Education & Library
Special Education Teachers
SOC 25-2050
Design and deliver instruction for students with learning differences.
The job
Median pay
$65k
Estimated
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-0.1% projected
BLS figure for Special education teachers
Openings a year
37k
BLS figure for Special education teachers
Typical education
Bachelor's plus cert
Our model
AI exposure
Not measured
No task data or O*NET work context for this role, so it is not ranked
Future-proof
55/100
Key skills
- IEP development
- Differentiated instruction
- Patience
- Advocacy
- Communication
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 69,719 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $77k~ |
| Texas | 53,159 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $68k~ |
| New York | 44,812 | 4.6 | 1.2× | $76k~ |
| Florida | 28,764 | 2.9 | 0.8× | $59k~ |
| Illinois | 24,648 | 4.0 | 1.1× | $67k~ |
| Pennsylvania | 23,613 | 3.9 | 1.0× | $69k~ |
| Ohio | 20,688 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $68k~ |
| New Jersey | 19,164 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $72k~ |
| Georgia | 17,942 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $68k~ |
| North Carolina | 17,782 | 3.6 | 1.0× | $55k~ |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 16,236 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $86k~ |
| Virginia | 16,218 | 3.9 | 1.1× | $68k~ |
| Michigan | 15,111 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $66k~ |
| Washington | 12,772 | 3.6 | 1.0× | $74k~ |
| Maryland | 11,095 | 4.0 | 1.1× | $73k~ |
| Minnesota | 10,864 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $66k~ |
| Missouri | 10,801 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $55k~ |
| Wisconsin | 10,461 | 3.6 | 0.9× | $65k~ |
| Indiana | 10,384 | 3.2 | 0.9× | $58k~ |
| Colorado | 9,965 | 3.5 | 0.9× | $69k~ |
| Tennessee | 9,948 | 3.0 | 0.8× | $65k~ |
| Arizona | 9,714 | 3.0 | 0.8× | $57k~ |
| Connecticut | 8,147 | 4.8 | 1.3× | $74k~ |
| South Carolina | 7,765 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $66k~ |
| Oregon | 7,562 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $68k~ |
| Alabama | 7,285 | 3.4 | 0.9× | $63k~ |
| Louisiana | 6,978 | 3.6 | 1.0× | $63k~ |
| Kentucky | 6,965 | 3.5 | 0.9× | $58k~ |
| Iowa | 6,960 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $54k~ |
| Oklahoma | 6,513 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $53k~ |
| Utah | 6,388 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $64k~ |
| Kansas | 5,733 | 4.0 | 1.1× | $55k~ |
| Arkansas | 4,761 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $57k~ |
| Mississippi | 4,462 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $55k~ |
| Nebraska | 3,972 | 3.9 | 1.0× | $67k~ |
| Nevada | 3,779 | 2.4 | 0.7× | $61k~ |
| New Mexico | 3,419 | 3.9 | 1.1× | $70k~ |
| Idaho | 2,828 | 3.3 | 0.9× | $59k~ |
| West Virginia | 2,706 | 3.9 | 1.0× | $59k~ |
| Hawaii | 2,625 | 4.2 | 1.1× | $66k~ |
| Maine | 2,623 | 4.1 | 1.1× | $64k~ |
| New Hampshire | 2,593 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $67k~ |
| Rhode Island | 2,255 | 4.5 | 1.2× | $73k~ |
| Washington DC | 2,102 | 3.0 | 0.8× | $89k~ |
| Montana | 1,841 | 3.6 | 1.0× | $54k~ |
| Delaware | 1,825 | 3.8 | 1.0× | $68k~ |
| South Dakota | 1,686 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $54k~ |
| Vermont | 1,632 | 5.4 | 1.4× | $68k~ |
| North Dakota | 1,606 | 3.7 | 1.0× | $61k~ |
| Wyoming | 1,297 | 4.6 | 1.2× | $58k~ |
| Alaska | 1,262 | 3.9 | 1.0× | $83k~ |
Explore the rankings
Explore Special Education Teachers interactively →BLS does not publish this occupation on its own. Pay and outlook here are BLS's figures for Special education teachers (SOC 25-2050), the occupation it is grouped with, so the real figures for this job could sit either side of them. Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.