[The Census](https://readinessindex.io/census)

[Q4 2026](https://readinessindex.io/census/2026-Q4)

Education

Sector

# Education

Colleges and universities, and the school districts and charter agencies that run public K-12. Families choose between them in different ways, so each is measured on its own.

Index 12.1 · Census Q4 2026 · 2 segments, 2 measured

The segments

## Side by side, never added together

| Segment | Drawn from | Median and spread | Scanned | Gated |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Colleges and universities](https://readinessindex.io/census/2026-Q4/education/higher-ed) Every active, degree-granting US college and university that takes part in federal student aid, as IPEDS reports it. | National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) | **59** · 16–79 | 3553/3954 | 1283 of 3553 |
| [School districts](https://readinessindex.io/census/2026-Q4/education/k12-districts) Every US public school district and independent charter agency operating this school year, as the Common Core of Data reports it. | National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), with Wikidata and the state education agencies | **53** · 21–78 | 10735/17704 | 7019 of 10735 |

There is no single figure for education. Each segment is its own population, and a combined median would be a number about whichever segment has the most sites. How the Census is run, and what it can support, is on the [methodology page](https://readinessindex.io/census/methodology).