Carnegie Classifications

About the Carnegie Classification®

The Carnegie Classification® is the leading framework for recognizing and describing institutional diversity in U.S. higher education. The Carnegie Commission on Higher Education developed the classification in 1973 to support its program of research and policy analysis. Derived from empirical data on colleges and universities, the Carnegie Classification was updated in 1976, 1987, 1994, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2018, 2021, and 2025 to reflect changes among colleges and universities. The next update will be released in 2028.

The framework is used in the study of higher education and is intended to be an objective, degree-based lens through which researchers can group and study similar institutions. Carnegie Classifications are used in research study design to ensure adequate representation of sampled institutions, students, or faculty, among other uses.

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2025 Research Activity Designations

As part of a series of updates to the Carnegie Classification, the 2025 Research Activity Designations are listed separately from the 2025 Institutional Classifications. The Research Activity Designations place eligible institutions into one of three categories based on the reported amount of research and development expenditures and the number of research/scholarship doctorates conferred.

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2025 Institutional Classification

The Institutional Classification is a redesigned approach to the Basic Classification and organizes institutions of higher education by the types of degrees they award, the fields of study in which they award their degrees, and the size of the institution. There are 31 different Institutional Classifications. The 2025 Institutional Classifications can be viewed through the Institution Search tool by selecting the desired classification from the filter options on the left.

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2025 Student Access and Earnings Classification

The Student Access and Earnings Classification is a new classification system that identifies the extent to which institutions provide access to students from lower socioeconomic and historically underrepresented racial/ethnic backgrounds along with the degree to which the institution’s students go on to earn competitive wages in the context of their geographic location. Institutions’ Student Access and Earnings Classifications can be viewed either through the Institution Search or through the Student Access and Earnings Visualization, which has a variety of filter options available.

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2021 Carnegie Classifications

The 2021 Carnegie Classifications included any institution that conferred at least one degree in the academic year 2019-20, as reported through the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The Classifications also included data from military service institutions that do not currently participate in the IPEDS survey. To view institutions’ 2021 Carnegie Classifications, please visit the Resources page and access either the 2021 Public Data File or the 1973-2021 Longitudinal Data File.

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We will not make revisions to the 2025 Carnegie Classifications until the next update is released in 2028, but we monitor name changes. We also welcome questions, comments, and glitch reports about the Classifications and the website. Please contact us at [email protected].

Recommended Citation (APA Format)

Current Version

American Council on Education (n.d.). The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, 2025 edition, Washington, DC: Author.

Web Site

The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education (n.d.). About Carnegie Classification. Retrieved (date optional) from http://carnegieclassifications.acenet.edu/.