2025 Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region

Ranked #16 in popularity, early childhood education is one of the most sought-after associate degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 5 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 745 associate degrees in early childhood education to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

• Best Associate Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Early Childhood Education School for Your Associate Degree

Your choice of early childhood education for getting your associate degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To take this into account we consider a school's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on early childhood education students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other early childhood education students want to attend this school to pursue a associate degree.
• Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized early childhood education related body.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for early childhood education students working on their associate degree.

More Ways to Rank Early Childhood Education Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Early Childhood Education Associate Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Early Childhood Education in the Far Western US Region

Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for early childhood education students seeking a an associate degree.

Top Far Western US Region Schools for an Associate in Child development

1

Lake Washington Institute of Technology
Kirkland, WA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

20 Annual Graduates

Any student who is interested in an associate degree in early childhood education has to take a look at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. Located in the suburb of Kirkland, LWTech is a public school with a small student population.More information about a associate in early childhood education from Lake Washington Institute of Technology

2

The University of Arizona Global Campus
San Diego, CA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

184 Annual Graduates

It is difficult to beat The University of Arizona Global Campus if you want to pursue an associate degree in early childhood education. Located in the large city of San Diego, UAGC is a private for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a associate in early childhood education from The University of Arizona Global Campus

3

Spokane Falls Community College
Spokane, WA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

31 Annual Graduates

Spokane Falls Community College is a wonderful decision for students pursuing an associate degree in early childhood education. Spokane Falls Community College is a small public college located in the medium-sized city of Spokane.More information about a associate in early childhood education from Spokane Falls Community College

4

Pierce College-Fort Steilacoom
Lakewood, WA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

19 Annual Graduates

It is hard to beat Pierce College-Fort Steilacoom if you wish to pursue an associate degree in early childhood education. Pierce College-Fort Steilacoom is a medium-sized public college located in the small city of Lakewood.More information about a associate in early childhood education from Pierce College-Fort Steilacoom

5

Clark College
Vancouver, WA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

10 Annual Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Vancouver, Clark College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.More information about a associate in early childhood education from Clark College

Best Early Childhood Education Colleges by State

Explore the best early childhood education colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
California	405	275
Washington	288	373
Oregon	260	47
Nevada	185	31
Hawaii	79	26
Alaska	71	14

View All Rankings >

Rankings in Majors Related to Child development

Early Childhood Education is one of 13 different types of Teacher Education Grade Specific programs to choose from.

Most Popular Majors Related to Child development

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Elementary Education	111
Secondary Education	61
Teacher Development & Methodology	1

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Vgrigas. More about our data sources and methodologies.