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Adapted physical education teacher education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an adapted physical education teacher. Adapted physical education teachers usually study health education, kinesiology, or education. 72% of adapted physical education teachers hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 363 real adapted physical education teacher resumes to see exactly what adapted physical education teacher education sections show.

The most common colleges for adapted physical education teachers are the University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Campus and the University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Campus.

There are also many online adapted physical education teacher courses to help get the education required to be an adapted physical education teacher.

There are certain adapted physical education teacher certifications that you should consider. These adapted physical education teacher certifications include Certified Adapted Physical Educator (CAPE) and Educational Certificate: K-12 (Ed:).

What education do you need to become an adapted physical education teacher?

What degree do you need to be an adapted physical education teacher?

The most common degree for adapted physical education teachers is bachelor's degree, with 72% of adapted physical education teachers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 20% and master's degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 72%
  • Master's, 20%
  • Associate, 6%
  • High School Diploma, 1%
  • Other Degrees, 1%

What should I major in to become an adapted physical education teacher?

You should major in health education to become an adapted physical education teacher. 57% of adapted physical education teachers major in health education. Other common majors for an adapted physical education teacher include kinesiology and education.

Most common colleges for adapted physical education teachers

Adapted physical education teachers often get their degrees at University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Campus, Hofstra University, and Long Island University. Here are the most common colleges for adapted physical education teachers in the US based on their resumes.
Adapted physical education teacher common collegePercentages
University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Campus8.57%
Hofstra University7.14%
Long Island University7.14%
SUNY College at Cortland5.71%
University of Wisconsin Colleges5.71%

Best majors for adapted physical education teachers

Best colleges for adapted physical education teachers

The best colleges for adapted physical education teachers are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and New York University.

An adapted physical education teacher with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for adapted physical education teachers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become adapted physical education teachers.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

2. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

4. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

5. University of Washington

Seattle, WA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,207

Enrollment

30,905

6. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$50,420

Enrollment

7,582

7. SUNY at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$10,099

Enrollment

21,404

8. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

9. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

10. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

20 best online courses for adapted physical education teachers

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1. Music Education for Teachers

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In the Music Education for Teachers specialization, you will explore ways of integrating popular music into your teaching. You'll begin by learning from two highly experienced teachers, Krystal Banfield, the Vice President of Educational Outreach for Berklee College of Music, and David Alexis a Berklee Professor and long-time instructor for the Berklee City Music Program. They will take you through their process of incorporating popular music, improvisation, arranging, and music technology into...

2. Online Learning Design for Educators

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This specialization is for educators seeking to improve and expand their repertoire of online teaching skills related to the design, development and delivery of effective and engaging online courses and lessons for school age and adult learners.\n\nLearning in the 21st century no longer takes place exclusively between the four walls of a physical classroom. With advances in technology, learners now expect to be offered flexible study modes outside of the traditional face-to-face model. This...

3. Educational Psychology & Special Education (Certificate)

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Informational content for educators and parents to learn about teaching and understanding exceptional children...

4. Physics - Kinematics for High School and AP Physics 1

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4.7
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This is a comprehensive Algebra based Mechanics course in physics specifically covering topics of Kinematics...

5. Critical Issues in Urban Education

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Urban school reform in the United States is characterized by contentious, politicized debate. This course explores a set of critical issues in the education and educational reform space, with a focus on aspects of the field that have sparked controversy and polarized views. We will dig into these debates, situating them within the larger history of public education and school reform, and considering the viewpoints, the evidence, and translation of issues into educational policy. We will...

6. Activity Design with PhET Simulations for STEM Education

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PhET Interactive Simulations ( https://phet.colorado.edu/ ), a project of the University of Colorado Boulder, provides fun, free, interactive, research-based science and mathematics simulations for use across, primary, secondary, and higher education levels. We extensively test and evaluate each simulation to ensure educational effectiveness. All simulations are open source and free to all students and teachers. In this course, we will review strategies for how to use PhET to create sim-based...

