R1 Research institutions in the United States
R1 universities are doctoral institutions with very high research activity, the top Carnegie research tier. This dataset includes 146 U.S. institutions classified as R1 Research 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 4,441,617 students in total.
Of these, 107 are public and 39 private. The largest by enrollment include ASUCI, TAUS, and University of Central Florida. Among institutions that report the figure, the median graduation rate is 80% and the median average net price is $18,589.
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. |
Frequently asked questions
- What is a R1 Research institution under the Carnegie Classification?
- R1 universities are doctoral institutions with very high research activity, the top Carnegie research tier. This dataset tracks 146 of them in the United States.
- Is Harvard a R1 or R2 university?
- Harvard University is classified R1: a doctoral university with very high research activity, the top Carnegie research tier. R1 and R2 are assigned by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation, not self-declared by institutions.
- What are the largest R1 Research in the U.S.?
- By total enrollment, the largest are ASUCI, TAUS, University of Central Florida, OSUC, and UIU.
- What is the typical graduation rate and net price for these institutions?
- The median graduation rate among institutions that report one is 80%, and the median average net price is $18,589. Figures come from IPEDS and College Scorecard.
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Data: IPEDS Fall 2025–26 provisional · College Scorecard (June 2026 release). All sources & release dates →
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