Categories
List of research universities in the United States
From Wikipedia - Reading time: 25 min
This is a list of universities in the United States classified among research universities in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Research institutions are a subset of doctoral degree-granting institutions and conduct research. These institutions "conferred at least 20 research/scholarship doctorates in 2019-20 and reported at least $5 million in total research expenditures in fiscal year 2020 were assigned to one of two categories based on a measure of research activity."[1]
History
[edit]The 1994 edition of the Carnegie Classification defined Research I universities as those that:
- Offer a full range of baccalaureate programs
- Are committed to graduate education through the doctorate
- Give high priority to research
- Award 50 or more doctoral degrees each year
- Receive annually $40 million or more in federal support[2]
The Carnegie Foundation reported that 59 institutions met these criteria in 1994.[3]
In their interim 2000 edition of the classification, the Carnegie Foundation renamed the category to Doctoral/research universities-extensive in order to avoid the inference that the categories signify quality differences."[4] The foundation replaced their single classification system with a multiple classification system in their 2005 comprehensive overhaul of the classification framework [4][5] so that the term "Research I university" was no longer valid, though many universities continued to use it.
In 2015, the Carnegie Classification System reinstated the "Research I university" designations along with "Research II" and "Research III." The current system, introduced in 2018, includes the following three categories for doctoral universities:[6]
- R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity
- R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity
- D/PU: Doctoral/Professional Universities
In the 2018 classification, institutions were classified as either R1 or R2 if they "conferred at least 20 research/scholarship doctorates in 2016-17 and reported at least $5 million in total research expenditures."[6] A "research activity index" was then calculated that included the following measures:
- Research & development (R&D) expenditures in science and engineering (S&E)
- R&D expenditures in non-S&E fields
- S&E research staff (postdoctoral appointees and other non-faculty research staff with doctorates)
- Doctoral conferrals in humanities, social science, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields, and in other fields (e.g., business, education, public policy, social work)
These four measures were combined using principal component analysis to create two indices of research activity, one representing an aggregate level of research activity and the other representing per-capita research activity. Institutions that were high on both indices were classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity."[6]
In 2023, it was announced that the Carnegie Classification System would again be revised for the 2025 classifications. R1 institutions will be defined as those that (1) have $50 million in research expenditures, and (2) grant 70 research doctorates. Other changes to the classification system include multiple labels to identify institutions, and recognition for non-doctoral universities. The labels for R1 and R2 were changed, with the words "research activity" replaced by "research spending and doctorate production". All institutions with more than $2.5 million in research expenditures that were not classified as R1 or R2 were placed in the new classification of "Research Colleges and Universities".[7]
Universities classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research spending and doctorate production"
[edit]There are 187 institutions that are classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research spending and doctorate production" in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as of the 2025 update.[8]
These universities have a very high level of both research activity and per capita in such research activity, using aggregate data to determine both measurements. In other words, these institutions provide a lot of resources for research and have a lot of people conducting research at their respective institution. These two classifications can be seen as the aggregate supply and demand for research, respectively.[9]
In 2025, 187 institutions have been given a designation of R1, up from the previous 146 in the 2021 classification.
- ^ The campus has a Binghamton mailing address, but is mostly located in the adjacent town of Vestal.
- ^ a b c d "New York" is the U.S. Postal Service designation for the New York City borough of Manhattan.
- ^ The campus has a Miami mailing address, but is in the unincorporated Miami-Dade County community of Westchester.
- ^ The main campus has a Fairfax mailing address, but is in unincorporated Fairfax County.
- ^ The campus has a Dallas mailing address, but is almost entirely located in the separate city of University Park.
- ^ a b c Receives state funding as part of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, but is privately governed.
- ^ "University Park" is the postal designation for the main Penn State campus, which is divided between the communities of State College and College Township.
- ^ The campus has a Buffalo mailing address, but is mostly located in the adjacent town of Amherst.
- ^ La Jolla is a San Diego neighborhood served by a separate post office from most of the city.
- ^ The campus has a Santa Barbara mailing address, but is mostly located in the adjacent community of Isla Vista.
- ^ The main campus has an Orlando mailing address, but is located in unincorporated Orange County.
- ^ Defined in state law as a "privately governed, state-assisted" institution.
- ^ The campus is almost evenly divided between Champaign and Urbana. The main administration building for the campus is in Champaign.
- ^ The campus is divided between the cities of Minneapolis and Falcon Heights. The campus administration is in Minneapolis.
