Definitions
A Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) is more than a Hispanic-enrolling one. An HSI intentionally and strategically ensures the success of its Hispanic/Latino students.
Under federal law (Higher Education Opportunity Act, Title V, 2008), an HSI is an accredited, degree-granting, public or private nonprofit institution of higher education with 25%, or more, total undergraduate Hispanic full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment.
- Chico State met the enrollment definition of an HSI in Fall 2014.
- Additional criteria exist for an institution's eligibility for federal Title III and Title V HSI grants programs.
HSIs by the Numbers
According to Excelencia in Education, a nationally recognized and trusted resource on accelerating Latino student success in higher education, reports that in 2022-2023, there were 600 institutions in 28 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico that met the enrollment definition of HSI.
600 HSIs enrolled 60% of all Latino undergraduates and represented 20% of all institutions of higher education
63% of all Latinos students enrolled in higher education attend an HSI
28.7% of all HSIs are in California
21 of the 23 California State Universities (CSUs) are HSIs
Over 90% of the California Community Colleges are HSIs
252 Gradutate HSIs (gHSIs), HSIs with Graduate Programs
412 emerging HSIs (eHSIs), defined as institutions with 15.0-24.9% undergraduate full-time equivalent Hispanic student enrollment.
- 37 of the 39 institutions that have earned the Seal of Excelencia are HSIs and are nationally certified for intentionally serving Latino students.
For learn more HSI facts, please visit Excelencia's HSI research site.
*Analysis is based on the most recent public data available from the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) for academic year 2022-23.
