NCAA Division III independents are four-year institutions that compete in college athletics at the NCAA’s Division III level, but do so independently of an established athletic conference. These same institutions often compete as members of an intercollegiate athletic conference in some sports. The reason for independent status varies among institutions, but it is frequently because the primary athletic conference to which the institution belongs does not sponsor a particular sport. Independent programs for Division III:

^ - Women's college
† - Nebraska Wesleyan currently holds dual membership with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) but will become a full time member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 2016.
¹ - California-Santa Cruz, Finlandia, and Pine Manor are co-educational colleges, but compete in women's sports in the Great South Athletic Conference (GSAC), while the men's sports will still be competing as Independents.