Northwestern U.

Rankings

Data year Earned doctorates Full-time graduate students Total R&D expenditures
Rank Percentile Institutions ranked Rank Percentile Institutions ranked Rank Percentile Institutions ranked Rank Percentile Institutions ranked
2023 33 93.1 459 38 94.6 679 19 97 602 29 97 914
2022 31 93.5 457 39 94.5 680 29 96.9 900
2021 31 93.3 447 38 94.7 691 18 97.1 583 30 96.8 908
2020 33 92.9 450 36 95 698 29 97 916
2019 28 94 447 36 95 697 53 91.2 589 29 97 914
2018 32 92.8 428 48 93.3 700 28 97.1 911
2017 31 93 425 44 93.8 684 59 90 575 29 96.9 898
2016 33 92.6 430 46 93.6 697 29 96.9 896
2015 36 91.8 426 46 93.6 693 58 90.1 570 29 96.9 898
2014 36 91.8 422 45 93.7 688 30 96.8 889
NOTES:
  • 1. See TableBuilder for the prior year data.
  • 2. Blank white cells indicate data not available, not applicable, or institution not eligible for survey.
  • 3. Data from the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities is collected every two years.

Data

Number of earned doctorates, by trend major field of study of recipients: 2023–14
Fields 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
All fields 473 491 428 433 484 432 441 454 424 430
  Science and engineering 378 394 356 361 388 346 355 355 332 352
    Agricultural sciences and natural resources 1 . . . . . . 2 1 .
      Agricultural sciences . . . . . . . . 1 .
      Natural resources and conservation 1 . . . . . . 2 . .
    Biological and biomedical sciences 70 83 59 72 74 69 62 79 64 75
      Biochemistry and biophysics 1 8 2 3 8 2 8 9 5 5
      Biology and biomedical sciences, general 23 25 20 28 15 16 17 18 9 8
      Bioinformatics, biostatistics, and computational biology . 7 2 6 6 4 1 1 2 1
      Cellular and developmental biology, and anatomy 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 1 7 5
      Ecology, evolutionary biology, and epidemiology 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 . 1
      Genetics and genomics 1 1 2 . . 2 2 . 2 .
      Microbiology and immunology 1 12 2 3 3 11 5 9 10 13
      Molecular biology 6 4 5 3 6 2 5 4 8 6
      Neurobiology and neurosciences 28 19 18 24 19 14 18 24 19 23
      Pharmacology and toxicology . 1 . . . . . . . .
      Physiology, pathology, and cancer biology 6 2 1 1 1 6 . 4 2 12
      Biology and biomedical sciences, other 1 . 4 1 12 8 1 8 . 1
    Computer and information sciences 19 14 21 14 14 9 15 8 6 13
      Computer science 18 14 17 13 12 6 14 8 5 13
      Computer and information sciences, other 1 . 4 1 2 3 1 . 1 .
    Engineering 118 114 103 123 120 102 127 103 122 101
      Bioengineering and biomedical engineering 18 22 13 16 12 13 18 14 17 18
      Chemical and petroleum engineering 20 14 6 15 19 15 17 10 15 14
      Civil, environmental, and transportation engineering 9 9 7 7 17 7 7 11 13 7
      Electrical and computer engineering 14 11 11 21 15 5 19 16 14 12
      Industrial engineering and operations research 4 7 9 8 8 9 9 5 9 10
      Materials and mining engineering 37 25 34 33 29 34 37 28 31 23
      Mechanical engineering 14 16 19 20 14 15 13 15 20 14
      Engineering, other 2 10 4 3 6 4 7 4 3 3
    Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 4 6 5 3 5 4 2 5 4 4
      Geological sciences 4 6 5 3 5 3 2 4 4 4
      Ocean, marine, and atmospheric sciences . . . . . 1 . 1 . .
    Health sciences 9 8 8 7 2 4 5 3 2 2
      Public health 2 . 1 2 . . 2 1 . .
      Health sciences, other 7 8 7 5 2 4 3 2 2 2
    Mathematics and statistics 21 16 22 12 19 19 16 15 11 20
      Applied mathematics 5 1 6 3 5 8 1 2 4 6
      Mathematics . . . 1 . 1 4 2 3 7
      Statistics 4 4 4 2 5 2 3 . 3 6
      Mathematics and statistics, other 12 11 12 6 9 8 8 11 1 1
    Physical sciences 56 77 61 53 70 58 56 56 49 61
      Astronomy and astrophysics 8 5 5 7 1 3 5 2 2 6
      Chemistry 41 54 42 38 44 33 33 41 38 44
      Physics 7 18 14 8 25 22 18 13 9 11
    Psychology 20 21 19 24 22 24 22 25 19 22
      Clinical psychology 7 9 9 9 11 9 7 10 2 7
      Counseling and applied psychology 1 . 1 2 1 . 2 2 . .
      Research and experimental psychology 6 3 7 11 7 6 9 8 11 13
      Psychology, other 6 9 2 2 3 9 4 5 6 2
    Social sciences 60 55 58 53 62 57 50 59 54 54
      Anthropology 7 3 6 4 7 3 6 5 4 8
      Economics 22 20 20 20 25 21 14 24 19 19
      Political science and government 12 10 11 15 9 10 11 9 15 14
      Public policy analysis . 1 . . . . 2 1 . 1
      Sociology, demography, and population studies 13 13 9 6 11 18 13 5 9 7
      Social sciences, other 6 8 12 8 10 5 4 15 7 5
  Non-science and engineering 95 97 72 72 96 86 86 99 92 78
    Business 16 22 14 15 23 17 12 17 26 19
      Business 16 22 14 15 23 17 12 17 26 19
    Education 9 15 5 5 6 8 6 6 10 8
      Education leadership and administration 1 2 . . . . . . . .
      Education research 5 12 3 5 5 6 . 2 3 5
      Teacher education and teaching fields 2 1 2 . 1 1 2 2 3 3
      Education, other 1 . . . . 1 4 2 4 .
    Humanities and arts 64 53 41 46 65 56 56 62 38 41
      Letters 6 12 9 16 12 13 9 10 5 9
      Foreign languages and literature 5 4 4 5 4 8 7 4 5 4
      History 14 9 9 5 16 13 8 15 9 10
      Philosophy and religious studies 7 8 5 5 11 3 9 9 9 6
      Music and performing arts 17 11 5 5 10 13 10 12 4 4
      Humanities and arts, other 15 9 9 10 12 6 13 12 6 8
    Other non-science and engineering 6 7 12 6 2 5 12 14 18 10
      Communication 5 6 9 6 2 5 10 14 17 10
      Public administration and social services . . 2 . . . . . . .
      Non-science and engineering, other 1 1 1 . . . 2 . 1 .

