Special education pay and jobs
Best-paying roles
| Role | Median salary | W-2 hourly | Contract hourly | Employers posting pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Education Director | $97,000 | $61/hr | $85/hr | 32 |
| O&M Specialist | $79,500 | $50/hr | $70/hr | 9 |
| School BCBA | $79,000 | $49/hr | $69/hr | 74 |
| Educational Diagnostician | $77,500 | $48/hr | $68/hr | 10 |
| Special Education Coordinator | $77,500 | $48/hr | $68/hr | 42 |
| School-Based Physical Therapist | $77,000 | $48/hr | $67/hr | 31 |
| School OT | $76,000 | $48/hr | $66/hr | 90 |
| School Psychologist | $75,500 | $47/hr | $66/hr | 192 |
| Adapted PE | $75,000 | $47/hr | $66/hr | 7 |
| School SLP | $73,000 | $46/hr | $64/hr | 250 |
| Special Education Substitute Teacher | $72,500 | $45/hr | $63/hr | 20 |
| Autism Teacher | $71,000 | $44/hr | $62/hr | 47 |
| Behavior Intervention Specialist | $70,500 | $44/hr | $62/hr | 24 |
| EBD Teacher | $69,000 | $43/hr | $60/hr | 27 |
| Early Childhood Special Education Teacher | $68,500 | $43/hr | $60/hr | 43 |
| TVI | $68,000 | $42/hr | $59/hr | 31 |
| DHH Teacher | $67,000 | $42/hr | $59/hr | 36 |
| School Social Worker | $67,000 | $42/hr | $59/hr | 71 |
| Inclusion Teacher | $66,500 | $42/hr | $58/hr | 32 |
| Life Skills Teacher | $66,000 | $41/hr | $58/hr | 30 |
| School Counselor | $66,000 | $41/hr | $58/hr | 147 |
| Special Education Teacher | $66,000 | $41/hr | $58/hr | 597 |
| Resource Teacher | $65,500 | $41/hr | $57/hr | 72 |
| Intervention Specialist | $65,000 | $41/hr | $57/hr | 35 |
| Transition Coordinator | $62,000 | $39/hr | $54/hr | 9 |
| SLPA | $61,000 | $38/hr | $53/hr | 29 |
| Self-Contained Teacher | $59,500 | $37/hr | $52/hr | 33 |
| Gifted Teacher | $58,500 | $37/hr | $51/hr | 21 |
| COTA | $57,000 | $36/hr | $50/hr | 7 |
| Educational Interpreter | $52,000 | $32/hr | $46/hr | 19 |
| RBT | $38,500 | $24/hr | $34/hr | 13 |
| Teacher Aide | $36,500 | $23/hr | $32/hr | 16 |
| Instructional Assistant | $30,000 | $19/hr | $26/hr | 15 |
| Paraprofessional | $30,000 | $19/hr | $26/hr | 186 |
Pay is the median of what employers post on everySPEDjob.com, one employer one vote, shown only where at least 5 employers post a figure. Contract hourly = W-2 hourly × 1.4 over a 1,600-hour school year.
Best-paying roles by state
| State | Top three by median posted pay |
|---|---|
| Arizona | School Psychologist $79,500 · School SLP $72,000 · School OT $71,500 |
| Arkansas | Special Education Teacher $51,500 · Paraprofessional $23,500 |
| California | School Psychologist $129,500 · School OT $111,000 · School SLP $105,000 |
| Colorado | Special Education Teacher $67,500 · School Counselor $67,500 |
| Connecticut | School SLP $79,000 · Special Education Teacher $77,000 |
| District of Columbia | Special Education Teacher $78,500 |
| Georgia | Special Education Teacher $71,500 · Paraprofessional $28,000 |
| Illinois | School Psychologist $74,500 · School SLP $72,500 · School Social Worker $66,500 |
| Indiana | School Psychologist $65,000 · Special Education Teacher $62,000 |
| Iowa | Special Education Teacher $57,000 |
| Kansas | School SLP $67,500 · Special Education Teacher $55,500 |
| Kentucky | School Psychologist $74,500 · Special Education Teacher $53,000 |
| Louisiana | Special Education Teacher $56,500 · Paraprofessional $25,500 |
| Maine | Special Education Teacher $65,500 |
| Maryland | School SLP $79,500 · Special Education Teacher $72,000 |
| Massachusetts | Special Education Director $103,000 · Inclusion Teacher $87,000 · Special Education Coordinator $86,500 |
| Michigan | School Psychologist $74,500 · School SLP $72,000 · Autism Teacher $70,500 |
| Minnesota | Special Education Teacher $74,500 · School SLP $74,500 |
| Missouri | School SLP $69,500 · School Counselor $65,000 · School Psychologist $61,500 |
| Montana | Special Education Teacher $49,000 |
| New Jersey | School Psychologist $86,000 · School SLP $82,500 · Special Education Teacher $79,000 |
| New Mexico | Special Education Teacher $74,000 · Paraprofessional $29,000 |
| New York | School SLP $72,000 · Special Education Teacher $69,500 · School Social Worker $67,500 |
| North Carolina | Special Education Teacher $50,000 |
| Ohio | Special Education Teacher $50,500 · Intervention Specialist $50,000 |
| Oregon | School Psychologist $85,000 · School SLP $76,500 · Special Education Teacher $75,500 |
| Pennsylvania | School BCBA $79,000 · Autism Teacher $75,500 · School Psychologist $74,000 |
| South Carolina | Paraprofessional $26,000 |
| South Dakota | Special Education Teacher $56,000 |
| Tennessee | Special Education Teacher $62,000 |
| Texas | Educational Diagnostician $80,000 · School-Based Physical Therapist $75,500 · Special Education Coordinator $72,500 |
| Vermont | Special Education Teacher $71,000 |
| Virginia | School Psychologist $75,500 · School OT $74,500 · School SLP $73,500 |
| Washington | Resource Teacher $105,500 · Special Education Teacher $93,000 · School OT $92,000 |
Pay is the median of what employers post on everySPEDjob.com, one employer one vote, shown only where at least 5 employers post a figure. Contract hourly = W-2 hourly × 1.4 over a 1,600-hour school year.