the credential is worth in that market.

    Area teacher pay: Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025, adjusted for local cost of living via U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities. A location figure, not this program's graduate earnings.

    School site
  6. 6

    University of Mary

    Bismarck, NDPrivate nonprofitOnline available

    • 1Master's/yr
    • Master of Education in Special Education
    • Online
    About the program

    The University of Mary offers a Master of Education in Special Education delivered primarily online, with a blended option that brings students to the Bismarck, North Dakota campus for summer courses. The program can be finished in as little as 1.5 years, and its structure suits teachers who need a flexible, general grounding in special education rather than a single narrow endorsement track. Notably, the degree does not itself confer a teaching license, and the university directs prospective students to their own state's Department of Education to confirm licensure or endorsement requirements. The education programs are accredited under North Dakota's Education Standards and Practices Board and built to meet Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation standards. It reads as an accessible, broadly framed master's for educators who will map its coursework onto their home state's credentialing rules. As a master's degree in intellectual disabilities special education, it adds to the master's-level intellectual disabilities special education options in North Dakota.

    Why it ranks here

    Master's programs are judged differently here. Undergraduate stats do not apply, so the ranking looks at whether the program is established, the pay its graduates walk into locally, and how the university stands behind it. On the first, it is clearly established, turning out 1 master's degrees a year, a steady if smaller cohort.

    School site

← Back to the overall Best Master's in Intellectual Disabilities Special Education