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Earned Doctorates

Full-time graduate students in science, engineering, and health, by selected characteristics: 2023–14
All races 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
    Male 2,098 1,954 1,873 1,736 1,830 1,624 1,721 1,743 1,706 1,694
    Female 2,031 1,954 1,928 1,776 1,707 1,196 1,234 1,219 1,152 1,208
  U.S. citizens and permanent residents 2,427 2,427 2,390 2,288 2,197 1,572 1,719 1,567 1,677 1,796
    Hispanic or Latino 330 314 313 272 237 148 169 150 158 161
    Not Hispanic or Latino 2,014 2,024 1,985 1,921 1,859 1,332 1,463 1,334 1,422 1,516
      American Indian or Alaska Native 1 4 6 6 6 4 3 2 3 2
      Asian 411 409 354 324 304 229 254 76 204 227
      Black or African American 178 171 163 166 165 110 110 109 114 121
      Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 0
      White 1,300 1,321 1,357 1,307 1,252 904 1,013 1,070 1,030 1,097
      More than one race 123 118 104 116 130 84 82 76 70 69
    Unknown ethnicity and race 83 89 92 95 101 92 87 83 97 119
  Temporary visa holders 1,702 1,481 1,411 1,224 1,340 1,248 1,236 1,395 1,181 1,106
  Science and engineering 3,976 3,797 3,687 3,342 3,370 2,718 2,827 2,858 2,759 2,764
    Science 2,761 2,636 2,538 2,288 2,228 1,642 1,658 1,805 1,793 1,826
      Agricultural and veterinary sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological and biomedical sciences 732 657 643 554 567 494 538 392 371 425
        Neurobiology and neuroscience 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 122 117 135
      Communication 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 65 51 61
      Computer and information sciences 393 296 263 194 206 168 124 124 141 129
      Family and consumer sciences and human sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 24 23 24 25 29 32 29 27 22 20
      Mathematics and statistics 127 106 82 83 80 90 90 152 140 130
      Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences 76 77 73 78 31 32 29 27 25 15
      Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Physical sciences 403 422 382 396 403 308 312 358 385 357
      Psychology 561 600 609 560 517 115 118 122 124 122
      Social sciences 445 455 462 398 395 403 418 416 417 432
    Engineering 1,215 1,161 1,149 1,054 1,142 1,076 1,169 1,053 966 938
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological, biomedical, and biosystems engineering 177 166 160 152 147 137 164 147 120 132
      Chemical, petroleum, and chemical-related engineering 119 119 116 109 98 101 119 120 117 121
      Civil, environmental, transportation and related engineering fields 115 119 127 22 115 107 121 110 107 117
      Electrical, electronics, communications and computer engineering 221 184 167 168 203 156 184 104 127 123
      Industrial, manufacturing, systems engineering and operations research 88 83 84 65 64 63 58 67 58 51
      Mechanical engineering 145 139 140 229 173 161 163 160 136 131
      Metallurgical, mining, materials and related engineering fields 220 227 247 209 236 232 234 248 237 207
      Other engineering 130 124 108 100 106 119 126 97 64 56
    Health 153 111 114 170 167 102 128 104 99 138
      Clinical medicine 102 61 63 93 95 36 71 55 46 94
      Other health 51 50 51 77 72 66 57 49 53 44