7. Quantum Physics: an overview of a weird world (Basics)

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A primer on the conceptual foundations of Quantum Physics...

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9. Diversity and Inclusion in Education

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Student diversity is becoming the rule rather than the exception in education systems across the world. Students bring to classroom different characteristics such as ability and disability, socio-economic background, race, ethnicity, and cultural background, beliefs and religion, and gender characteristics. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 4 aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all (United Nations, 2015)...

10. Exploring Quantum Physics

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An introduction to quantum physics with emphasis on topics at the frontiers of research, and developing understanding through exercise...

11. Intro to Unity 3D Physics: Helicopters

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Learn how to create Helicopter physics for Games with Unity 3D and C#!...

12. Game Physics - Introducing Gravitation & Rotation in Unity

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Step-by-step tutorial on how to create a basic rigid body motion physics from scratch. Taught in C# using Unity 3D free...

13. Educating Deaf Children: Becoming an Empowered Teacher

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Many Deaf children around the world still leave school functionally illiterate. In some cases, there is no allowance made for the education of Deaf children at all. This 4-week course provides you with invaluable knowledge and skills about teaching Deaf children. You will learn about the importance of Deaf culture and community, the need for a language-rich environment for the Deaf child from as young as possible, and that having access to sign language can help Deaf children academically,...

14. Classical Physics: Journey Through the Laws of the Universe

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Peer beneath the surface of reality, understand how the universe works, and develop physics apps that make a difference!...

15. QC151 Quantum Physics for QC - Content moved to QC101

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This course has become part of QC101. Buy this course if you want only the physics lessons without the rest of QC101...

16. Google Certified Educator Level 1 Technical Training

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Google Apps for Education...

17. Computational Physics: Scientific Programming with Python

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18. Intro to Airplane Physics in Unity 3D - 2017 & 2018

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Learn how to build your very own Custom Airplane Physics with Unity & C#...

19. Outcome Based Education (OBE) & Academic Quality Assurance

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Master Course for Teachers' Development: Grow Your Teaching-Learning Expertise to World-Class Level...

20. Seth Godin on learning and education

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Build the future of community, culture and possibility...

Top 10 most affordable universities for adapted physical education teachers

The most affordable schools for adapted physical education teachers are California State University - Long Beach, brooklyn college of the city university of new york, and baruch college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for adapted physical education teachers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for adapted physical education teachers.

1. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

2. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

3. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

4. Lehman College of the City University of New York

Bronx, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,210

Cost of attendance

14,359

5. Queens College of the City University of New York

Queens, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,338

Cost of attendance

14,281

6. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

7. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

8. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

9. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

10. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for adapted physical education teachers

The hardest universities for adapted physical education teachers to get into are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and New York University.

Some great schools for adapted physical education teachers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for adapted physical education teachers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

2. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

3. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

4. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

5. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

6. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

7. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,398

9. University of Rochester

Rochester, NY • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,422

10. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for adapted physical education teachers

The easiest schools for adapted physical education teachers to get into are Barry University, felician university, and holy names university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an adapted physical education teacher without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for adapted physical education teachers.

1. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

2. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

3. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

4. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

5. The University of Texas Permian Basin

Odessa, TX • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,046

6. College of New Rochelle, The

New Rochelle, NY • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

982

7. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

8. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

9. Cardinal Stritch University

Milwaukee, WI • Private

Admissions rate

71%

SAT average

1,035

10. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

Average adapted physical education teacher salary by education level

According to our data, adapted physical education teachers with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $60,137 annually. Adapted physical education teachers with a Doctorate degree earn an average annual salary of $59,642.
Adapted physical education teacher education levelAdapted physical education teacher salary
Master's Degree$60,137
Bachelor's Degree$49,077
Doctorate Degree$59,642

Adapted physical education teacher education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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