.edu
Encyclopedia
The domain name edu is a sponsored top-level domain
(sTLD) in the Domain Name System
of the Internet
. The "domain is intended for accredited post-secondary educational U.S. institutions" and this intention is strictly enforced.
The .edu domain was created in January 1985 as one of the seven first generic top-level domain
s. On April 24, 1985, cmu.edu, berkeley.edu, columbia.edu, purdue.edu, rice.edu, and ucla.edu became the first six registered domain names.
Until 2001, Network Solutions
served as registrar for the .edu domain under an arrangement with the U.S. Department of Commerce. Domain registration was done at no cost to educational institutions. In 2001, the Commerce Department entered into a five-year agreement with Educause
making that organization the registrar for the .edu domain. The agreement with Educause was extended for an additional five-year period in 2006; at that time Educause was authorized to begin charging a yearly administrative fee to registrants.
The .edu domain was originally intended for educational institutions anywhere in the world. However, most of the institutions that obtained .edu registrations were in the United States, while non-U.S. educational institutions typically used country-level domains. In 1993, a decision attributed to Jon Postel
limited new registrations in the .edu domain to four-year postsecondary educational institutions. This prevented new .edu registrations by community college
s and other institutions offering less than four years of postsecondary schooling.
Enforcement of the restrictions in the 1990s was not entirely effective. The webmaster for the Exploratorium
, a San Francisco science museum, recalled in 2006 that the museum obtained its .edu domain name at a time in the early 1990s "when there were about 600 websites and only one for a museum." The museum's Internet registrar allowed it to sidestep the then-extant domain-naming rules by using the .edu extension in spite of not being an academic institution and by using a name with more than 12 characters. Some community colleges were reported to have registered .edu names after 1993. In 1999 an article in Mother Earth News
quoted an authority on distance education
as saying: "Anyone who has the necessary $70 can register an .edu domain name and use it to archive any type of enterprise on the Internet."
In 2001, the .edu domain was restricted to U.S.-accredited postsecondary educational institutions. Subsequent changes expanded its use beyond four-year institutions, allowing registrations by accredited community colleges as well as by university systems, community college districts, and similar entities.
Between 2004 and 2011, the number of registered names in domain .edu remained relatively constant, with more than 7,000 but less than 8,000 names registered at any given time.
by an agency on the U.S. Department of Education's
list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies are eligible to apply for a edu domain. To be eligible, an institution must be located in the U.S., legally organized in the U.S., or recognized by a U.S. state, territorial, or federal agency. University system offices, community college district offices, and other entities within the United States that are organized to manage and govern multiple accredited postsecondary institutions may also register .edu domain names. Each eligible institution is limited to registering one .edu domain name, but institutions may also use names in other top-level domains.
into the system. Holders of such domain names can retain their .edu domain names without regard to the current eligibility criteria.
In 2003, Educause undertook an initiative to purge the .edu registry of domain names that were not accurately registered by removing names whose registrants did not respond to requests that they log in to the registry and review their whois
entries. Through this effort, Educause expected to eliminate a number of domains that did not appear to qualify for registration in the .edu domain, such as oracle.edu, geraldine.edu, and jedi.edu. Since 2006, Educause has been authorized to implement measures to prevent .edu domain name owners from transferring their domain names to other entities. These measures, together with the imposition of registration fees, were intended to reduce the number of inactive or ineligible .edu domain names.
The U.S. Department of Education notes that some "suspect" or "illegitimate" educational institutions continue to use .edu addresses that were registered before the stringent eligibility criteria were adopted in 2001.
Sponsored top-level domain
A sponsored top-level domain is one of the categories of top-level domains maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet....
(sTLD) in the Domain Name System
Domain name system
The Domain Name System is a hierarchical distributed naming system for computers, services, or any resource connected to the Internet or a private network. It associates various information with domain names assigned to each of the participating entities...
of the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. The "domain is intended for accredited post-secondary educational U.S. institutions" and this intention is strictly enforced.
History
- See also: List of the oldest currently registered .edu domain names
The .edu domain was created in January 1985 as one of the seven first generic top-level domain
Generic top-level domain
A generic top-level domain is one of the categories of top-level domains maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet....
s. On April 24, 1985, cmu.edu, berkeley.edu, columbia.edu, purdue.edu, rice.edu, and ucla.edu became the first six registered domain names.
