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Studies & Degrees in Teacher Training for Special Education

Special education teachers work with pupils who need more support than an ordinary classroom normally gives. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics describes them as teachers of students with learning, mental, emotional or physical disabilities. Spanish education law uses the term special educational needs for pupils who face barriers to access, participation or learning that arise from a disability or from serious behaviour, communication or language disorders.

Training covers child development, the main types of disability and learning difficulty, assessment, adapting the curriculum, communication and language support, and work with families and other professionals. Students also learn to write and review individual plans for each pupil, and they spend long periods on placement in schools.

Qualifications and levels

The route depends on the country, because school teaching is a regulated profession almost everywhere.

  • Spain: bachelor's degree with a specialisation. Teachers take the official bachelor's degree (grado) in primary or early childhood education. The primary degree has 240 ECTS credits and lasts four years. Universities may add a specialisation (mención) of 30 to 60 credits. Two of the official teaching specialities concern special education: Pedagogía Terapéutica (therapeutic pedagogy) and Audición y Lenguaje (hearing and language). Teachers with these specialities may also teach the general primary subjects.
  • Spain: master's degree. Official master's degrees have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. The Máster en Educación Especial of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid is aimed at education professionals who want training in attention to diversity. It admits graduates in teaching, pedagogy, psychology and social education, among others. Classes run from Monday to Thursday between 17.00 and 21.30, and the school placement takes about a month of mornings.
  • United States: bachelor's degree and state licence. Special education teachers in public schools need a bachelor's degree and a state-issued certification or licence. Grand Canyon University, for instance, offers a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and Special Education of 120 credits. It describes it as a dual programme that leads to licensure, and reminds students that every state sets its own requirements.

The names of the specialisations vary between Spanish universities. The Universidad de Murcia offers the menciones Pedagogía Terapéutica and Audición y Lenguaje. Outside the SpainExchange list, the Universidad de Jaén has a mención in special education, which requires at least four optional subjects from that track, and the Universidad de La Laguna has one in attention to diversity. Ask each university which official speciality its mención corresponds to.

Where to study

SpainExchange lists 23 active schools for this subject: 17 in Spain, four in the United States, one in Denmark and one in Argentina. The Spanish schools are mostly universities with a faculty of education, among them the Universidad de Murcia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Universitat de València, Universidad de Málaga, Universidad de Almería and Universidad de Huelva. Mondragon Unibertsitatea and the Universidad Camilo José Cela are also on the list.

Teaching in Spain is mainly in Spanish, and the placements take place in local schools. Good Spanish is therefore essential. At the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, master's applicants whose first language is not Spanish must show CEFR level B2. In the United States, the schools listed include Grand Canyon University in Phoenix and Broward College in Fort Lauderdale.

A teaching qualification from one country is not automatically valid in another. Students who plan to return home should ask the education authority there how a foreign teaching degree is recognised.

Careers

Most graduates work in schools. In Spain the law gives priority to inclusion: pupils with special educational needs attend ordinary schools where possible. Special education units or centres, which pupils may attend up to the age of 21, are reserved for needs that ordinary schools cannot meet. Specialist teachers therefore work both as support teachers in ordinary schools and in special schools. Other employers are early intervention services, associations for people with disabilities, hospitals and education departments.

For the United States, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects little or no change in the employment of special education teachers from 2025 to 2035. It still expects about 37,100 openings a year, mostly to replace teachers who change occupation or retire.

Frequently asked questions

What do I study to become a special education teacher in Spain?

The bachelor's degree in primary or early childhood education with a specialisation such as Pedagogía Terapéutica or Audición y Lenguaje. The degree has 240 ECTS credits and takes four years.

Is there a master's degree in special education?

Yes. The Universidad Complutense de Madrid, for example, offers a Máster en Educación Especial for graduates in teaching, pedagogy, psychology or social education. A master's degree deepens the training; ask the university what professional recognition it carries.

Can I teach ordinary classes with a special education speciality?

In Spain, yes. Teachers with the specialities Pedagogía Terapéutica or Audición y Lenguaje may also teach the subjects of the general primary speciality.

What is required in the United States?

Public schools require a bachelor's degree and a state-issued certification or licence. Requirements differ from state to state.