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Major · Education

A licensure-track route into elementary special-education classrooms

Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1017) prepares you to teach K-6 students with disabilities. About 589 bachelor’s degrees are awarded across 52 colleges, with graduates earning roughly $51,354 and feeding into a federally protected, IDEA-mandated teaching pipeline.

Schools offering
52
Annual completions
589
Typical degree level
Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$51k

About this major

Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs (CIP 13.1017) is a bachelor’s-only major training teachers to work with K-6 students who have learning needs or disabilities. The CIP definition organizes coursework around diagnosing learning disabilities, developing Individual Education Plans (IEPs), instructional strategies and classroom management for elementary special-education settings, and the elementary subject-matter content many states require alongside a SPED endorsement. Programs run on a licensure-track structure — federal IDEA, Section 504, and state-specific SPED regulations form the legal scaffolding — culminating in a semester-long student teaching placement in self-contained, resource, or inclusion classrooms.

The major rewards documentation discipline, comfort with one-on-one and small-group instruction, and a tolerance for the procedural side of IEP-driven teaching. Day-to-day, graduates work as licensed elementary SPED teachers in public school districts, charter networks, and private special-education schools. Some move into related K-6 roles such as reading interventionists, behavioral support specialists, or transition coordinators bridging elementary and middle school. Others use the bachelor’s as a launchpad into school psychology, applied behavior analysis (BCBA), or educational leadership.

A grounded read on scale: 589 students complete this CIP across 52 institutions — a small national footprint, partly because many universities roll their elementary special-education students into broader Special Education, General (13.1001) reporting. The packet’s tracked occupation is Education teachers, postsecondary ($72,090, doctoral required, 2.1% growth), but that reflects long-run academic outcomes, not entry destinations. The realistic entry point is Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary (BLS 25-2052), with bachelor’s graduates averaging $51,354 and benefiting from IDEA-mandated, chronic-shortage demand across nearly every state.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Education teachers, postsecondary $72k +2.1% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$51k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$41k

Bachelor's

$51k

Who this major is for

Good signs this major fits: you want hands-on classroom work with K-6 students and the structure of a licensure-track degree, you’re comfortable with the diagnostic and documentation side of IEP-driven instruction, and you’re willing to navigate the state-by-state licensure landscape (Praxis II, NASDTEC reciprocity, content + endorsement vs unified K-12 license). The packet shows a $51,354 bachelor’s average and a federal SPED teacher shortage that places graduates faster than general-elementary candidates in most districts. Federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness — $17,500 for SPED teachers in Title I schools after five years — is a meaningful ROI input that doesn’t apply to most other education CIPs.

Reasons to pause: pay is modest by professional-degree standards and tied to state-determined salary scales, so upward movement comes slowly through years of service, master’s-step increases, and endorsements (Reading Specialist, BCBA, ESL). The K-6 narrowing of CIP 13.1017 also locks you into elementary licensure in many states — if you want flexibility across grade bands, the broader Special Education, General (CIP 13.1001, 5,456 completions) is a more portable choice. Reconsider this route if you’re drawn to the research, policy, or administrative side rather than direct classroom teaching, since those paths typically require a master’s in school psychology, education policy, or educational leadership. Finally, verify that your specific program is state-approved for licensure in the state where you plan to teach — a four-year degree without a usable license is the worst possible outcome of this path.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
State University of New York at Cortland Cortland, NY 0 88 88
Towson University Towson, MD 0 69 69
SUNY College at Geneseo Geneseo, NY 0 63 63
University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA 0 61 61
Ball State University Muncie, IN 0 31 31
Marist University Poughkeepsie, NY 0 31 31
SUNY Old Westbury Old Westbury, NY 0 29 29
Niagara University Niagara University, NY 0 24 24
Syracuse University Syracuse, NY 0 24 24
Rhode Island College Providence, RI 0 18 18
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Elementary Education and Teaching