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Fields of study are grouped as they appear in survey data table (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/#tabs-2).

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Part-time graduate students in science, engineering, and health, by selected characteristics: 2023–14
All races 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
    Male 176 161 143 185 154 114 115 131 118 163
    Female 478 411 404 404 275 99 62 114 117 104
  U.S. citizens and permanent residents 576 482 521 502 358 107 69 136 147 180
    Hispanic or Latino 86 60 58 60 36 9 5 12 11 4
    Not Hispanic or Latino 473 404 446 424 313 95 61 121 133 155
      American Indian or Alaska Native 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
      Asian 76 65 67 54 40 27 20 6 30 44
      Black or African American 47 42 60 66 48 7 3 4 5 6
      Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
      White 320 272 295 287 217 60 36 108 98 105
      More than one race 29 24 23 15 8 1 2 2 0 0
    Unknown ethnicity and race 17 18 17 18 9 3 3 3 3 21
  Temporary visa holders 78 90 26 87 71 106 108 109 88 87
  Science and engineering 573 488 463 507 368 160 126 156 148 198
    Science 488 385 384 369 254 21 25 63 55 145
      Agricultural and veterinary sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological and biomedical sciences 7 0 3 2 3 6 5 3 2 4
        Neurobiology and neuroscience 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
      Communication 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
      Computer and information sciences 42 33 11 18 16 13 19 42 48 42
      Family and consumer sciences and human sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
      Mathematics and statistics 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 7 2 0
      Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Physical sciences 12 1 5 2 0 0 1 3 0 0
      Psychology 424 346 363 341 234 1 0 0 1 1
      Social sciences 3 3 1 5 1 1 0 6 2 97
    Engineering 85 103 79 138 114 139 101 93 93 53
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological, biomedical, and biosystems engineering 2 2 4 2 3 2 1 2 0 3
      Chemical, petroleum, and chemical-related engineering 1 1 4 2 3 4 3 1 0 1
      Civil, environmental, transportation and related engineering fields 4 5 6 11 8 15 18 14 13 5
      Electrical, electronics, communications and computer engineering 25 19 5 27 14 37 52 0 0 25
      Industrial, manufacturing, systems engineering and operations research 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 63 60 0
      Mechanical engineering 6 12 5 19 7 2 12 7 10 7
      Metallurgical, mining, materials and related engineering fields 12 30 5 13 14 16 8 6 10 6
      Other engineering 35 33 50 64 64 63 7 0 0 6
    Health 81 84 84 82 61 53 51 89 87 69
      Clinical medicine 66 74 67 64 45 42 40 61 66 69
      Other health 15 10 17 18 16 11 11 28 21 0

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Fields of study are grouped as they appear in survey data table (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/#tabs-2).

