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Key takeaway: An online BS in Special Education is a four-year undergraduate degree that combines coursework in child development, assessment, and instructional adaptation with a supervised in-person student-teaching placement. For public-school teaching positions it is normally paired with a state-issued teaching license, and licensure requirements vary by state – verify yours with your state department of education before you enroll.
An online special education bachelor’s degree prepares you to teach students with disabilities across a range of grade levels and classroom settings. Programs cover how children develop and learn, how to assess an individual student’s needs, how to write and carry out an individualized education program (IEP), and how to adapt instruction so students can participate in the general curriculum alongside their peers.
Many schools award a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Special Education; some award a Bachelor of Arts (BA), and some pair special education with a second licensure area such as elementary education. Compare the curriculum and the licensure areas each program leads to, not just the degree letters.
It is a four-year undergraduate degree that prepares you to teach students with disabilities, combining online coursework in development, assessment, and instructional methods with an in-person student-teaching placement.
It is the usual academic foundation for one, but the degree and the license are separate things. Public-school special education teachers need a state-issued teaching license or certification, and each state sets its own requirements. Ask the school which states it prepares candidates for, then confirm directly with your state department of education.
Most include general education courses, a professional education core, a special education major core, and a culminating supervised student-teaching or clinical practice placement.
Coursework commonly includes child development, assessment and IEP development, behavior management, inclusive classroom methods, assistive technology, and reading intervention.
Yes. Student teaching is a supervised, in-person placement in a real classroom, even when all your coursework is online. Schools that enroll students nationwide generally help arrange a placement near where you live.
Transfer credits can reduce how many courses you need, particularly general education credits. Policies and transfer limits vary by institution, and major-core and licensure-related courses often transfer less readily than general education.
For a full map of this program area, start here: Special Education Program Guide
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:
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Most programs follow a similar four-part shape:
Many programs also build in shorter field experiences before student teaching, so you spend observed hours in classrooms across several terms rather than only at the end.
Coursework is often asynchronous, but asynchronous does not mean unstructured – weekly deadlines, discussion participation, and recorded teaching demonstrations are common. Some programs add scheduled live sessions for methods courses where you practice and receive feedback. For a fuller comparison of formats, see How Online Special Education Degrees Work.
If you are trying to finish sooner, compare pacing options on the Accelerated Special Education Programs page.
| Course Topic | What You Learn |
|---|---|
| Child and Adolescent Development | How children develop cognitively, socially, and emotionally, and how disability affects that trajectory |
| Assessment and IEP Development | How to evaluate individual student needs and write, implement, and revise an IEP |
| Behavior Management | Positive behavior support, functional behavior assessment, and classroom-wide behavior systems |
| Inclusive Classroom Methods | Co-teaching, differentiated instruction, and adapting general-curriculum lessons |
| Assistive Technology | Tools and devices that give students access to instruction and communication |
| Reading Intervention | Structured literacy approaches and targeted support for struggling readers |
| Student Teaching / Clinical Practice | Supervised full-time teaching in a real classroom with a cooperating teacher |
Exact course titles and sequencing vary by school, and programs approved by a particular state may include additional coursework that state requires.
Requirements vary by school. Most online bachelor’s programs admit students with a high school diploma or equivalent and official transcripts, and teacher preparation programs frequently add a second admission step to the major after you complete introductory coursework. Background checks are common before any classroom placement.
For a fuller breakdown, see Special Education Admissions Requirements.
Before enrolling, confirm with the school:
See Affordable Online Special Education Degrees for more on managing total program cost.
Two checks matter here, and they are not the same.
Institutional accreditation is the baseline. Verify that the school holds accreditation from a recognized institutional accreditor – such as HLC, SACSCOC, or MSCHE – through the U.S. Department of Education database.
Educator preparation review and state approval is the check specific to teaching. Teacher preparation programs are commonly reviewed by CAEP, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation; AAQEP is a second educator-preparation accreditor. Separately from either, your state decides which programs it recognizes for licensure.
Special education teachers at the secondary level earned a median $74,260 a year, and those at the kindergarten and elementary level earned a median $65,120 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Pay in public schools is usually set by a district salary schedule tied to degree level and years of experience, so where you teach matters as much as what you studied. See Is a Special Education Degree Worth It for a fuller look at the tradeoffs.
Some graduates later pursue a master’s degree for advancement, an additional endorsement area, or roles such as instructional specialist. That is a decision best made after some classroom experience.
Compare accredited schools offering this degree: Accredited Online Degree Programs
Data verified: July 30, 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.
Back to Online Special Education Degrees: Licensure, Careers, and How to Choose
