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 5 of 14Fontbonne University
Saint Louis, Missouri
Fort Hays State University
Hays, Kansas
Fort Valley State University
Fort Valley, Georgia
Framingham State University
Framingham, Massachusetts
Francis Marion University
Florence, South Carolina
Franciscan University of Steubenville
Steubenville, Ohio
Franklin Pierce University
Rindge, New Hampshire
Franklin University
Columbus, Ohio
Freed - Hardeman University
Henderson, Tennessee
Fresno Pacific University
Fresno, California
Friends University
Wichita, Kansas
Frostburg State University
Frostburg, Maryland
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida
Geneva College
Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania
Georgia College & State University
Milledgeville, Georgia
Georgia Southwestern State University
Americus, Georgia
Georgian Court University
Lakewood, New Jersey
Golden Gate University
San Francisco, California
Goldey - Beacom College
Wilmington, Delaware
Governors State University
University Park, Illinois
Grace College and Theological Seminary
Winona Lake, Indiana
Graceland University - Lamoni
Lamoni, Iowa
Grambling State University
Grambling, Louisiana
Grand View University
Des Moines, Iowa
Gratz College
Melrose Park, Pennsylvania
Greensboro College
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greenville University
Greenville, Illinois
Hamline University
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Hartford International University for Religion and Peace
Hartford, Connecticut
Hawaii Pacific University
Honolulu, Hawaii
Heidelberg University
Tiffin, Ohio
Henderson State University
Arkadelphia, Arkansas
Heritage University
Toppenish, Washington
Herzing University - Madison
Madison, Wisconsin
Holy Apostles College and Seminary
Cromwell, Connecticut
Holy Family University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Hood College
Frederick, Maryland
Hope International University
Fullerton, California
Houston Christian University
Houston, Texas
Humphreys University - Stockton and Modesto Campuses
Stockton, California
Huntington University
Huntington, Indiana
IE New York College
New York, New York
Indiana Institute of Technology
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Indiana University - East
Richmond, Indiana
Indiana University - Kokomo
Kokomo, Indiana
Indiana University - Northwest
Gary, Indiana
Indiana University - South Bend
South Bend, 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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