Jeff and Michael are joined by Mushtaq Gunja, Executive Director of the Carnegie Classification Systems and Senior Vice President at ACE, to unpack the sweeping changes to the Carnegie Classifications. They explore how the new system aims to better group institutions, highlight student access and earnings, and shift incentives across funding, accountability, and rankings. The conversation dives into the implications for colleges chasing R1 status, the normative power of classifications, and whether these changes will meaningfully alter institutional behavior or simply create a new hierarchy. This episode is made with support from Ascendium Education Group and the Gates Foundation.

Links We Mention

2025 Institutional Classifications, Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education

2025 Research Activity Designations, Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education

Chapters

0:00 - Intro

05:50 - The Changing Higher Ed Landscape

08:06 - The Impact of the New Classifications

10:42 - Anticipating the Normative Effects

16:55 - New Funding Criteria

18:13 - Shifting to a Focus on Outcomes

21:17 - Measuring Access and Earnings

24:53 - Encouraging Good Use of the New Classifications

34:24 - Considering the Impact on Research Dollars

40:28 - Institutional Response to Access and Earnings Designations

46:30 - What This Means for Rankings

Connect with Michael Horn:

Sign Up for the The Future of Education Newsletter

Website

LinkedIn

X (Twitter)

Threads  

Connect with Jeff Selingo:

Sign Up for the Next Newsletter

Website

X (Twitter)

Threads

LinkedIn

Connect with Future U:

Twitter

YouTube

Threads

Instagram

Facebook

LinkedIn  

Submit a question and if we answer it on air we'll send you Future U. swag!

Sign up for Future U. emails to get special updates and behind-the-scenes content.