Understanding Academics: AAU and Carnegie 1 Designations

This past week Oklahoma City online outlet NewsOK.com published a very interesting article about the possibilities of the University of Oklahoma joining the Big Ten. In this article, the author discusses the various requirements of conference realignments, and one particular factor was totally new to me.

While the vaguely-termed “academics” is an oft-cited reason for a school being considered for admission to a conference, apparently there are objective measures within that category about which I didn’t know. In his article, Tramel discusses membership to two different groupings that count strongly on behalf of a school’s academic standing. I was, perhaps ignorantly, unaware either of them existed, much less that they were significant in the decision making of athletic conferences, and thought perhaps a quick rundown would be helpful for those trying to better understand the nuances of why certain schools are aligned in particular fashions.

The first group is the Association of American of Universities (AAU), originally a collection of fourteen schools that has since expanded to 62. From the AAU’s website, it “is an association of leading comprehensive research universities distinguished by the breadth and quality of their programs of research and graduate education.” Membership is by invitation only and is decided by a committee that reviews quantitative measures of both current and potential schools. Essentially, the AAU is looking for a commitment of a certain amount, both of finances and other resources, to post-baccalaureate education and research. A list of member institutions can be found here.

The other group discussed at length in Tramel’s article is known as the Carnegie 1 universities. This grouping is similar in focus to the AAU, but conducted by a different set of regulations and committee. All members of the AAU are also Carnegie 1 universities, and there are 108 in total. Although Carnegie 1 is not an official title, the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Learning does offer a “top” segment, now referred to as “RU/VH,” standing for “research university, very high research activity.” There are 108 RU/VH universities, and despite the title being outdated, they’re generally referred to as “Carnegie 1” schools. If you want to see if your school is a Carnegie 1 institution, check out the list on Wikipedia, or the table below.

Universities Classified as RU/VH

Generally, when discussing conference alignment, these two groups are looked to as useful indicators for finding comparable universities, and commissioners will often seek to have as high a percentage as possible of AAU and Carnegie 1 schools. In Tramel’s article, which centered on OU getting into the Big Ten, knowledge of the AAU and Carnegie 1 designations helped show why the Sooners were perhaps a bit farther than thought from getting into the conference. The Big Ten, which boasts thirteen AAU and fourteen Carnegie 1 institutions (of fourteen total members), obviously puts a premium on these designations. Oklahoma is a Carnegie 1 university but not a member of the AAU, which would certainly be a plus if it ever wanted to join the Big Ten.Rumors surrounding conference realignments seem to be in the news virtually every day, and while geography and finances play a part in the decisions, there are a myriad of factors of which the average outsider is ignorant. Academics, partially in the form of membership and classification by outside associations, perhaps falls in many fans’ blind spots when reading about what team belongs in which conference.