31,672 completions/yr

Special Education and Teaching, General

5,456 completions/yr

Education/Teaching of Individuals in Early Childhood Special Education Programs

2,223 completions/yr

Special Education and Teaching, Other

242 completions/yr

Education/Teaching of Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities

147 completions/yr

Education/Teaching of Individuals with Speech or Language Impairments

90 completions/yr

Education/Teaching of Individuals with Hearing Impairments Including Deafness

83 completions/yr

Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities

59 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Education/Teaching of Individuals in Elementary Special Education Programs worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do elementary special-education majors actually study?
The CIP groups coursework around diagnosing learning disabilities, building Individual Education Plans (IEPs), classroom management for K-6 special-education settings, instructional strategies for math and reading at grade level, and the federal/state legal framework around IDEA and Section 504. Expect supervised fieldwork in self-contained, resource-room, and inclusion classrooms — usually culminating in a semester-long student teaching placement. Programs also cover elementary subject-matter content because many states require both elementary content competency and a SPED endorsement.
Do I need a bachelor’s, or is an associate’s enough?
A bachelor’s is the credential floor. The packet shows zero associate’s completions for this CIP — every graduate finishes a bachelor’s — and state teacher licensure with a SPED endorsement requires a four-year degree. Associate’s grads in related education CIPs typically work as paraeducators or special-education aides at $30K-$40K rather than as licensed teachers. The bachelor’s pulls average earnings to $51,354, which becomes the starting line for the licensed-teacher track.
What jobs do graduates land — and what’s the demand picture?
The packet’s named BLS occupation is Education teachers, postsecondary ($72,090, doctoral required) — but that reflects a long-run academic ladder, not the entry destination. In practice, graduates enter as Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School (BLS code 25-2052, median around $65,000), serving K-6 students with IEPs in self-contained, resource, or inclusion settings. Demand is shaped by IDEA: the federal special-education teacher shortage is a chronic, every-state phenomenon, and many districts hire SPED-endorsed grads faster than general-elementary candidates.
How does this differ from general Special Education (CIP 13.1011) or Early Childhood SPED (13.1015)?
This CIP (13.1017, 589 completions) is narrowed to the K-6 elementary band. CIP 13.1011 (Specific Learning Disabilities, 147 completions) focuses on a disability category across grade bands. CIP 13.1001 (Special Ed General, 5,456 completions) is the all-grades catch-all and keeps the most state-licensure doors open. CIP 13.1015 (Early Childhood SPED, 2,223 completions) covers birth-through-pre-K. Pick the CIP that matches the state license you actually want — some states issue a unified K-12 SPED license, others split elementary-content + SPED endorsement.
What does the licensure path actually involve?
After the bachelor’s, you sit Praxis II Special Education exams (most states) and apply for a state teaching license with a SPED endorsement. Some states issue a unified K-12 SPED credential; others require a separate elementary content license layered with a SPED endorsement. Verify your program is state-approved for licensure in the state where you plan to teach — out-of-state graduates use NASDTEC interstate agreements for reciprocity, but it’s rarely automatic. Many states also require a master’s within five to ten years of initial licensure for full renewal.
Is the pay worth the licensure work?
The bachelor’s earnings sit at $51,354 — modest by professional-degree standards but stable, on a state-determined salary scale that rewards longevity and graduate credits. Two ROI levers stand out: federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness pays $17,500 for SPED teachers serving five years in a Title I school, and master’s-step increases plus endorsements (Reading Specialist, BCBA, ESL) regularly add $5K-$15K to base pay. Compared with general elementary teaching, SPED roles often have shortage stipends or signing bonuses in high-need districts.
Where are the strongest programs concentrated?
SUNY Cortland (88) and Towson University (69) lead total completions, with SUNY Geneseo (63), University of Northern Iowa (61), Ball State (31), Marist (31), SUNY Old Westbury (29), Niagara (24), Syracuse (24), and Rhode Island College (18) rounding out the top ten. The SUNY system dominates — five of the top ten programs are in New York, reflecting the state’s long-running investment in public teacher-prep pipelines. Out-of-state students should still verify whether NY-prepared graduates qualify for direct licensure in their target state.