This is a list of universities in the United States classified as 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 FY20 were assigned to one of two categories based on a measure of research activity."[ 1]
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] [ 4] [ 5]
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]
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]
[ edit ] There are 187 institutions that are classified as "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.
Doctoral Universities – Very high research spending and doctorate production Name City State Control American University Washington DC Private not-for-profit Arizona State University Tempe AZ Public Auburn University Auburn AL Public Baylor College of Medicine Houston TX Private not-for-profit Baylor University Waco TX Private not-for-profit Binghamton University Vestal NY Public Boston College Chestnut Hill MA Private not-for-profit Boston University Boston MA Private not-for-profit Brandeis University Waltham MA Private not-for-profit Brigham Young University Provo UT Private not-for-profit Brown University Providence RI Private not-for-profit California Institute of Technology Pasadena CA Private not-for-profit Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh PA Private not-for-profit Case Western Reserve University Cleveland OH Private not-for-profit Catholic University of America Washington DC Private not-for-profit Clemson University Clemson SC Public Colorado School of Mines Golden CO Public Colorado State University-Fort Collins Fort Collins CO Public Columbia University in the City of New York New York NY Private not-for-profit Cornell University Ithaca NY Private not-for-profit CUNY Graduate School and University Center New York NY Public Dartmouth College Hanover NH Private not-for-profit Drexel University Philadelphia PA Private not-for-profit Duke University Durham NC Private not-for-profit East Carolina University Greenville NC Public Emory University Atlanta GA Private not-for-profit Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton FL Public Florida International University Miami FL Public Florida State University Tallahassee FL Public George Mason University Fairfax VA Public George Washington University Washington DC Private not-for-profit Georgetown University Washington DC Private not-for-profit Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta GA Public Georgia State University Atlanta GA Public Harvard University Cambridge MA Private not-for-profit Howard University Washington DC Private not-for-profit Indiana University Bloomington Bloomington IN Public Indiana University Indianapolis Indianapolis IN Public Iowa State University Ames IA Public Johns Hopkins University Baltimore MD Private not-for-profit Kansas State University Manhattan KS Public Kent State University at Kent Kent OH Public Lehigh University Bethlehem PA Private not-for-profit Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge LA Public Loyola University Chicago Chicago IL Private not-for-profit Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge MA Private not-for-profit Medical University of South Carolina Charleston SC Public Michigan State University East Lansing MI Public Michigan Technological University Houghton MI Public Mississippi State University Mississippi State MS Public Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla MO Public Montana State University Bozeman MT Public New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark NJ Public New Mexico State University-Main Campus Las Cruces NM Public New York University New York NY Private not-for-profit North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh NC Public North Dakota State University-Main Campus Fargo ND Public Northeastern University Boston MA Private not-for-profit Northern Arizona University Flagstaff AZ Public Northwestern University Evanston IL Private not-for-profit Nova Southeastern University Fort Lauderdale FL Private not-for-profit Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus OH Public Ohio University-Main Campus Athens OH Public Oklahoma State University Stillwater OK Public Old Dominion University Norfolk VA Public Oregon State University Corvallis OR Public Princeton University Princeton NJ Private not-for-profit Purdue University West Lafayette IN Public Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy NY Private not-for-profit Rice University Houston TX Private not-for-profit Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick NJ Public Saint Louis University Saint Louis MO Private not-for-profit San Diego State University San Diego CA Public Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Carbondale IL Public Southern Methodist University Dallas TX Private not-for-profit Stanford University Stanford CA Private not-for-profit Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY Public Syracuse University Syracuse NY Private not-for-profit Temple University Philadelphia PA Public Texas A & M University-College Station College Station TX Public Texas Tech University Lubbock TX Public The Pennsylvania State University University Park PA Public The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa AL Public The University of Montana Missoula MT Public The University of Tennessee Health Science Center Memphis TN Public The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville TN Public The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington TX Public The University of Texas at Austin Austin TX Public The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson TX Public The University of Texas at El Paso El Paso TX Public The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio TX Public