Online Special Education Leadership Graduate Certificate
UC Online’s Special Education Leadership Graduate Certificate provides current and future administrators with a skill set to lead inclusive schools and address the educational needs of students with disabilities.
Special Education Leadership Certificate Highlights
High Quality Education
This certificate is a collaboration between Special Education programs and Educational Leadership programs, providing school administrators with foundational knowledge as they pursue excellence in research, teaching, and service that addresses real-world challenges and opportunities that create positive change in an inclusive environment for students with disabilities. The stand-alone online graduate certificate plan of study was created to better address the needs of current and future administrators who are in need of additional training in special education administration.
The Special Education Leadership Graduate Certificate provides students with a skill set to:
- Formulate a school-level leadership approach grounded in ethical standards and practices.
- Interpret and apply current laws, regulations, and policies as they apply to the administration of services to individuals with exceptionalities and their families.
- Utilize collaborative approaches for involving all stakeholders in educational planning, implementation, and evaluation.
- Apply leadership, organization, and systems change theory to the provision of services.
- Implement collaborative administrative procedures and strategies to facilitate communication among all stakeholders.
- Demonstrate the skills necessary to provide ongoing communication, education, and support for families.
Flexibility
- 100% online
- Start in the fall, spring, or summer semester
- Other special education opportunities
Support from Application through Graduation
At UC, you’ll have a full support team behind you:
Enrollment Services Advisor: Your go-to resource during the application process
Student Success Coordinator: Helping you prepare for classes and stay on track
Access to Resources: Access to university resources that will support you through your program including online learning expectations and resources, health and wellness resources, and academic support
Prerequisites
- A baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
- Undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 (4.0 scale).
Admission Materials
- One (1) Letter of Recommendation.
- Resume or CV.
- Unofficial transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate work.
- All applicants are required to upload unofficial transcripts during the application process, showing all undergraduate and graduate course work completed, including degrees granted and dates of conferral.
- Official transcripts are not required until the student has received and accepted an offer of admission from the university. Once the offer has been confirmed, the student must submit official transcripts.
- Students who have received degrees from the University of Cincinnati do not need to submit official paper copies of their UC transcripts.
- For questions regarding international students, contact an Enrollment Services Advisor.
Complete the online application and submit the application fee.
Standard Application Fees:
- $65.00 for domestic applicants to most degree programs
- $70.00 for international applicants to most degree programs
- $20.00 for domestic applicants to Graduate Certificates
- $25.00 for international applicants to Graduate Certificates
- Application fees for UC Online programs are waived through Fall 2026 for all applicants who apply by July 1, 2026
- Fee waivers are automatically applied for applicants who:
- Are currently serving in the US armed forces
- Are veterans of the US armed forces
You can find more information here. Applications are accepted continuously throughout the year. Please review and submit the following materials:
All applicants are required to upload unofficial transcripts during the application process, showing all undergraduate and graduate course work completed, including degrees granted and dates of conferral.
Official transcripts are not required until the student has received and accepted an offer of admission from the university. Once the offer has been confirmed, the student must submit official transcripts.
Students who have received degrees from the University of Cincinnati do not need to submit official paper copies of their UC transcripts.
For questions regarding international students, contact an Enrollment Services Advisor.
Transcripts can be submitted electronically or by mail. To see if your transcript(s) can be ordered electronically, visit the links below and search for your previous school(s).
- Parchment
- Please select “University of Cincinnati – Main Campus” as the recipient of your transcript.
- National Student Clearinghouse
- Please have your transcript sent directly to admissions@uc.edu.
If you do not see your past school(s) listed on either site, please contact the school(s) directly. Then, mail your sealed, unopened, official transcripts to:
Please mail sealed, unopened, official transcripts to:
University of Cincinnati
Office of Admissions
PO Box 210091
Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0091
Transfer Course Credit
On a case-by-case basis, a student may petition to have graduate credit from an accredited college or university counted as the equivalent of another course in the curriculum and accepted as transfer credit. In such cases, a student will have to supply a course syllabus to ensure that the content in the course taken at another university is equivalent to the content of the course in the M.Ed. curriculum. A course with a similar name or the same name as a course offered at the University of Cincinnati does not necessarily mean that the content of the course is similar enough to accept it as transfer credit to our program.
Students may transfer up to nine (9) hours of graduate credit in Education courses from a regionally accredited college or university. Special Education related graduate certificate and endorsement coursework completed at the University of Cincinnati may fully be applied towards the Master of Education in Special Education. Graduate courses outside of Education will not be accepted. Courses taken outside a regionally accredited college or university—such as non-credit professional development—will not be accepted. Only courses with grades of B or higher will be considered for transfer. No credit is given for previous work history. Courses taken more than seven (7) years prior to a student’s entrance into the program will not be accepted as transfer credit.
Speak with an Enrollment Services Advisor to discuss the petition process.
One letter of recommendation is required.
- Recommendations should come from individuals who can attest to your academic and professional skills. References from current and former employers are always desirable. Additionally, recommendations from contacts within academia or professional organizations you’re involved in are also desirable.
- Those writing letters should explain who they are, their relationship to the applicant, and what they know of the applicant’s academic and professional abilities.
- Letters of recommendation from family, friends, or current students are not accepted.
- Recommendations are submitted by the recommender themselves; they cannot be completed or submitted by the applicant or another party on behalf of the reference.
- Professional Resume: A resume relevant to academic and professional data. It should include the applicant’s name; phone; email; colleges attended with degrees, dates conferred, and grade point average; employment history; professional experience; present employer; and names of references.
- Curriculum Vitae: A detailed look at the applicant’s career path, including achievements, publications, and awards. Including comprehensive information about candidate’s research background, presentations, publications, committee memberships and other experience of an academic, clinical, or scientific nature.
The goal statement serves as a sample of the applicant’s writing quality and ensures their goals match with the program. It should denote applicant’s desired program concentration (if applicable) and highlight applicant’s motivation for pursuing a career in the field, and how the program will benefit them.
International students are required to submit official TOEFL, TSE, and TWE scores for tests taken within the last seven years, prior to the application deadline for the term of the application. These scores must be submitted directly to the program office.
More information about these tests can be found here.
Applicants who have earned a degree in China must submit an English-version verification report from the China Academic Degrees and Graduate Education Development Center (CDGDC) of their final transcripts and degree certificates. All verification reports must be sent to the University of Cincinnati directly by the CDGDC to be considered official. No other verification will be accepted. Applicants with Chinese transcripts must contact the CDGDC after their degree is completed and request that their degree verification report be submitted directly to the University of Cincinnati. Students who request a verification report prior to degree conferral will be required to submit a second report after conferral.
Verification reports can be ordered at the following websites:
- Chinese
- English
For questions regarding international student admissions contact an Enrollment Services Advisor.
| Term | Application Deadline | Classes Start |
|---|---|---|
Summer 2026 Fall 2026 |
April 24, 2026 August 8, 2026 |
May 11, 2026 August 24, 2026 |
The University of Cincinnati's online course fees differ depending on the program. On average, students will accrue fewer fees than students attending on-campus classes.
The one fee applied across all UC Online programs is the distance learning fee. Students living outside the state of Ohio must also pay an additional “non-resident” fee to enroll in courses at UC Online. This fee is lower than the out-of-state fee for traditional on-campus programs.
To view tuition information and program costs, visit the Online Program Fees page.
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