2024 Best Education Schools
Ranked in 2024
A teacher must first be a student, and graduate education program rankings can help
A teacher must first be a student, and graduate education program rankings can help you find the right classroom. With the U.S. News rankings of the top education schools, narrow your search by location, tuition, school size and test scores. Read the methodology »
For full rankings, GRE scores and student debt data, sign up for the U.S. News Education School Compass .
Here are the 2024 Best Education Schools
Teachers college, columbia university, university of wisconsin--madison, university of california--los angeles, university of michigan--ann arbor, northwestern university, vanderbilt university (peabody), university of pennsylvania, harvard university, johns hopkins university.
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New York , NY
- # 1 in Best Education Schools (tie)
$1,970 per credit (full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$1,970 per credit (part-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
3,220 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The education school at Teachers College, Columbia University has an application deadline of Jan. 2. The application... Read More »
TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$1,970 per credit (full-time)
$1,970 per credit (part-time)
ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
Average gre verbal (doctorate).
Madison , WI
$10,728 per year (in-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$24,054 per year (out-of-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
762 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The School of Education at University of Wisconsin--Madison has an application deadline of Nov. 30. The application fee... Read More »
$10,728 per year (in-state, full-time)
$24,054 per year (out-of-state, full-time)
Los Angeles , CA
- # 3 in Best Education Schools (tie)
$12,264 per year (in-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$27,366 per year (out-of-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
617 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The education school at University of California--Los Angeles has an application deadline of Dec. 1. The application... Read More »
$12,264 per year (in-state, full-time)
$27,366 per year (out-of-state, full-time)
Ann Arbor , MI
$27,714 per year (in-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$55,826 per year (out-of-state, full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
433 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The School of Education at University of Michigan--Ann Arbor has a rolling application deadline. The application fee... Read More »
$27,714 per year (in-state, full-time)
$55,826 per year (out-of-state, full-time)
Evanston , IL
- # 5 in Best Education Schools (tie)
N/A TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
184 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University has an application deadline of Dec. 4. The... Read More »
Nashville , TN
$2,241 per credit (full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$2,241 per credit (part-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
763 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The Peabody College of Education and Human Development at Vanderbilt University (Peabody) has an application deadline... Read More »
$2,241 per credit (full-time)
$2,241 per credit (part-time)
Philadelphia , PA
- # 7 in Best Education Schools
$1,854 per credit (full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$1,854 per credit (part-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
1,013 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The School of Education at University of Pennsylvania has an application deadline of Dec. 1. The application fee for... Read More »
$1,854 per credit (full-time)
$1,854 per credit (part-time)
Cambridge , MA
- # 8 in Best Education Schools (tie)
728 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The application fee for the education program at Harvard University is $85. The Graduate School of Education at Harvard... Read More »
Baltimore , MD
$1,900 per credit (part-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
461 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The School of Education at Johns Hopkins University has a rolling application deadline. The application fee for the... Read More »
$1,900 per credit (part-time)
New York University (Steinhardt)
$50,424 per year (full-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
$2,101 per credit (part-time) TUITION AND FEES (DOCTORATE)
1,320 ENROLLMENT (FULL-TIME)
The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development at New York University (Steinhardt) has an... Read More »
$50,424 per year (full-time)
$2,101 per credit (part-time)
U.S. News Grad Compass
See expanded profiles for more than 2,000 programs. Unlock entering class stats including MCAT, GMAT and GRE scores for business, medicine, engineering, education and nursing programs.
Degrees and Programs
Residential Master's in Education
Immersive campus experience for aspiring and established educators, leaders, and innovators, with five distinct programs to choose from.
Online Master's in Education
Part-time, career-embedded program, delivered online, for experienced educators looking to advance their leadership in higher education or pre-K–12.
Doctor of Education Leadership
Preparing transformative leaders to have the capacity to guide complex organizations, navigate political environments, and create systemic change in the field of education.
