10/08/2024
SUNY Cortland has one of the best online teacher education programs in New York state and the best among similar SUNY institutions, according to TeacherCertificationDegrees.com, a peer-reviewed education resource.
It ranked the school as fourth in both the Top 10 Online M.Ed. Programs in New York and the Most Affordable Online M.Ed. Programs in New York.
Teacher Certification Degrees describes itself as a resource to help explore, start or expand a career in education. The group ranked all 33 not-for-profit schools with online and hybrid M.Ed. programs, with Cortland scoring the highest of all comprehensive SUNY schools.
“With our long-standing tradition of preparing high quality teachers and leaders, it is no surprise that just a few short years after launching our first online education graduate program, SUNY Cortland’s online programs are being recognized for both quality and affordability,” said Andrea Lachance, dean of Cortland’s School of Education.
“This recognition is the result of the work of our supportive and talented faculty. They are adept at providing the highest-quality instruction, no matter whether it is in-person or online.”
This isn’t the first time the university has been placed among elite company. Earlier this year, Cortland was recognized for one of the best online and in-person sport management departments in the country. In 2023, it was ranked among the best in the region for its master’s programs, overall value and for the education of veterans. The university was also named one of the top 15% of all schools nationwide.
Qualifications considered by Teacher Certification Degrees for the newest honors included:
- Affordability based on tuition (average required credit hours multiplied by graduate tuition rate).
- Number of M.Ed. program tracks. Having more than one program offering for this degree type was given additional value.
- Accreditation by the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP) or the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). This was chosen since it is an education-specific accreditation that’s voluntary, and signals quality.
- Other relevant school and program rankings.
Teacher Certification Degree also cited the number of programs at Cortland that let students choose a focus in subjects like English, math and special education, administrative training and literacy.
The website’s expertise on schools doesn’t come only from statistics. According to Laura McPherson, associate editor for the site, two of its editors have a background as educators.
“SUNY Cortland’s programs stood out for scoring highly across all of our major parameters,” McPherson said. “As a highlight, SUNY Cortland scored highly for both tuition per credit hour and overall expected cost. We gave higher weight to schools that offered M.Ed. programs in more than one area or specialty.”
Cortland’s online master’s offerings in education include English as a second language, literacy education, physical education and teaching students with disabilities.
The strength of the school’s on-campus master’s programs also spoke to the quality of its online classes.
“Because some schools offer teacher preparation programs at the M.Ed. level in hybrid formats, we also considered accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) as a ranking factor,” McPherson said. “Which earned SUNY Cortland additional points as it holds this respected accreditation for its on-the-ground preparation programs.”