# Special Education Teachers, Middle School

> Teach academic, social, and life skills to middle school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.

- Edition: Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
- Page: https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-middle-school
- SOC code: 25-2057.00
- Career family: Education
- Median annual pay: $66,810 (10th percentile $49,420, 90th percentile $102,510)
- Projected growth: Little or no change, -0.4%
- Openings a year: 6,000
- Typical entry education: Bachelor's degree
- Bright outlook: no
- Data years: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

## Interest profile (code SAI)

| Interest area | Score (0–100) |
| --- | ---: |
| Realistic (R) | 22 |
| Investigative (I) | 49 |
| Artistic (A) | 49 |
| Social (S) | 100 |
| Enterprising (E) | 13 |
| Conventional (C) | 38 |

## What you'd do

- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships (importance 81/100)
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work (importance 75/100)
- Training and Teaching Others (importance 72/100)
- Assisting and Caring for Others (importance 70/100)
- Working with Computers (importance 70/100)
- Coaching and Developing Others (importance 67/100)
- Getting Information (importance 66/100)
- Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others (importance 65/100)
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems (importance 65/100)
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates (importance 65/100)

## Skills

Instructing, Learning Strategies, Active Learning, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Reading Comprehension, Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness, Speaking

## Knowledge

English Language, Education and Training, Mathematics, Administrative, Customer and Personal Service, Psychology, Public Safety and Security, Sociology and Anthropology, Law and Government, Computers and Electronics

## Also called

Blind Teacher, Braille Teacher, Deaf Teacher, DHOH Teacher (Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher), EBD SPED Teacher (Emotional-Behavioral Disabilities Special Education Teacher), ED SPED Teacher (Emotional Disabilities Special Education Teacher), Emotionally Impaired Teacher, Handicapped Teacher, Hearing Impaired Teacher (HI Teacher), Interrelated SPED Teacher (Interrelated Special Education Teacher)

## Majors that lead here (NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk, 4-digit CIP)

- [Special Education and Teaching](https://www.collegesref.com/programs/1310) (CIP 1310, 1,003 colleges)

## Colleges with strong outcomes (College Scorecard, 2025)

| College | Program | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yrs | Median debt |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| [Manhattan College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/manhattan-college-1583) | Special Education and Teaching | not reported | $83,932 | not reported |
| [Utah State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/utah-state-university-3102) | Special Education and Teaching | $58,712 | $74,535 | $17,379 |
| [SUNY Cortland](https://www.collegesref.com/college/suny-cortland-2653) | Special Education and Teaching | not reported | $74,079 | $24,250 |
| [Seton Hall University-New Jersey](https://www.collegesref.com/college/seton-hall-university-new-jersey-2399) | Special Education and Teaching | not reported | $72,067 | not reported |
| [Molloy College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/molloy-college-1749) | Special Education and Teaching | $49,948 | $71,781 | $27,000 |
| [The College of New Jersey](https://www.collegesref.com/college/the-college-of-new-jersey-2736) | Special Education and Teaching | not reported | $66,767 | $26,000 |
| [CUNY Medgar Evers College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/cuny-medgar-evers-college-744) | Special Education and Teaching | $58,611 | $66,377 | not reported |
| [Saint Joseph's University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/saint-joseph-s-university-2308) | Special Education and Teaching | $54,709 | $64,827 | $26,261 |

## Related careers

- [Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-kindergarten): $65,120 median pay
- [Special Education Teachers, Elementary School](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-elementary-school): $65,120 median pay
- [Special Education Teachers, Secondary School](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-secondary-school): $74,260 median pay
- [Special Education Teachers, Preschool](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-preschool): $64,830 median pay
- [Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/adult-basic-education-adult-secondary-education-and-english-as-a-second-language): $61,540 median pay
- [Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/elementary-school-teachers-except-special-education): $63,970 median pay

## Sources

- [O*NET Database](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), version 31.0 (CC BY 4.0)
- [BLS Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables.htm), version 2025-35, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm), version 2025, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk](https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/resources.aspx?y=56), version 2020, data year 2020 (Public domain (U.S. government work))

O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.