Doctor of Philosophy in Education
Training cutting-edge researchers who work across disciplines, generate knowledge, and translate discoveries into transformative policy and practice.
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You are here, stanford graduate school of education is dedicated to solving education's greatest challenges. through rigorous research, model training programs and partnerships with educators worldwide, we're pursuing equitable, accessible and effective learning for all..
We offer undergraduate, MA, PhD and professional learning programs
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Develop expertise and produce relevant research that improves understanding, policies and practice.
Advance your knowledge and skills to become a leading agent for positive change in classrooms and beyond.
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Grow your career with high-quality programs online and on-campus.
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Our faculty, students, alumni and staff focus on improving lives through learning, teaching, discovery and innovation.
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Tanya LaMar, MA '12 Stanford Teacher Education Program, PhD '22
Boosting student confidence in math
Antero Garcia, Assistant Professor
Fixing technology policies
We’re accelerating solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges in education.
The Stanford Accelerator for Learning is the first university-wide initiative on learning. Housed at the GSE, the Accelerator connects scholars across disciplines and with external partners to bridge research and practice and bring innovative, scalable learning experiences across the lifespan.
Visit the Accelerator website to learn more.
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Teaching and Teacher Leadership
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If you have program-specific questions, please contact the TTL Program Staff .
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If you have admissions-related questions, please email [email protected] .
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A groundbreaking approach to teacher education — for people seeking to learn to teach, for experienced teachers building their leadership, and for all educators seeking to enhance their practice and create transformative learning opportunities.
Teachers change lives — and at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, you can be part of the change. The Teaching and Teacher Leadership (TTL) Program at HGSE will prepare you with the skills, knowledge, support, and professional network you need to design and lead transformative learning experiences, advance equity and social justice, and generate the best outcomes for students in U.S. schools.
The program’s innovative approach is intentionally designed to serve both individuals seeking to learn to teach and experienced teachers who are deepening their craft as teachers or developing their leadership to advance teaching and learning in classrooms, schools, and districts.
And through the Harvard Fellowship for Teaching , HGSE offers significant financial support to qualified candidates to reduce the burden of loan debt for teachers.
Applicants will choose between two strands:
- Do you want to become a licensed teacher? The Teaching Licensure strand lets novice and early-career teachers pursue Massachusetts initial licensure in secondary education, which is transferrable to all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Licensure candidates have two possible pathways — you can select a preference for either the residency fieldwork model or the internship fieldwork model . The residency model is for people ready to make an immediate impact as a teacher; the internship model offers a more gradual path.
- Do you want to focus on the art of teaching, without licensure? The Teaching and Leading strand will enable you to enhance your own teaching practice or to lead others in transforming learning in classrooms, schools, and other settings. Candidates can pursue a curriculum tailored toward an exploration of teaching practice or toward teacher leadership.
Note: Ideal candidates will come with the intention to work in U.S. schools.
“At the heart of TTL is helping teachers reach all students. Whether you are preparing for the classroom yourself or are an experienced teacher preparing to improve teaching and learning on a wider scale, our goal is to provide you with the knowledge and skills to lead others in learning.” Heather Hill Faculty Co-Chair
After completing the Teaching and Teacher Leadership Program, you will be able to:
- Leverage your knowledge and skills to lead others in joyful, equitable, rigorous, and transformative learning.
- Analyze instruction for the purpose of improving it.
- Foster productive inquiry and discussion.
- Identify, understand, and counteract systemic inequities within educational institutions.
The Harvard Fellowship for Teaching
HGSE is committed to investing in the future of the teaching profession — and minimizing the student debt that teachers carry. We offer a signature fellowship — the Harvard Fellowship for Teaching — to qualified candidates. The fellowship package covers 80 percent of tuition and provides for a $10,000 living stipend.
This prestigious fellowship is prioritized for admitted students pursuing the Teaching Licensure Residency model. Additional fellowships may be awarded to qualified candidates admitted to the Teaching Licensure Internship model and the Teaching and Leading strand. Fellowship decisions are determined during the admissions process. Fellowship recipients must be enrolled as full-time students. HGSE offers a range of other financial aid and fellowship opportunities to provide greater access and affordability to our students.
