Master of Science in Special Education

Become a licensed K–12 special education teacher in Minnesota and choose from six emphasis areas to specialize your degree with Southwest Minnesota State University's online MS in Special Education. Emphasis options include academic behavioral strategist, autism spectrum disorders, developmental disabilities, early childhood special education, emotional behavioral disorders, and learning disabilities.

Earn your master's degree in two to three years and transfer up to nine credits to accelerate your studies. Experience as an educator is not required to apply. SMSU's online MS in Special Education offers programming for initial teacher licensure, as well as individuals with a Tier 3 or 4 license who seek a Special Education credential. This flexible, customizable program is accredited by the Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards.

No matter which emphasis you choose, supervised field experiences are built into the curriculum to provide real-world application of your studies. Every student also completes a research project to develop skills related to their professional interests.

When you finish your program, you will have advanced knowledge and expertise in teaching strategies and creative learning methods for special education classrooms. Possible career paths include preschool teacher, K–12 educator, instructional coordinator, educational administrator, and educational software developer.

Southwest Minnesota State University is a four-year public university offering a high-quality education in the liberal arts and professions to prepare you for a life that is successful both personally and professionally. SMSU has grown into a university of choice with high national rankings, producing scholars who become the leaders, thinkers, and entrepreneurs of the future.

Strong academics, fulfilling social activities, rewarding civic engagement projects, and support from fellow Mustangs in a close-knit environment mean you will get the education of a lifetime at a price that won’t take a lifetime to pay for. We invite you to visit SMSU and to see for yourself all that we have to offer.