Best Early Childhood Education Schools Near Manhattan, NY

Updated September 6, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Manhattan, New York has 5 accredited schools offering early childhood education programs. Manhattan has a population of about 1,643,734. In the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area, the top-earning early childhood education-related role is Preschool and Childcare Center Director at a median $98,470 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Early Childhood Education Schools to Manhattan

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer early childhood education programs near Manhattan, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Manhattan city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Manhattan. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

CUNY Hunter College

New York, NY 1.0 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
71.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 58%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $63,163
Avg net price $2,984/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 79%
  • Programs offered: 117

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Bank Street College of Education

New York, NY 1.5 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 12

Source:Accreditor: Middle States Commission on Higher EducationIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#3

Teachers College at Columbia University

New York, NY 1.9 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $73,294
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 61

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

CUNY City College

New York, NY 2.7 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
73.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 58%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $66,039
Avg net price $3,776/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 79%
  • Programs offered: 84

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#5

New York University

New York, NY 4.1 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
76.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 88%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $82,509
Avg net price $37,050/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 96%
  • Programs offered: 218

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

Pace University

New York, NY 5.4 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
58.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 62%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $70,378
Avg net price $30,892/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 76%
  • Programs offered: 106

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#7

Monroe University

Bronx, NY 6.6 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
62.7 BOC Score
Graduation rate 54%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $41,236
Avg net price $14,522/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 68%
  • Programs offered: 35

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Fordham University

Bronx, NY 6.8 miles from Manhattan
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
73.3 BOC Score
Graduation rate 81%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $85,569
Avg net price $44,338/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 88%
  • Programs offered: 109

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all New York schools on the New York early childhood education page.

Early Childhood Education Wages Near Manhattan

Manhattan is part of the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area (BLS area code 35620). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to New York statewide.

Occupation Median Wage Source COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Preschool Teacher $50,230 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $44,609
Kindergarten Teacher $77,400 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $68,739
Preschool and Childcare Center Director $98,470 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $87,451
Teaching Assistant $38,890 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $34,538

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Manhattan at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 112.6 (above U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024

Other Manhattan-Area Cities With Early Childhood Education Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited early childhood education schools are near Manhattan, NY?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering early childhood education programs near Manhattan. The closest is CUNY Hunter College in New York, NY (1.0 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is New York University (4.1 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying early childhood education roles near Manhattan?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying early childhood education-related roles near Manhattan are: Preschool and Childcare Center Director ($98,470), Kindergarten Teacher ($77,400), Preschool Teacher ($50,230). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with New York statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in West New York instead of Manhattan?

West New York, NJ is 2.3 miles from Manhattan and has its own set of local early childhood education programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Early Childhood Education Programs

Other Programs Available in Manhattan

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Manhattan:

Data verified: September 6, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

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