Until 2001, Network Solutions
Network Solutions
Network Solutions, LLC is a technology company founded in 1979. The domain name registration business has become the most important division of the company. As of January 2009, Network Solutions managed more than 6.6 million domain names.-History:...
served as registrar for the .edu domain under an arrangement with the U.S. Department of Commerce. Domain registration was done at no cost to educational institutions. In 2001, the Commerce Department entered into a five-year agreement with Educause
Educause
EDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association whose mission is "to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology." Membership is open to institutions of higher education, corporations serving the higher education information technology market, and other related...
making that organization the registrar for the .edu domain. The agreement with Educause was extended for an additional five-year period in 2006; at that time Educause was authorized to begin charging a yearly administrative fee to registrants.
The .edu domain was originally intended for educational institutions anywhere in the world. However, most of the institutions that obtained .edu registrations were in the United States, while non-U.S. educational institutions typically used country-level domains. In 1993, a decision attributed to Jon Postel
Jon Postel
Jonathan Bruce Postel was an American computer scientist who made many significant contributions to the development of the Internet, particularly with respect to standards...
limited new registrations in the .edu domain to four-year postsecondary educational institutions. This prevented new .edu registrations by community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
s and other institutions offering less than four years of postsecondary schooling.
Enforcement of the restrictions in the 1990s was not entirely effective. The webmaster for the Exploratorium
Exploratorium
The Exploratorium is a museum in San Francisco with over 475 participatory exhibits, all of them made onsite, that mix science and art. It also aims to promote museums as informal education centers....
, a San Francisco science museum, recalled in 2006 that the museum obtained its .edu domain name at a time in the early 1990s "when there were about 600 websites and only one for a museum." The museum's Internet registrar allowed it to sidestep the then-extant domain-naming rules by using the .edu extension in spite of not being an academic institution and by using a name with more than 12 characters. Some community colleges were reported to have registered .edu names after 1993. In 1999 an article in Mother Earth News
Mother Earth News
Mother Earth News is a bi-monthly American magazine that has a circulation of 475,000. It is based in Topeka, Kansas.Approaching environmental problems from a down-to-earth, practical, how-to standpoint, Mother Earth News has, since the magazine’s founding in 1970, been a pioneer in the promotion...
quoted an authority on distance education
Distance education
Distance education or distance learning is a field of education that focuses on teaching methods and technology with the aim of delivering teaching, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional educational setting such as a classroom...
as saying: "Anyone who has the necessary $70 can register an .edu domain name and use it to archive any type of enterprise on the Internet."
In 2001, the .edu domain was restricted to U.S.-accredited postsecondary educational institutions. Subsequent changes expanded its use beyond four-year institutions, allowing registrations by accredited community colleges as well as by university systems, community college districts, and similar entities.
Between 2004 and 2011, the number of registered names in domain .edu remained relatively constant, with more than 7,000 but less than 8,000 names registered at any given time.
Eligibility
Since October 29, 2001, only post-secondary institutions and organizations that are institutionally accreditedHigher education accreditation in the United States
Higher education accreditation in the United States has long been established as a peer review process coordinated by accreditation commissions and member institutions. The federal government began to play a limited role in Higher education accreditation in 1952 with reauthorization of the GI Bill...
by an agency on the U.S. Department of Education's
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies are eligible to apply for a edu domain. To be eligible, an institution must be located in the U.S., legally organized in the U.S., or recognized by a U.S. state, territorial, or federal agency. University system offices, community college district offices, and other entities within the United States that are organized to manage and govern multiple accredited postsecondary institutions may also register .edu domain names. Each eligible institution is limited to registering one .edu domain name, but institutions may also use names in other top-level domains.
Grandfathered uses
Domains that were already registered in the .edu domain as of October 29, 2001, were grandfatheredGrandfather clause
Grandfather clause is a legal term used to describe a situation in which an old rule continues to apply to some existing situations, while a new rule will apply to all future situations. It is often used as a verb: to grandfather means to grant such an exemption...
into the system. Holders of such domain names can retain their .edu domain names without regard to the current eligibility criteria.
In 2003, Educause undertook an initiative to purge the .edu registry of domain names that were not accurately registered by removing names whose registrants did not respond to requests that they log in to the registry and review their whois
WHOIS
WHOIS is a query and response protocol that is widely used for querying databases that store the registered users or assignees of an Internet resource, such as a domain name, an IP address block, or an autonomous system, but is also used for a wider range of other information. The protocol stores...
entries. Through this effort, Educause expected to eliminate a number of domains that did not appear to qualify for registration in the .edu domain, such as oracle.edu, geraldine.edu, and jedi.edu. Since 2006, Educause has been authorized to implement measures to prevent .edu domain name owners from transferring their domain names to other entities. These measures, together with the imposition of registration fees, were intended to reduce the number of inactive or ineligible .edu domain names.
The U.S. Department of Education notes that some "suspect" or "illegitimate" educational institutions continue to use .edu addresses that were registered before the stringent eligibility criteria were adopted in 2001.