2024 Best Accredited Online Colleges for Early Childhood Education and Teaching

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND TEACHING DEGREES

UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES

Early childhood education and teaching is far more in-demand than most subjects in America. On average, each area of study awards roughly 6,200 four-year degrees a year; 12,806 people last spring were awarded four-year degrees in early childhood education and teaching, making it the United States of America's 38th most popular area of study for college students. Ashford University​ awarded more of those degrees than any other U.S. institution (730). Institutions in California granted more degrees than any US State (3,939).

550 colleges across the nation have four-year degrees in early childhood education and teaching; therefore, it might be tricky to pick the best institution. At the undergraduate level, early childhood education and teaching is 2.9 times more universally available than the average subject, making it the 36th most commonly offered US subject.

GRADUATE DEGREES

While 79% of last year's degrees in early childhood education and teaching were bachelor's degrees; 21% were advanced degrees. Early childhood education and teaching is the 60th most popular graduate degree in the country, with 3,482 degrees granted. For context, early childhood education and teaching is 26% more popular among postgraduate students than the average major.

In Total, 16,288 students received a bachelor's or higher in early childhood education and teaching last spring.

ONLINE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND TEACHING DEGREES

2,835 of those 16,288 graduates (17.4%) came through online programs - 1,422 undergraduates and 1,413 postgraduate students. As you probably can tell, college students majoring in early childhood education and teaching are everywhere. It is the 25th most popular remote degree, and 195.4% north of the national average of 481 students per field. For graduate students, it's ranked 29th, and is 129.4% above the nation's average (616).

Ashford University​ awarded 730 online undergrad degrees, more than any other school in the United States.

Furthermore, Colleges from California awarded the most online bachelor's degrees in early childhood education and teaching last spring (836). California single-handedly accounts for 59% of the major's remote students.

11.1% of all four-year degrees in early childhood education and teaching are completed through fully online programs, (40.6% for grad degrees). 11.55% of Ashford University's​ last undergraduate class studied early childhood education and teaching fully online, higher than any other US school. 730 students in their 6,318 student class were granted an online undergrad degree in early childhood education and teaching. They offer 58 courses of study comprehensively online, and had 26,914 enrolled online undergrads last fall. That's 100% of the student body.

61 institutions countrywide have undergraduate degrees through a remote program, making it the 36th most broadly available remote degree in America. Something like 1 out of 10 schools supplying the degree even have an entirely online option, and roughly 34% of the colleges awarding the degree remotely are public. Florida has the most completely online programs of any state, with 8 institutions to choose from.

If you hope to study early childhood education and teaching and do not mind missing out on a college campus, you may want to think about the University of Washington-Seattle Campus, as it has the 5th best early childhood education and teaching program in the country. It also gives out an additional 11 degrees online, so their systems are likely solid. Moreover, they have 289 online undergrad students, which is 1% of the undergraduate population.

PARTIALLY ONLINE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND TEACHING DEGREES

• 3,480 students received undergrad degrees in early childhood education and teaching partially online last spring
• 467 institutions coast-to-coast have bachelor's degrees in early childhood education and teaching partially online
• Last May, 3,849 students earned a bachelor's or higher in early childhood education and teaching partially online
• Rochester University's​ last undergraduate class contained a higher percentage of partially online early childhood education and teaching majors than any other school in the United States (11.49%)
• Last year, 9 in 10 partially online degrees in early childhood education and teaching were four-year degrees; 10% were advanced degrees
• The average major is available partially online at approximately 154 institutions

IN-PERSON EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND TEACHING DEGREES

• 7,898 people last year received a bachelor's degree in early childhood education and teaching in-person
• Early childhood education and teaching is the 87th most universally offered entirely in-person undergraduate degree nationwide
• 61.67% of all bachelor's degree in early childhood education and teaching are earned in-person
• California State University-Fullerton​ conferred more in-person four-year degrees in early childhood education and teaching than any other school in America (338)
• 2 of the institutions offering in-person undergraduate degrees in early childhood education and teaching are located in Missouri state, the most of any state
• On average, each major has around 20 in-person bachelor's degree granting colleges

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND TEACHING OVERVIEW

Teachers and early childhood educators play a crucial role in a child’s development, especially in their early years. You can join this noble profession by getting an Early Childhood Education degree from an online accredited college.

With this degree, you can become:

• A Kindergarten and Elementary School Teacher
• Childcare Center Director
• Special Education Teacher
• School Counselor
• Childcare Worker
• Preschool Principal

Thanks to the growing population of children, it’s easy to find jobs in early childhood education.

There’s a consistent demand for these services because we now understand the importance of early academic instructions. The Labor Department estimates over 100,000 job openings for early childhood educators in the US, with salaries ranging from $30,000 to $100,000.

The minimum requirement for most of these roles is an associate’s degree from an accredited college. However, you’d need a higher credential for high-paying jobs like

• Childcare Director
• School Principal, or
• Special Education Teacher

With your early childhood education degree from an accredited online school, you can:

• Offer kids the best start in life
• Provide hands-on learning experiences
• Teach relationship-building skills
• Enjoy a satisfying career as an educator.

A National Center for Education teaching survey showed how nine out of ten teachers find great satisfaction while working with young children. The study also revealed how most teachers feel appreciated and recognized by their students.

You can take your passion for teaching to the next level by nurturing the next generation of Albert Einstein and Ruth Bader Ginsburgs.

Get a degree from our list of best online schools and colleges that offer early childhood education programs.