It is not about the IRS. It is about the NY college tuition credit. An extract of the it-272 instruction about which college qualifies follows. As you see, there is nothing about EIN in the definition. But the form requests the EIN nevertheless.
An institution of higher education includes any institution of higher education or business, trade, technical, or other occupational school located in or outside of New York State. The institution must be recognized and approved by either the regents of the University of New York or a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association accepted by the regents. In addition, the institution or school must provide a course of study leading to the granting of a post-secondary degree, certificate, or diploma.
Where referenced on the form and in these instructions, the term college or university includes all the above institutions.