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Full-time graduate students in science, engineering, and health receiving primary support from federal sources, by field: 2023–14
Field 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013
All surveyed fields 683 650 650 716 668 585 643 613 635 653 0
  Science and engineering 680 649 649 708 658 570 629 602 624 644 0
    Science 392 408 400 417 404 347 378 404 404 430 0
      Agricultural and veterinary sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological and biomedical sciences 204 213 207 191 192 163 195 132 105 130 0
        Neurobiology and neuroscience 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 62 45 55 0
      Communication 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0
      Computer and information sciences 32 25 25 26 19 17 13 15 15 21 0
      Family and consumer sciences and human sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 8 5 4 7 8 8 4 7 8 8 0
      Mathematics and statistics 1 2 4 2 3 3 5 17 22 16 0
      Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences 21 21 12 15 6 7 4 4 4 4 0
      Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Physical sciences 110 125 132 158 145 121 121 129 158 146 0
      Psychology 8 6 9 7 15 17 21 25 24 19 0
      Social sciences 8 11 7 11 16 11 15 13 20 28 0
    Engineering 288 241 249 291 254 223 251 198 220 214 0
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological, biomedical, and biosystems engineering 44 37 43 53 41 30 34 33 23 29 0
      Chemical, petroleum, and chemical-related engineering 41 30 28 33 34 31 29 31 28 30 0
      Civil, environmental, transportation and related engineering fields 26 16 18 0 14 9 11 8 11 8 0
      Electrical, electronics, communications and computer engineering 34 22 18 20 16 21 15 9 18 24 0
      Industrial, manufacturing, systems engineering and operations research 8 12 14 7 16 6 7 7 9 6 0
      Mechanical engineering 34 27 23 60 42 37 33 23 34 28 0
      Metallurgical, mining, materials and related engineering fields 70 70 75 93 72 69 82 78 89 83 0
      Other engineering 31 27 30 25 19 20 40 9 8 6 0
    Health 3 1 1 8 10 15 14 11 11 9 0
      Clinical medicine 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0
      Other health 3 1 1 8 10 15 13 10 11 8 0

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Fields of study are grouped as they appear in survey data table (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/#tabs-2).

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Full-time graduate students in science, engineering, and health, by type and primary source of support: 2023–14
2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
All types and sources of support 4,129 3,908 3,801 3,512 3,537 2,820 2,955 2,962 2,858 2,902
  Fellowships 1,595 1,282 992 560 707 692 1,013 1,044 1,043 1,051
    Federal 230 201 73 43 86 102 273 238 238 222
    Institutional 1,285 1,041 784 405 502 497 636 703 681 727
    Nonfederal 80 40 135 112 119 93 104 103 124 102
  Research assistantships 860 897 1,059 926 942 893 692 662 630 714
    Federal 453 449 577 673 582 483 370 375 388 411
    Institutional 350 394 420 150 281 315 248 233 179 238
    Nonfederal 57 54 62 103 79 95 74 54 63 65
  Teaching assistantships 341 441 382 365 368 358 440 456 441 375
    Federal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Institutional 341 438 382 365 368 358 440 456 441 375
    Nonfederal 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
  Other types of support 1,333 1,288 1,368 1,661 1,520 877 810 800 744 762
    Federal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 20
    Institutional 0 53 100 569 330 237 422 334 74 70
    Nonfederal 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 1
    Personal resources 1,333 1,233 1,266 1,092 1,190 640 388 466 659 671

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Postdoctorates in science, engineering, and health, by selected characteristics: 2023–14
All races 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
  Science and engineering 1,368 1,385 1,315 1,289 1,323 633 678 599 566 530
    Science 1,097 1,126 973 961 1,012 462 508 451 426 403
      Agricultural and veterinary sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological and biomedical sciences 392 416 366 374 389 185 210 194 179 160
        Neurobiology and neuroscience 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Communication 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 3
      Computer and information sciences 20 18 26 14 17 1 1 0 0 0
      Family and consumer sciences and human sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 8 4 0 2 0 2 4 1 2 2
      Mathematics and statistics 42 48 41 43 47 9 7 5 2 3
      Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences 165 158 87 42 111 51 63 44 42 43
      Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 14 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Physical sciences 376 385 357 369 360 175 184 175 167 164
      Psychology 40 34 32 42 30 13 15 11 15 14
      Social sciences 54 63 64 61 58 26 24 19 17 14
    Engineering 271 259 342 328 311 171 170 148 140 127
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological, biomedical, and biosystems engineering 49 37 123 98 36 22 29 25 30 27
      Chemical, petroleum, and chemical-related engineering 48 70 80 76 54 28 25 22 17 29
      Civil, environmental, transportation and related engineering fields 40 32 24 22 32 13 13 13 16 14
      Electrical, electronics, communications and computer engineering 12 16 16 22 25 20 18 16 19 8
      Industrial, manufacturing, systems engineering and operations research 2 2 6 12 14 4 2 4 5 4
      Mechanical engineering 42 24 18 13 16 12 17 16 12 14
      Metallurgical, mining, materials and related engineering fields 66 62 57 73 90 48 51 52 41 31
      Other engineering 12 16 18 12 44 24 15 0 0 0
    Health 582 533 536 581 556 287 311 214 180 178
      Clinical medicine 493 459 449 498 458 246 271 186 152 150
      Other health 89 74 87 83 98 41 40 28 28 28

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Fields of study are grouped as they appear in survey data table (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/#tabs-2).

