A second major public recognition of NIU’s growing reputation was its designation by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as one of the nation’s top research institutions.
A new Carnegie classification system categorized the extent of research activities at each university, and that category became shorthand for a level of prestige that influenced funding agencies.
NIU was placed in the category of “doctoral/research university – extensive” – a group that included less than four percent of American institutions.
To be placed in the doctoral/research university-extensive category, a university had to offer a wide range of baccalaureate programs and award at least 50 doctorates per year in at least 15 disciplines. In 2000, NIU was offering doctoral degrees in 17 disciplines, and awarded 116 doctorates that year.
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