Bradley Receives New Classification from Carnegie

Bradley University has joined the group of doctoral/professional universities from across the country in the latest Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

The move is a great one, according to Bradley President Stephen Standifird. “This elevation in classification recognizes our advances in graduate program offerings and puts us in direct competition with other leading institutions that are nationally recognized,” he said. “The competition is significantly stronger in this arena, but the audience is wider as well.”

The Carnegie Classification system was revised recently to reflect the current landscape of higher education better. These classifications are time-specific snapshots of institutional attributes and behaviors. The doctoral/professional category includes institutions that confer 30 or more professional-practice doctoral degrees in at least two programs. Bradley University offers doctoral degrees in three programs: Doctor of Physical Therapy, Doctor of Nursing Practice and Doctor of Education. The university conferred 67 doctoral degrees during the 2020-2021 academic year.

For many years, Bradley was classified as a master's large institution. There are two additional categories in this national classification; these focus on highly active research institutions offering doctoral research degrees that Bradley does not offer.

The Carnegie Commission on Higher Education developed the classification more than 40 years ago as a way to distinguish institutions for educational-research purposes. In 2021, the system categorized approximately 3,900 two- and four-year colleges.