# Special Education Teachers, Preschool

> Teach academic, social, and life skills to preschool-aged 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-preschool
- SOC code: 25-2051.00
- Career family: Education
- Median annual pay: $64,830 (10th percentile $45,620, 90th percentile $130,040)
- Projected growth: As fast as average, +2.4%
- Openings a year: 2,000
- 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) | 28 |
| Investigative (I) | 42 |
| Artistic (A) | 50 |
| Social (S) | 100 |
| Enterprising (E) | 12 |
| Conventional (C) | 36 |

## What you'd do

- Assisting and Caring for Others (importance 87/100)
- Developing and Building Teams (importance 82/100)
- Documenting/Recording Information (importance 81/100)
- Getting Information (importance 80/100)
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships (importance 79/100)
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems (importance 78/100)
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work (importance 76/100)
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates (importance 76/100)
- Coaching and Developing Others (importance 71/100)
- Communicating with People Outside the Organization (importance 70/100)

## Skills

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

## Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service, Education and Training, English Language, Administration and Management, Psychology, Administrative, Computers and Electronics, Sociology and Anthropology, Therapy and Counseling, Personnel and Human Resources

## Also called

Autistic Teacher, Behavior Interventionist, Behavior Specialist, Behavioral Interventionist, Blind Teacher, Braille Teacher, Deaf Education Teacher, Deaf Teacher, Early Childhood Special Education Teacher (ECSE Teacher), Early Childhood Special Educator (EC Special Educator)

## 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, Middle School](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-middle-school): $66,810 median pay
- [Special Education Teachers, Secondary School](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/special-education-teachers-secondary-school): $74,260 median pay
- [Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/kindergarten-teachers-except-special-education): $62,680 median pay
- [Teaching Assistants, Special Education](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/teaching-assistants-special-education): $36,780 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.