Master's institutions in the United States
Master's colleges and universities award a significant number of master's degrees but few or no doctorates, under the Carnegie classification. This dataset includes 646 U.S. institutions classified as Master's under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, maintained by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, enrolling about 3,611,715 students in total.
Of these, 238 are public and 408 private. The largest by enrollment include Western Governors, Southern New Hampshire, and UMGC. Among institutions that report the figure, the median graduation rate is 52% and the median average net price is $19,076.
R1 vs R2 vs Doctoral/Professional
The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, maintained by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation, sorts doctoral universities into these research tiers.
| Tier | Research activity | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| R1 | Very high research activity | Doctoral universities with the highest level of research activity, the top Carnegie research tier (e.g. Harvard, MIT, most flagship state universities). |
| R2 | High research activity | Doctoral universities with high research activity, the second Carnegie research tier, below R1 but above the doctoral/professional category. |
| Doctoral/Professional | Doctoral or professional-practice degrees | Universities that award research or professional-practice doctorates but fall below the research-activity thresholds for R1 or R2. |
646 institutions
Page 1 of 14Academy of Art University
San Francisco, California
Adams State University
Alamosa, Colorado
Alabama A & M University
Normal, Alabama
Albany State University
Albany, Georgia
Albertus Magnus College
New Haven, Connecticut
Alcorn State University
Alcorn State, Mississippi
Alfred University
Alfred, New York
Alverno College
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Amberton University
Garland, Texas
American InterContinental University System
Chandler, Arizona
American InterContinental University - Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia
American InterContinental University - Houston
Houston, Texas
American Public University System
Charles Town, West Virginia
Amridge University
Montgomery, Alabama
Anderson University
Anderson, South Carolina
Anderson University
Anderson, Indiana
Angelo State University
San Angelo, Texas
Anna Maria College
Paxton, Massachusetts
Antioch University - Los Angeles
Culver City, California
Antioch University - New England
Keene, New Hampshire
Antioch University - Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Antioch University - Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Appalachian State University
Boone, North Carolina
Arcadia University
Glenside, Pennsylvania
Arkansas Tech University
Russellville, Arkansas
Art Center College of Design
Pasadena, California
Asbury University
Wilmore, Kentucky
Ashland University
Ashland, Ohio
Assumption University
Worcester, Massachusetts
Atlantic University
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
Atlantis University
Miami, Florida
Auburn University at Montgomery
Montgomery, Alabama
Augsburg University
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Augustana University
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Austin Peay State University
Clarksville, Tennessee
Averett University
Danville, Virginia
Avila University
Kansas City, Missouri
Baker College
Owosso, Michigan
Baldwin Wallace University
Berea, Ohio
Bay Path University
Longmeadow, Massachusetts
Bellevue University
Bellevue, Nebraska
Bemidji State University
Bemidji, Minnesota
Benedictine University
Lisle, Illinois
Bentley University
Waltham, Massachusetts
Berkeley College - Woodland Park
Woodland Park, New Jersey
Berklee College of Music
Boston, Massachusetts
Berry College
Mount Berry, Georgia
Bethel University
Mishawaka, Indiana
Frequently asked questions
- What is a Master's institution under the Carnegie Classification?
- Master's colleges and universities award a significant number of master's degrees but few or no doctorates, under the Carnegie classification. This dataset tracks 646 of them in the United States.
- What are the largest Master's in the U.S.?
- By total enrollment, the largest are Western Governors, Southern New Hampshire, UMGC, APUS, and Utah Valley.
- What is the typical graduation rate and net price for these institutions?
- The median graduation rate among institutions that report one is 52%, and the median average net price is $19,076. Figures come from IPEDS and College Scorecard.
Related categories
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Data: IPEDS Fall 2025–26 provisional · College Scorecard (June 2026 release). All sources & release dates →
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