NCAA Division III independent schools are four-year institutions that compete in

college athletics College athletics encompasses non-professional, collegiate and university-level competitive sports and games. World University Games The first World University Games were held in 1923. There were originally called the ''Union Nationale des ...

at the

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their st ...

level, but do not belong to an established

athletic conference An athletic conference is a collection of sports teams, playing competitively against each other in a sports league. In many cases conferences are subdivided into smaller divisions, with the best teams competing at successively higher levels. Conf ...

for a particular sport. These schools may however still compete as members of an athletic conference in other sports. A school may also be fully independent, and not belong to any athletic conference for any sport at all. The reason for independent status varies among institutions, but it is frequently because the school's primary athletic conference does not sponsor a particular sport.

Full independents

Departing members are highlighted in pink.

Current members

;Notes:

Former members

;Notes:

Football

Departing members are highlighted in pink.

Potential future independent

Lyon College , mottoeng = Perseverance Conquers All, God Willing. , established = , type = Private college , president = Melissa Taverner , city = Batesville , state = Arkansas , country = United States , students = 665 , faculty = 61 , campus = Rural town ...

started a transition from NAIA in 2022–23, and will join the D-III St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 2023 — which does not sponsor football. Lyon already announced that will join the

Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), founded in 1962, is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member institutions are located in Colorado, Louisiana, and Texas. Difficulties related to travel distanc ...

as a football-only affiliate starting in the 2024 season. Consequently, Lyon will probably be a football independent in the 2023 season.

Field hockey

† - Women's college, therefore not competing in men's sports.

Golf

Men

Women

† - Women's college, therefore not competing in men's sports.

Potential future independent

Hartford started a transition from

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...

in 2021–22, and will join the D-III Commonwealth Coast Conference—which sponsors golf only for men—in July 2023.

Full independents

Current members

Former members

Football

Potential future independent

Field hockey

Golf

Men

Women

Potential future independent

Ice hockey

Men

Women

Lacrosse

Men

Rowing

Swimming & diving

Men

Women

Tennis

Men

Track & field (indoor)

Men

Women

Track & field (outdoor)

Men

Volleyball (indoor)

Men

Wrestling

Emerging sports for women

Acrobatics & tumbling

Rugby

Triathlon

See also