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Federally supported science, engineering, and health postdoctorates, by field: 2023–14
Field 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
All surveyed fields 517 580 588 539 532 533 591 534 478 450
  Science and engineering 364 419 419 378 374 364 393 401 376 348
    Science 277 327 303 276 291 276 302 305 279 270
      Agricultural and veterinary sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological and biomedical sciences 135 146 142 141 141 135 144 139 121 115
        Neurobiology and neuroscience 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Communication 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 1
      Computer and information sciences 4 2 5 2 2 1 1 0 0 0
      Family and consumer sciences and human sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0
      Mathematics and statistics 5 5 7 4 10 6 5 3 2 2
      Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences 27 44 22 8 20 17 15 20 32 34
      Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Physical sciences 89 106 100 92 99 98 116 123 104 100
      Psychology 11 13 13 13 7 8 10 8 9 9
      Social sciences 6 10 14 13 12 10 11 9 9 9
    Engineering 87 92 116 102 83 88 91 96 97 78
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Biological, biomedical, and biosystems engineering 17 12 45 33 11 14 20 20 19 16
      Chemical, petroleum, and chemical-related engineering 16 28 25 24 17 14 15 11 14 15
      Civil, environmental, transportation and related engineering fields 11 9 6 3 2 5 4 7 8 7
      Electrical, electronics, communications and computer engineering 5 5 5 6 9 8 11 13 17 5
      Industrial, manufacturing, systems engineering and operations research 0 1 1 2 3 2 1 1 2 2
      Mechanical engineering 14 10 5 7 2 6 11 13 8 10
      Metallurgical, mining, materials and related engineering fields 22 21 22 23 27 29 26 31 29 23
      Other engineering 2 6 7 4 12 10 3 0 0 0
    Health 153 161 169 161 158 169 198 133 102 102
      Clinical medicine 135 143 151 144 138 146 178 115 84 81
      Other health 18 18 18 17 20 23 20 18 18 21

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Fields of study are grouped as they appear in survey data table (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/#tabs-2).