The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Houston TX Public The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio San Antonio TX Public Tufts University Medford MA Private not-for-profit Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans LA Private not-for-profit University at Albany Albany NY Public University at Buffalo Buffalo NY Public University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham AL Public University of Arizona Tucson AZ Public University of Arkansas Fayetteville AR Public University of California, Berkeley Berkeley CA Public University of California, Davis Davis CA Public University of California, Irvine Irvine CA Public University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA Public University of California, Merced Merced CA Public University of California, Riverside Riverside CA Public University of California, San Diego La Jolla CA Public University of California, San Francisco San Francisco CA Public University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara CA Public University of California, Santa Cruz Santa Cruz CA Public University of Central Florida Orlando FL Public University of Chicago Chicago IL Private not-for-profit University of Cincinnati Cincinnati OH Public University of Colorado Boulder Boulder CO Public University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver CO Public University of Connecticut Storrs CT Public University of Dayton Dayton OH Private not-for-profit University of Delaware Newark DE Public University of Denver Denver CO Private not-for-profit University of Florida Gainesville FL Public University of Georgia Athens GA Public University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu HI Public University of Houston Houston TX Public University of Idaho Moscow ID Public University of Illinois Chicago Chicago IL Public University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign IL Public University of Iowa Iowa City IA Public University of Kansas Lawrence KS Public University of Kentucky Lexington KY Public University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette LA Public University of Louisville Louisville KY Public University of Maine Orono ME Public University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore MD Public University of Maryland-College Park College Park MD Public University of Maryland, Baltimore Baltimore MD Public University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst MA Public University of Massachusetts-Boston Boston MA Public University of Massachusetts-Lowell Lowell MA Public University of Memphis Memphis TN Public University of Miami Coral Gables FL Private not-for-profit University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor MI Public University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis MN Public University of Mississippi University MS Public University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia MO Public University of Missouri-Kansas City Kansas City MO Public University of Nebraska Medical Center Omaha NE Public University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln NE Public University of Nevada-Las Vegas Las Vegas NV Public University of Nevada-Reno Reno NV Public University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham NH Public University of New Mexico-Main Campus Albuquerque NM Public University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill NC Public University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte NC Public University of North Dakota Grand Forks ND Public University of North Texas Denton TX Public University of Notre Dame Notre Dame IN Private not-for-profit University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Norman OK Public University of Oregon Eugene OR Public University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia PA Private not-for-profit University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh PA Public University of Rhode Island Kingston RI Public University of Rochester Rochester NY Private not-for-profit University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia SC Public University of South Florida Tampa FL Public University of Southern California Los Angeles CA Private not-for-profit University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS Public University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Dallas TX Public University of Toledo Toledo OH Public University of Utah Salt Lake City UT Public University of Vermont Burlington VT Public University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville VA Public University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle WA Public University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison WI Public University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Milwaukee WI Public University of Wyoming Laramie WY Public Utah State University Logan UT Public Vanderbilt University Nashville TN Private not-for-profit Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond VA Public Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg VA Public Washington State University Pullman WA Public Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis MO Private not-for-profit Wayne State University Detroit MI Public Weill Cornell Medicine of Cornell University New York NY Private not-for-profit West Virginia University Morgantown WV Public William & Mary Williamsburg VA Public Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester MA Private not-for-profit Yale University New Haven CT Private not-for-profit
Map of institutions [ edit ] A map of all tier one research universities in the United States. Blue dots represent
public institutions whereas red dots represent
private institutions.
