Special Education and Teaching at University of Southern Indiana

University of Southern Indiana's special education program costs less than most comparable programs but delivers earnings below the state median—landing in the 40th percentile among Indiana's 17 special education programs. First-year graduates earn $44,104, nearly $1,700 below the state median and roughly $7,200 less than top state programs like Indiana University-Bloomington or Purdue. More concerning, earnings actually decline slightly to $43,225 by year four, suggesting limited salary progression in the early career years.

The debt picture offers some consolation: at $27,000, it's manageable relative to starting salary (0.61 ratio) and sits below the national median. However, Indiana programs typically carry even less debt—the state median is just $23,251—so this advantage is less pronounced for in-state families. Your child would be graduating with more debt than peers at Ball State or Purdue while earning less.

Special education teachers face well-documented salary constraints regardless of where they train, but Indiana offers notably stronger-performing programs at comparable or lower debt levels. If your child is committed to this career path and University of Southern Indiana appeals for other reasons (proximity, campus culture), the financial outcome is workable. But purely from an earnings-and-debt standpoint, this program underperforms its in-state peers.