A typology of student engagement for American colleges and universities

The Carnegie classification system has served as a framework for research on colleges and universities for more than 30 years. Today, the system's developers are exploring criteria that more effectively differentiate among institutions. One approach being considered is classifying institutions based on students' educational experiences. This study explored whether it is possible to create a typology of institutions based on students' experiences. Results indicated that such a typology could be created, and the types were somewhat independent of institutional mission (i.e., Carnegie classification).