CARNEGIE CLASSIFICATION OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION®
The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education is the nation’s leading framework for categorizing U.S. higher education institutions.
Classification Lookup
About the Carnegie Classification®
The Carnegie Classification® is the leading framework for recognizing and describing institutional diversity in U.S. higher education. In 1970, the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education began developing a classification of colleges and universities to support its program of research and policy analysis. The framework was first published in 1973 and is now updated every 3 years to reflect changes among colleges and universities. Learn more about us >
2025 Institutional Classification
Organizes the landscape of American colleges and universities into groupings of similar types of institutions.
2025 Student Access and Earnings Classification
Examines the access an institution provides and the economic outcomes of its former students.
2025 Research Activity Designations
Identifies the research capacity of colleges and universities.
Elective Classifications
The Carnegie Elective Classifications are recognitions earned by institutions that have made extraordinary commitments to their public purpose. Institutions apply for recognition from the Carnegie Foundation through a particular Elective Classification theme and make extraordinary commitments to that theme. There are currently three Elective Classifications: the Elective Classification for Community Engagement, the Elective Classification for Leadership for Public Purpose, and the Elective Classification for Sustainability.
Data and Resources
View all available resources for the Carnegie Classifications.
Includes data files and methodology documents for the 2025 and historic Carnegie Classifications.
From the Blog
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Reflecting on the Carnegie Classification’s 2025 Redesign
The Carnegie Classifications were created over half a century ago with a clear purpose: offering researchers a more nuanced understanding of the nation’s higher education landscape. Since then, the classifications have evolved to have an outsized influence on institutional benchmarks, organization, and resources, largely shaped by the chase for an R1 designation and a high… Continue Reading >
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Institutions Across U.S. React to Being Named Opportunity Colleges and Universities Under the New Student Access and Earnings Classification
The newly redesigned Carnegie Classifications are intended to better reflect the multifaceted nature of the higher education landscape and to measure the extent to which institutions provide students access and a path to earning competitive wages. The 2025 update includes a revision of the historic Basic Classification, now titled the Institutional Classification, and a newly… Continue Reading >
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2025 Carnegie Classification Appeal Window
As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and accuracy, the Carnegie Classifications invites institutions to submit appeals, report anomalies, request special consideration, or raise other relevant issues regarding their data, Institutional Classification, or Student Access and Earnings Classification. Appeals can be submitted online through the end of June. Institutional preferences for how they are classified… Continue Reading >
About the Site
The Carnegie Classification site provides an Institution Search tool that allows users to search and filter institutions based on one or more Carnegie Classifications. You can also find a wealth of knowledge and resources on the Carnegie Classifications at the links below.
Find answers to the most common Carnegie Classification questions.
Access blog posts and press releases with information on higher education.
Read about the history of Carnegie Classifications.
