Michigan State University has again been named among the best institutions in the nation with online master’s programs in education.
The 2021 rankings from U.S. News & World Report maintain the same ranking as 2020. In addition, MSU ranked second in the nation for best online master’s education programs for veterans.
While much of education shifted online as a result of COVID-19, these fully online programs helped shed a light on best practices, structures and pathways to continue learning.
“We have drawn on the successful practices we developed for our master’s programs as we pivoted to provide remote instructions for our other students,” said Robert E. Floden, dean of the MSU College of Education.
The annual listing also includes rankings for specialties within education, intended to help prospective students examine schools and programs more closely.
The College of Education was ranked:
- #2 in Educational Administration and Supervision
- #2 in Curriculum and Instruction
- #7 in Educational/Instructional Media Design—up from #10 in 2020
“I’m proud that we’ve continued to offer outstanding learning opportunities across a range of programs, including many specializations not individually ranked,” Floden added.
Overall, MSU ranked below the University of Florida, Clemson University and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Methodology and more
The college was recognized for its commitment to providing high-quality education through expert faculty, innovative instruction and more.
Education is one of several disciplines ranked by U.S. News for online master’s programs each year. Nearly 300 programs are included in the 2021 rankings, which are separate from the publication’s overall graduate program rankings.
The online rankings for education are calculated based on faculty credentials and training, acceptance and graduation rate, class size, technological infrastructure and expert opinion.
Points for institutions, on a scale of 0-100, are calculated by aggregating the data across programs offered.
The MSU College of Education, which earned a 95, offers nine fully online and hybrid master’s programs:
- (Hybrid) Master of Arts in Applied Behavior Analysis
- Master of Arts in Education (MAED)
- (Hybrid) Master of Arts in K-12 Educational Administration
- Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET)
- Master of Arts in Higher, Adult and Lifelong Education (HALE)
- Master of Arts in Teaching and Curriculum (MATC)
- Master of Arts in Special Education Leadership: Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS)
- Master of Arts in Special Education (Learning Disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorders)
- Master of Science in Sport Coaching and Leadership
Pending university approval, beginning in Fall 2021, the college will begin offering another fully online program: The M.A. in Applied Behavior Analysis and Autism Spectrum Disorder.
The specialty rankings are based on responses from a peer assessment survey.
The MSU College of Education also offers several on-campus master’s programs.
More top rankings for MSU
The MSU College of Education has been ranked #1 in the nation for elementary and secondary education for 26 consecutive years. Learn more about the U.S. News graduate rankings.
MSU also ranks among the best globally. In 2020, MSU was named #2 in the world for education, according to one widely used international ranking of universities.