Special Education, All Grades, MSEd

The program in Special Education provides knowledge and skills to fulfill various special educator roles in today’s schools and communities. Sufficient flexibility exists for graduates of early childhood, childhood, adolescence or special education undergraduate programs to deepen their skills in the field, link special education programs and services to the broader context of general education, and extend their knowledge and skills to work more effectively with students with disabilities. Our advanced Special Education program is for individuals who already hold, or are on track to soon hold, initial New York State teacher certification. This program is NOT for individuals who are looking to obtain initial certification to teach.

Admission Requirements

Admissions are on a rolling basis. All students wishing to be considered for a graduate assistantship (or other funding opportunities) must express their interest by February 1.

In addition to the requirements listed on the Graduate School website, TLEL applicants must provide the following credentials:

Introduction to Special Education (SPED 501, SPED 500) or equivalent coursework
Initial certification/eligibility for initial certification in early childhood education, childhood education or adolescence education
Adolescence only: six credits each in English, mathematics, natural sciences, and social sciences
All Grades: 30 credit major in liberal arts and sciences and six credits in English, mathematics, sciences and social studies

For specific details, visit the TLEL Admissions website.

Program Requirements

Beginning in Spring 2026, Special Education, All Grades (PK-12) requires initial certification in childhood and/or early childhood education, secondary education content areas, special education, literacy, or TESOL. Those who have initial certification in specializations (art, physical education, music, business, etc) will have an individualized transcript review conducted to determine if they have at least 30 credits in liberal arts.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: SPED 501 - Intro to Special Ed (or equivalent)
SPED Z504 - Educational Programs
SPED Z515 - Collaboration & Transition
SPED Z520 - Sped Research Methods Analysis
SPED Z521 - Pro Approach Behavior Manage
SPED Z522 - Collab with Families & Staff
SPED Z523 - Assess in Special Ed
SPED Z541 - Instruct Approach Incl Elem
SPED Z542 - Literacy Interventions for Diverse Learners
SPED Z544 - Mathematics Interventions for Diverse Learners
SPED Z546 - Language and Literacy Dev. of English Learners
SPED Z564 - Severe Disabilities
SPED Z595 - Seminar in Special Education

Additional Information About the Program

Binghamton University confers master’s degrees, not teacher certification. In New York State, only the State Education Department can grant teacher certification. Teacher certification conveys that the applicant is prepared to teach a particular subject at the prescribed grade level, having fulfilled all education, experience and examination requirements, including knowledge and skills to address state learning standards. Binghamton University teacher education programs are designed to give students the coursework and field experiences to meet these requirements.

Programs leading to New York state certification in teaching and educational leadership include key assessments to gauge candidate readiness to meet professional standards. These occur throughout a candidate’s program during coursework and fieldwork opportunities. A candidate must achieve an adequate score on all required key assessments to continue to progress in their program. If a candidate fails to meet expectations on a key assessment, a plan for improvement may be required or a candidate may be in jeopardy of severance from a program. Additional information regarding key assessments is provided within course syllabi and on the department website.

In some instances, failure to meet expectations in field experiences, on key assessments or with professional dispositions may lead to dismissal from TLEL programs.

TEACH System: Register with TEACH, the system that the New York State Education Department uses to process applications for teacher certification. TEACH also records the fulfillment of all other New York state requirements for teacher certification.

Fingerprinting: Submit fingerprints following guidelines established by NYSED.

Workshops: Complete workshops in Child Abuse Identification, School Violence Prevention (Project SAVE) and Dignity for All Students Act (DASA).

New York State Examinations: Pass New York State Teacher Certification Examinations (NYSTCEs) required for certification. It is best to take each examination after completing relevant coursework.

Taskstream: Candidates enrolled in teacher preparation programs in the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Educational Leadership, will be required to enroll in Taskstream, a software data management system. Consult the department for more information.

For more information on the MSEd program, please refer to the TLEL Department website for more information. To apply to the MSEd program, please visit the University Admissions website.