Studies demonstrate that governance is crucial in achieving desirable performance in higher education (HE). Over the last three decades, Ethiopia's HE sector has experienced significant expansion. However, reports from the Ethiopian government, international organizations, and scholars highlight weak performance in this sector. Despite this, there is a limited systematic inquiry into the governance model applied in the HE system. This study addresses this gap by posing the following question: What characterizes the governance model of Ethiopia's contemporary HE system? Data are generated from seven pertinent system-level institutions through in-depth interviews with eight key informants. They are also gathered from relevant system-level documents, such as policies, strategies, laws, etc., and the literature through document analysis. Data are analyzed through a hybrid coding and thematic-based method. We use the historical ideal-type models of HE governance as an analytical tool. The results show that Ethiopia's HE system governance model is predominantly state-centered. Yet, the system depicts certain features of the academic self-rule and market-oriented models, which hints that the country may be moving towards a hybrid model.