- ^ The campus has a Las Vegas mailing address, but is located outside the city limits in the unincorporated community of Paradise.
Map of R1 institutions
[edit]_location_map.svg)
AU CUA GWU GU HUGA Tech/GSU
JHU
UMB UMBC BC BU Harv. MIT NEU TU UMass B Colum. CUNY Grad. NYU W. Cornell_location_map.svg){kind=link}
Universities classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research spending and doctorate production"
[edit]There are 140 institutions that are classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research spending and doctorate production" in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as of the 2025 update.[10]
These universities have a very high level of either research activity or per capita in such research activity, using aggregate data to determine both measurements, while having a very low level on the other qualification. In other words, these institutions either lack research facilities or do not have a lot of people conducting research at their respective institution. These two classifications can be seen as the aggregate supply and demand for research, respectively.[9]
- ^ a b c d e f g "New York" is the U.S. Postal Service designation for the New York City borough of Manhattan.
- ^ Defined in state law as a "privately governed, state-assisted" institution.
- ^ The campus has a Kennesaw mailing address but is located in unincorporated Cobb County.
- ^ LIU has two main campuses—one in Brookville and the other in Brooklyn.
- ^ The main Oakland campus has a Rochester mailing address, but is divided between the separate cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills.
- ^ The campus has a Malibu mailing address but is located in unincorporated Los Angeles County.
- ^ RIT has a Rochester mailing address, but is located in the nearby town of Henrietta.
- ^ UTRGV has multiple campuses within its service area of the Lower Rio Grande Valley; its administration is located at the Edinburg campus it inherited from one of its predecessor institutions, the University of Texas–Pan American.
- ^ Wright State has a Dayton mailing address but is located in the separate city of Fairborn.
Map of R2 institutions
[edit]_location_map.svg)
AECM CCNY CHNY FU Mt. Sinai RU T. Colum. New S. YUInstitutions classified among "Research Colleges and Universities"
[edit]As of the 2025 update, the Carnegie Foundation classifies 216 institutions as "Research Colleges and Universities".[11] This new category requires institutions spend at least $2.5 million on research & development and are not included in the R1 or R2 categories.[12]
- ^ The campus has a Lorman mailing address.
- ^ a b c d e f "New York" is the U.S. Postal Service designation for the New York City borough of Manhattan.
- ^ The campus has a Bowie mailing address, but is in unincorporated Prince George's County.
- ^ The campus has a Camarillo mailing address, but is in unincorporated Ventura County.
- ^ The campus has a Seaside mailing address, but is divided between the cities of Seaside and Marina.
- ^ Northridge is one of many Los Angeles neighborhoods that have separate post offices from the bulk of the city.
- ^ The campus has a Los Angeles mailing address, but is in the unincorporated Los Angeles County community of Willowbrook.
- ^ The campus has a Fort Myers mailing address, but is in unincorporated Lee County.
- ^ Federally chartered to serve the deaf and hearing-impaired community.
- ^ This institution is part of an organization that operates charter schools. It receives public funding but is separate from other public entities.
- ^ The campus has a Princess Anne mailing address, but is in unincorporated Somerset County.
- ^ a b This school receives state funding as part of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education but is privately governed.
- ^ The campus has a Utica mailing address but is in the adjacent town of Marcy.
- ^ The medical school is separate from, though affiliated with, the public Western Michigan University.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ [1] Archived 2016-08-11 at the Wayback Machine. Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
- ^ University of Washington. "Carnegie Research I Universities". Archived from the original on March 6, 2009. Retrieved March 18, 2009.
- ^ David Weerts, State Governments and Research Universities: A Framework for a Renewed Partnership. New York: Routledge, 2002, p. 26.
- ^ a b Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. "Carnegie Classifications FAQs". Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
- ^ Educause. "Appendix E: Carnegie Classification (2000) Definitions" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2009. Retrieved March 18, 2009.
- ^ a b c "Basic Classification Description". Center for Postsecondary Research. 2019. Archived from the original on August 11, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
- ^ "Carnegie Classifications to Make Major Changes in How Colleges and Universities Are Grouped and Recognized, Set Clear Threshold for Highest Level of Research". American Council on Education. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ^ "Doctoral Universities: Highest Research Activity". Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ a b "Basic Classification Methodology". Carnegie Classifications. Archived from the original on February 27, 2018. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
- ^ "Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education®". CARNEGIE CLASSIFICATION OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. Retrieved February 17, 2025.
- ^ "Institutions Search".
- ^ "2025 Research Activity Designations".
External links
[edit]
EncycloReader
is supported by the 
KSF