For years I’ve performed performance analysis on a list of independently curated highered responsive websites. I’ve recently wanted to expand that list to include many more highered homepages. So I set out to try and create a list of as many highered homepages as possible.
You can find the complete list on GitHub. Feel free to submit updates or suggestions.
Creating the list
While I was searching for lists to work from, I happened across one from Search Engines Marketer’s with 1,930 urls. It seemed like great list, so I ran some tests to make sure the url’s were still valid. Here’s where I ended up:
- Normalized urls (add https, www, etc. where applicable)
- Removed 61 dead urls
- Removed 12 with messages they were shutting down (going out of business)
- Removed 4 .com urls
- Removed 82 non-qualifying urls (see Requirements below)
- Added 83 from my RWD list that were missing from SEM’s list
- Subsequent additions and removals
My goal is to keep this list as active and up-to-date as possible.
Requirements
First and foremost, it’s possible that not every url in this list meets these criteria. It was a lot of sites to comb through, and I’m sure I missed some.
- Must be an accredited, degree granting higher education institution.
- Must be the front-most url for a university, college, or campus. This excludes mobile versions, but may include campuses that fall under a larger umbrella.
- Cannot be a school or medical facility that exists under a parent university (that includes business schools, law schools, etc.).
- Must not be a specialty school such as chiropractic or cosmetology.
- Requirements are subject to change and are up for debate.
Contributing
If you find a url that should be added or removed from the list, send a pull request or contact me.