Curriculum Information
The TTL Program is designed to help you gain the knowledge and practice the skills essential to leading others in learning — and will create pathways to success that will allow you to thrive as an expert practitioner and mentor in your community. A minimum of 42 credits are required to graduate with an Ed.M. degree from HGSE.
The main elements of the curriculum are:
- Commence your Foundations studies with How People Learn, an immersive online course that runs June–July and requires a time commitment of 10–15 hours per week.
- You will continue Foundations with Leading Change, Evidence, and Equity and Opportunity on campus in August.
- Your Equity and Opportunity Foundations experience culminates in an elected course, which will take place during terms when electives are available.
To fulfill the program requirement, students must take a minimum of 12 credits specific to TTL.
- The TTL Program Core Experience (4 credits), is a full year course where all students come together to observe, analyze, and practice high-quality teaching.
- Teaching methods courses (10 credits) in the chosen content area, which begin in June.
- A Summer Field-Based Experience (4 credits), held on site in Cambridge in July, allows you to begin to hone your teaching practice.
- Two courses focused on inclusivity and diversity in the classroom (6 credits).
- Field experiences , where students in the Teacher Licensure strand will intern or teach directly in Boston-area schools.
- Individuals interested in enhancing their own teaching practice can engage in coursework focused on new pedagogies, how to best serve diverse student populations, and special topics related to classrooms and teaching.
- Experienced teachers may wish to enroll in HGSE’s Teacher Leadership Methods course, designed to provide cohort-based experience with skills and techniques used to drive adult learning and improve teaching.
- Candidates can take elective coursework based on interests or career goals, which includes the opportunity to specialize in an HGSE Concentration .
Advancing Research on Effective Teacher Preparation
As a student in the TTL Program, you will have the opportunity to contribute to HGSE’s research on what makes effective teacher preparation. This research seeks to build an evidence base that contributes to the field’s understanding of effective approaches to teacher training, including how to support high-quality instruction, successful models of coaching and mentorship, and effective approaches to addressing the range of challenges facing our students.
TTL students will be able to participate in research studies as part of their courses, and some will also serve as research assistants, gaining knowledge of what works, as well as a doctoral-type experience at a major research university.
Explore our course catalog . (All information and courses are subject to change.)
Note: The TTL Program trains educators to work in U.S. classrooms. Required coursework focuses on U.S. examples and contexts.
Teaching Licensure Strand
Students who want to earn certification to teach at the middle school and high school levels in U.S. schools should select the Teaching Licensure strand. TTL provides coursework and fieldwork that can lead to licensure in grades 5–8 in English, general science, history, and mathematics, as well as grades 8–12 in biology, chemistry, English, history, mathematics, and physics. In the Teaching Licensure strand, you will apply to one of two fieldwork models:
- The residency model – our innovative classroom immersion model, with significant funding available, in which students assume teaching responsibilities in the September following acceptance to the program.
- The internship model – which ramps up teaching responsibility more gradually.
In both models, you will be supported by Harvard faculty and school-based mentors — as well as by peers in the TTL Program, with additional opportunities for network-building with HGSE alumni. Both models require applicants to have an existing familiarity with U.S. schools to be successful. Learn more about the differences between the residency and internship models.
Summer Experience for Teaching Licensure Candidates
All students in the Teaching Licensure strand will participate in the Summer Experience supporting the Cambridge-Harvard Summer Academy (CHSA), which takes place in Cambridge in July 2023. Through your work at CHSA, you will help middle and high school students in the Cambridge Public Schools with credit recovery, academic enrichment, and preparation for high school. Students in the Teaching Licensure strand will teach students directly as part of the teaching team. This is an opportunity for you to immediately immerse yourself in a school environment and begin to practice the skills necessary to advance your career.
