The U.S. Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) employs various categories to classify postsecondary institutions. This note outlines the different categories used in varying combinations in indicators 9, 10, 11, 26, 27, 39, 40, 41, and 42.

BASIC IPEDS CLASSIFICATIONS

The term “postsecondary institutions” is the category used to refer to institutions with formal instructional programs and a curriculum designed primarily for students who have completed the requirements for a high school diploma or its equivalent. For many analyses, however, comparing all institutions from across this broad universe of postsecondary institutions would not be appropriate. Thus, postsecondary institutions are placed in one of three levels, based on the highest award offered at the institution:

• 4-year-and-above institutions: Institutions or branches that award a 4-year degree or higher in one or more programs, or a post-baccalaureate, post-master’s, or post-first-professional certificate.
  


• 2-year but less-than-4-year institutions: Institutions or branches that confer at least a 2-year formal award (certificate, diploma, or associate’s degree) or that have a 2-year program creditable toward a baccalaureate degree.
  


• Less-than-2-year institutions: A postsecondary institution that offers programs of less than 2 years’ duration below the baccalaureate level. Includes occupational and vocational schools with programs that do not exceed 1,800 contact hours.

Postsecondary institutions are further divided according to these criteria: degree-granting versus non-degree-granting; type of financial control; and Title IV-participating versus non-Title IV-participating.

Degree-granting institutions offer associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, and/or first-professional degrees that a state agency recognizes or authorizes. Non-degree-granting institutions offer other kinds of credentials and exist at all three levels. The number of 4-year-and-above non-degree-granting institutions is small compared with the number of non-degree granting institutions at both the 2-year but less-than-4-year and less-than-2-year levels.

IPEDS also classifies institutions at each of the three levels of institutions by type of financial control: public; private not-for-profit; or private for-profit (e.g., proprietary schools). Thus, IPEDS divides the universe of postsecondary institutions into nine different “sectors.” In some sectors (for example, private for-profit 4-year institutions), the number of institutions is small relative to other sectors. Institutions in any of these nine sectors can be degree- or non-degree-granting.

Institutions in any of these nine sectors can also be Title IV-participating or not. For an institution to participate in federal Title IV Higher Education Act, Part C, financial aid programs, it must offer a program of study at least 300 clock hours in length; have accreditation recognized by the U.S. Department of Education; have been in business for at least 2 years; and have a Title IV participation agreement with the U.S. Department of Education. All indicators in this volume using IPEDS data are restricted to Title IV-participating institutions.

In some indicators based on IPEDS data, 4-year-and-above degree-granting institutions are further classified according to the highest degree awarded. Doctoral institutions award at least 20 doctoral degrees per year. Master’s institutions award at least 20 master’s degrees per year. The remaining institutions are considered to be other 4-year institutions. The number of degrees awarded by an institution in a given year is obtained for each institution from data published in the IPEDS “Completions Survey” (IPEDS-C).

Indicators 9, 26, 39, 41, and 42 include 2-year (short for 2-year but less-than-4-year) and 4-year-and-above degree-granting institutions in their analyses. Indicators 10, 11, 27, and 40 include 4-year-and-above degree-granting institutions.