[ edit ] There are 140 institutions that are classified as "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]
Doctoral Universities – High research activity Institution Control City State Abilene Christian University Private (non-profit) Abilene TX Air Force Institute of Technology Graduate School of Engineering & ManagementPublic Wright-Patterson AFB OH Albert Einstein College of Medicine Private (non-profit) Bronx NY Appalachian State University Public Boone NC Arkansas State University Public Jonesboro AR Augusta University Public Augusta GA Azusa Pacific University Private (non-profit) Azusa CA Ball State University Public Muncie IN Boise State University Public Boise ID Bowling Green State University Public Bowling Green OH California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Public Pomona CA California State University, Fresno Public Fresno CA California State University, Fullerton Public Fullerton CA California State University, Long Beach Public Long Beach CA California State University, Los Angeles Public Los Angeles CA California State University, Sacramento Public Sacramento CA Central Michigan University Public Mount Pleasant MI Chapman University Private (non-profit) Orange CA Claremont Graduate University Private (non-profit) Claremont CA Clark Atlanta University Private (non-profit) Atlanta GA Clark University Private (non-profit) Worcester MA Clarkson University Private (non-profit) Potsdam NY Cleveland State University Public Cleveland OH Creighton University Private (non-profit) Omaha NE CUNY City College Public New York[ a] NY CUNY Hunter College Public New York NY Delaware State University Public Dover DE DePaul University Private (non-profit) Chicago IL Duquesne University Private (non-profit) Pittsburgh PA East Tennessee State University Public Johnson City TN East Texas A&M Public Commerce TX Eastern Michigan University Public Ypsilanti MI Eastern Virginia Medical School Public Norfolk VA Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach Private (non-profit) Daytona Beach FL Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Public Tallahassee FL Florida Institute of Technology Private (non-profit) Melbourne FL Fordham University Private (non-profit) Bronx NY Georgia Southern University Public Statesboro GA Hampton University Private (non-profit) Hampton VA Hofstra University Private (non-profit) Hempstead NY Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Private (non-profit) New York NY Idaho State University Public Pocatello ID Illinois Institute of Technology Private (non-profit) Chicago IL Illinois State University Public Normal IL Indiana University of Pennsylvania Public Indiana PA Jackson State University Public Jackson MS James Madison University Public Harrisonburg VA Kean University Public Union NJ Kennesaw State University Public Kennesaw[ b] GA Lamar University Public Beaumont TX Loma Linda University Private (non-profit) Loma Linda CA Long Island University Private (non-profit) Brookville[ c] NY Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans Public New Orleans LA Louisiana Tech University Public Ruston LA Loyola Marymount University Private (non-profit) Los Angeles CA Marquette University Private (non-profit) Milwaukee WI Marshall University Public Huntington WV Medical College of Wisconsin Private (non-profit) Milwaukee WI Mercer University Private (non-profit) Macon GA Miami University , OxfordPublic Oxford OH Middle Tennessee State University Public Murfreesboro TN Montclair State University Public Montclair NJ Morgan State University Public Baltimore MD North Carolina A&T State University Public Greensboro NC Northern Illinois University Public DeKalb IL Oakland University Public Rochester[ d] MI Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences Public Tulsa OK Oregon Health & Science University Public Portland OR Pepperdine University Private (non-profit) Malibu CA Portland State University Public Portland OR Prairie View A&M University Public Prairie View TX Rochester Institute of Technology Private (non-profit) Rochester[ e] NY Rockefeller University Private (non-profit) New York NY Rowan University Public Glassboro NJ Rush University Private (non-profit) Chicago IL Rutgers University–Camden Public Camden NJ Rutgers University–Newark Public Newark NJ Saint Joseph's University Private (non-profit) Philadelphia PA Sam Houston State University Public Huntsville TX San Francisco State University Public San Francisco CA San Jose State University Public San Jose CA Seton Hall University Private (non-profit) South Orange NJ South Carolina State University Public Orangeburg SC South Dakota State University Public Brookings SD Southern Connecticut State University Public New Haven CT Southern University Public Baton Rouge LA Stevens Institute of Technology Private (non-profit) Hoboken NJ SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Public Syracuse NY Tarleton State University Public Stephenville TX Teachers College, Columbia University