Back to Data Tables
Excel icon Download to excel

Table 9. Federally financed higher education R&D expenditures, by federal agency and R&D field: FY 2015

(Dollars in thousands)

Field All federal R&D expenditures DOD DOE HHS NASA NSF USDA Othera
All R&D fields 37,876,879 5,094,978 1,712,658 20,024,751 1,418,699 5,113,701 1,113,764 3,398,328
Science 30,349,236 2,608,628 960,268 19,215,758 925,782 3,601,970 1,047,481 1,989,349
Computer sciences 1,420,628 559,747 51,491 75,315 19,429 579,996 4,466 130,184
Environmental sciences 2,067,030 210,485 111,192 72,321 322,637 736,294 53,006 561,095
Atmospheric sciences 455,561 41,922 24,632 2,617 118,549 99,326 4,342 164,173
Earth sciences 696,323 73,953 52,918 11,397 158,275 269,424 29,146 101,210
Oceanography 648,494 80,843 8,542 10,027 30,842 290,154 2,008 226,078
Environmental sciences, nec 266,652 13,767 25,100 48,280 14,971 77,390 17,510 69,634
Life sciences 21,187,061 1,053,189 164,779 17,571,596 89,270 728,953 893,267 686,007
Agricultural sciences 1,088,905 23,341 48,357 70,094 8,745 110,770 630,679 196,919
Biological sciences 7,107,138 274,127 83,820 5,787,277 39,375 508,440 213,433 200,666
Medical sciences 11,749,252 698,973 16,889 10,685,919 35,248 68,105 28,173 215,945
Life sciences, nec 1,241,766 56,748 15,713 1,028,306 5,902 41,638 20,982 72,477
Mathematical sciences 424,891 91,073 11,700 42,604 3,323 235,898 4,696 35,597
Physical sciences 3,116,233 471,586 592,315 514,103 450,071 973,218 4,985 109,955
Astronomy 403,025 7,165 7,979 375 288,132 88,853 0 10,521
Chemistry 1,095,108 143,995 134,334 442,652 12,343 328,070 3,550 30,164
Physics 1,467,687 292,220 423,079 58,612 123,642 514,677 1,313 54,144
Physical sciences, nec 150,413 28,206 26,923 12,464 25,954 41,618 122 15,126
Psychology 763,177 63,269 161 506,476 19,878 70,905 5,363 97,125
Social sciences 919,673 83,399 8,844 308,035 16,254 143,251 70,722 289,168
Economics 151,226 9,444 2,891 40,935 202 21,889 35,480 40,385
Political science 136,575 17,668 2,867 35,885 381 23,668 3,157 52,949
Sociology 262,396 17,474 1,060 102,889 975 47,753 15,592 76,653
Social sciences, nec 369,476 38,813 2,026 128,326 14,696 49,941 16,493 119,181
Sciences, nec 450,543 75,880 19,786 125,308 4,920 133,455 10,976 80,218
Engineering 6,455,847 2,432,320 742,678 611,892 485,462 1,275,289 52,341 855,865
Aeronautical and astronautical engineering 516,080 259,623 17,413 1,912 159,961 20,432 340 56,399
Bioengineering and biomedical engineering 606,394 110,529 31,924 352,557 5,403 72,863 11,538 21,580
Chemical engineering 462,729 87,665 121,161 75,398 6,612 144,304 5,091 22,498
Civil engineering 570,786 53,667 57,084 16,902 15,381 133,519 8,726 285,507
Electrical engineering 1,772,453 949,232 101,533 52,134 104,081 391,669 738 173,066
Mechanical engineering 957,792 405,499 178,336 45,651 63,704 177,029 1,716 85,857
Metallurgical and materials engineering 496,449 204,707 111,891 20,377 10,710 104,287 1,105 43,372
Engineering, nec 1,073,164 361,398 123,336 46,961 119,610 231,186 23,087 167,586
Non-S&E 1,071,796 54,030 9,712 197,101 7,455 236,442 13,942 553,114
Business and management 69,936 14,693 1,636 4,697 346 14,687 1,580 32,297
Communications, journalism, and library science 42,475 2,882 117 13,928 157 8,675 1,180 15,536
Education 642,799 9,666 2,244 63,349 6,067 159,204 3,967 398,302
Humanities 60,031 4,613 510 8,856 367 18,347 645 26,693
Law 24,444 1,067 649 3,665 6 1,559 73 17,425
Social work 101,927 4,851 36 85,495 204 670 482 10,189
Visual and performing arts 8,609 97 1,179 635 105 2,663 145 3,785
Non-S&E, nec 121,575 16,161 3,341 16,476 203 30,637 5,870 48,887
DOD = Department of Defense; DOE = Department of Energy; HHS = Department of Health and Human Services; NASA = National Aeronautics and Space Administration; nec = not elsewhere classified; NSF = National Science Foundation; S&E = science and engineering; USDA = Department of Agriculture.
a Includes all other agencies reported.
SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Higher Education Research and Development Survey, FY 2015.