Teaching and Leading Strand
The Teaching and Leading strand is designed for applicants who want to enhance their knowledge of the craft of teaching or assume roles as teacher leaders. Candidates for the Teaching and Leading strand will share a common interest in exploring and advancing the practice of effective teaching, with the goal of understanding how to improve learning experiences for all students. The program will be valuable for three types of applicant:
- Individuals interested in teaching, but who do not require formal licensure to teach. This includes applicants who might seek employment in independent schools or in informal educational sectors such as arts education, after-school programs, tutoring, and youth organizations.
- Experienced teachers who wish to deepen their practice by learning new pedagogies and developing new capacities to help students thrive.
- Experienced teachers who seek leadership roles — from organizing school-based initiatives to more formal roles like coaching and professional development.
As a candidate in the Teaching and Leading strand, your own interests will guide your journey. If you are seeking a teacher leader role, TTL faculty will guide you to courses that focus on growing your skills as a reflective leader, preparing you to facilitate adult learning, helping you understand how to disrupt inequity, and teaching you how to engage in best practices around coaching, mentoring, and data analysis. If you are seeking to learn about the craft of teaching, our faculty will similarly direct you to recommended courses and opportunities that will meet your goals.
Students in this strand can also take on internships within the TTL Program (e.g., program supervisor, early career coach) or the HGSE community, and at surrounding schools or organizations. And you can customize your learning experience by pursuing one of HGSE's six Concentrations .
Note: Applicants in the Teaching and Leading strand should expect a focus on leadership within U.S. schools.
Program Faculty
Students will work closely with faculty associated with their area of study, but students can also work with and take courses with faculty throughout HGSE and Harvard. View our faculty directory for a full list of HGSE faculty.
Faculty Co-Chairs
Heather C. Hill
Heather Hill studies policies and programs to improve teaching quality. Research interests include teacher professional development and instructional coaching.
Victor Pereira, Jr.
Victor Pereira's focus is on teacher preparation, developing new teachers, and improving science teaching and learning in middle and high school classrooms.
Rosette Cirillo
Sarah Edith Fiarman
Noah Heller
Eric Soto-Shed
Career Pathways
The TTL Program prepares you for a variety of career pathways, including:
Teaching Licensure Strand:
- Licensed middle or high school teacher in English, science, math, and history
Teaching and Leading Strand:
- Classroom teachers
- Curriculum designers
- Department heads and grade-level team leaders
- District-based instructional leadership team members
- Instructional and curriculum leadership team members
- Out-of-school educators; teachers in youth organizations or after-school programs
- Professional developers and content specialists
- School improvement facilitators
- School-based instructional coaches and mentor teachers
- Teachers of English as a second language
- International educators seeking to understand and advance a career in U.S. education
Cohort & Community
The TTL Program prioritizes the development of ongoing teacher communities that provide continued support, learning, and collaboration. Our cohort-based approach is designed to encourage and allow aspiring teachers and leaders to build relationships with one another, as well as with instructors and mentors — ultimately building a strong, dynamic network.
As a TTL student, you will build a community around a shared commitment to teaching and teacher development. You will learn from and with colleagues from diverse backgrounds, levels of expertise, and instructional settings. To further connections with the field, you are invited to attend “meet the researcher” chats, engage in learning through affinity groups, and interact with teaching-focused colleagues across the larger university, by taking courses and participating in activities both at HGSE and at other Harvard schools.
Introduce Yourself
Tell us about yourself so that we can tailor our communication to best fit your interests and provide you with relevant information about our programs, events, and other opportunities to connect with us.
Program Highlights
Explore examples of the Teaching and Teacher Leadership experience and the impact its community is making on the field:
Donors Invest in Teachers, Reaching Key Milestone
The $10 million Challenge Match for Teachers, now complete, will expand scholarships for students in Teaching and Teacher Leadership
HGSE Honors Master's Students with Intellectual Contribution Award
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Harvard Graduate School of Education
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Most popular doctoral programs.
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