Private (non-profit) New York[ a] NY Tennessee State University Public Nashville TN Tennessee Technological University Public Cookeville TN Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi Public Corpus Christi TX Texas A&M University–Kingsville Public Kingsville TX Texas Christian University Private (non-profit) Fort Worth TX Texas Southern University Public Houston TX Texas State University Public San Marcos TX Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Public Lubbock TX Texas Woman's University Public Denton TX The New School Private (non-profit) New York[ a] NY The University of Texas at Tyler Public Tyler TX The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston Public Galveston TX The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Public Edinburg TX The University of West Florida Public Pensacola FL Thomas Jefferson University Private (non-profit) Philadelphia PA University of Akron Main CampusPublic Akron OH University of Alabama, Huntsville Public Huntsville AL University of Alaska Fairbanks Public Fairbanks AK University of Arkansas at Little Rock Public Little Rock AR University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Public Little Rock AR University of Colorado Colorado Springs Public Colorado Springs CO University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School Public Worcester MA University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Public North Dartmouth MA University of Michigan-Dearborn Public Dearborn MI University of Missouri–St. Louis Public St. Louis MO University of Nebraska Omaha Public Omaha NE University of New England Private (non-profit) Biddeford ME University of New Orleans Public New Orleans LA University of North Carolina at Greensboro Public Greensboro NC University of North Carolina Wilmington Public Wilmington NC University of North Florida Public Jacksonville FL University of Northern Colorado Public Greeley CO University of Oklahoma-Health Sciences Center Public Oklahoma City OK University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Public Mayaguez PR University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Public San Juan PR University of San Diego Private (non-profit) San Diego CA University of San Francisco Private (non-profit) San Francisco CA University of South Alabama Public Mobile AL University of South Dakota Public Vermillion SD University of Tulsa Private (non-profit) Tulsa OK Upstate Medical University Public Syracuse NY Villanova University Private (non-profit) Villanova PA Virginia State University Public Petersburg VA Wake Forest University Private (non-profit) Winston-Salem NC West Chester University of Pennsylvania Public West Chester PA Western Michigan University Public Kalamazoo MI Wichita State University Public Wichita KS Wright State University Public Dayton[ f] OH Yeshiva University Private (non-profit) New York NY
^ a b c "New York" is the U.S. Postal Service designation for the New York City borough of Manhattan . ^ 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 . ^ RIT has a Rochester mailing address, but is located in the nearby town of Henrietta . ^ Wright State has a Dayton mailing address but is located in the separate city of Fairborn . Map of institutions [ edit ] A map of all tier two research universities in the contiguous United States. Not shown above is
ASU Digital Immersion,
Alaska , and
UPR Rio Piedras . Blue dots represent
public institutions whereas red dots represent
private institutions.
[ edit ] There are 23 institutions that are classified as "Special Focus – Research Institutions" in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as of the 2021 update.
This new category has the same threshold for inclusion as R1 and R2 schools do (At least twenty research doctorates awarded and five million dollars in research expenditures), but unlike R1 and R2 schools, they only award degrees in a single academic area.[ 11]
Map of institutions [ edit ] A map of all special focus research universities in the contiguous United States. Blue dots represent
public institutions whereas red dots represent
private institutions.
[ edit ] There are 216 institutions that are classified as "Research Colleges and Institutions" in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as of the 2025 update.[ 12]
This new category has the requirement that these institutions spend at least $2.5 million on research & development given that they are not included in the R1 or R2 categories.[ 13]
^ [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 .^ "Carnegie Classifications | Standard Listings" . Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2022 .^ https://carnegieclassifications.acenet.edu/institutions/?inst=&research2025%5B%5D=3 . CS1 maint: url-status (link ) ^ https://carnegieclassifications.acenet.edu/carnegie-classification/research-designations/ . CS1 maint: url-status (link ) 
French
Deutsch
Education portal
United States portal_location_map.svg)
_location_map.svg){kind=link}