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Total R&D expenditures, by field: 2023–14
(Dollars in thousands)
Field 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
  All R&D fields 1,114,269 1,000,695 913,178 874,671 857,069 805,672 751,809 713,491 656,167 645,333
    Science 981,193 880,452 807,366 770,529 747,194 694,796 639,540 600,524 549,644 534,429
      Computer and information sciences 13,831 10,117 8,957 8,441 3,035 2,512 2,530 2,197 40 0
      Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences 1,795 1,443 1,342 1,351 1,547 1,627 1,821 1,655 1,924 1,990
        Atmospheric science and meteorology 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Geological and earth sciences 1,795 1,443 1,342 1,351 1,547 1,627 1,821 1,655 1,924 1,990
        Ocean sciences and marine sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences nec 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Life sciences 816,739 721,230 659,195 619,270 604,875 555,160 515,893 481,869 451,943 436,439
        Agricultural sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Biological and biomedical sciences 205,479 189,086 166,594 153,629 141,523 128,409 130,422 122,935 100,231 95,577
        Health sciences 596,679 514,642 474,272 451,059 446,421 406,467 370,779 346,275 327,972 320,206
        Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 2,242 2,868 1,823 1,234 0 0
        Life sciences nec 14,581 17,502 18,329 14,582 14,689 17,416 12,869 11,425 23,740 20,656
      Mathematics and statistics 2,311 2,215 1,490 2,275 2,461 2,869 2,461 2,293 2,228 2,096
      Physical sciences 97,816 90,194 83,618 78,168 82,072 82,409 71,743 67,071 43,551 42,499
        Astronomy and astrophysics 7,498 6,681 6,676 6,604 5,274 4,566 3,438 2,564 0 0
        Chemistry 42,247 40,697 36,484 35,130 40,651 39,150 38,954 39,855 34,334 33,303
        Materials science 19,933 18,052 16,535 16,418 13,853 18,211 15,094 12,620 0 0
        Physics 22,886 19,886 19,296 15,418 17,918 18,337 12,441 10,125 7,521 6,978
        Physical sciences nec 5,252 4,878 4,627 4,598 4,376 2,145 1,816 1,907 1,696 2,218
      Psychology 3,316 4,231 3,352 3,706 4,157 3,923 4,177 4,667 3,602 4,264
      Social sciences 23,363 24,515 21,988 18,762 16,211 15,007 16,447 16,924 19,787 18,806
        Anthropology 1,577 951 553 1,106 963 822 842 820 0 0
        Economics 8,318 8,819 6,455 3,721 1,556 1,819 1,548 2,015 1,797 1,563
        Political science and government 834 641 584 758 801 918 847 502 14,427 14,311
        Sociology, demography, and population studies 493 275 249 443 523 607 688 551 1,842 1,731
        Social sciences nec 12,141 13,829 14,147 12,734 12,368 10,841 12,522 13,036 1,721 1,201
      Sciences nec 22,022 26,507 27,424 38,556 32,836 31,289 24,468 23,848 26,569 28,335
    Engineering 93,785 88,008 80,735 77,150 80,413 81,662 84,520 84,243 77,676 87,075
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Bioengineering and biomedical engineering 20,128 17,376 14,826 14,678 11,844 15,052 14,133 12,628 12,994 12,703
      Chemical engineering 12,688 13,889 15,296 14,434 15,264 10,304 9,541 7,077 8,924 13,746
      Civil engineering 7,457 6,071 4,883 5,619 4,211 5,536 5,034 5,247 4,459 3,635
      Electrical, electronic, and communications engineering 8,452 8,475 8,204 7,501 12,630 12,339 11,654 12,742 7,213 6,866
      Industrial and manufacturing engineering 3,127 4,615 3,995 3,948 3,530 3,380 3,347 2,983 0 0
      Mechanical engineering 8,038 7,448 6,274 6,525 6,845 7,181 9,458 10,923 9,463 8,866
      Metallurgical and materials engineering 18,076 16,229 16,709 15,415 16,820 17,293 21,207 17,752 18,397 21,738
      Engineering nec 15,819 13,905 10,548 9,030 9,269 10,577 10,146 14,891 16,226 19,521
    Non-S&E 39,291 32,235 25,077 26,992 29,462 29,214 27,749 28,724 28,847 23,829
      Business management and business administration 15,511 15,461 10,181 11,847 11,085 8,845 5,791 6,115 8,415 6,501
      Communication and communications technologies 3,353 3,090 3,019 3,298 3,575 4,673 5,574 7,195 6,677 4,787
      Education 12,464 8,171 7,353 6,237 8,202 9,087 10,078 9,650 7,363 6,334
      Humanities 4,761 3,470 2,970 3,986 4,475 4,172 3,673 3,166 1,776 1,442
      Law 1,509 1,216 1,108 993 1,260 1,300 1,317 1,492 1,486 1,847
      Social work 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Visual and performing arts 1,693 827 446 631 865 1,135 1,098 1,104 969 848
      Non-S&E nec 0 0 0 0 0 2 218 2 2,161 2,070

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Prior to FY 2016, expenditures for natural resources and conservation, materials science, anthropology, and industrial and manufacturing engineering were not collected separately. R&D expenditures in agricultural sciences decreased in FY 2016 because a number of disciplines previously reported in that field are now reported separately under natural resources and conservation.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Higher Education R&D Survey

Total R&D expenditures, by source of funds and R&D field: 2023
(Dollars in thousands)
Field All R&D expenditures Federal government State and local government Institution funds Business Nonprofit organizations All other sources
  All R&D fields 1,114,269 678,062 586 303,778 67,114 58,196 6,533
    Science 981,193 615,914 586 247,634 61,862 50,194 5,003
      Computer and information sciences 13,831 7,891 0 3,375 2,537 0 28
      Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences 1,795 929 0 682 0 151 33
        Atmospheric science and meteorology 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Geological and earth sciences 1,795 929 0 682 0 151 33
        Ocean sciences and marine sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences nec 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Life sciences 816,739 526,737 569 188,775 55,084 41,637 3,937
        Agricultural sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Biological and biomedical sciences 205,479 139,214 0 45,682 4,709 15,156 718
        Health sciences 596,679 380,372 569 137,474 50,051 24,994 3,219
        Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
        Life sciences nec 14,581 7,151 0 5,619 324 1,487 0
      Mathematics and statistics 2,311 1,310 0 839 0 162 0
      Physical sciences 97,816 53,306 0 36,035 2,425 5,543 507
        Astronomy and astrophysics 7,498 2,037 0 4,751 0 710 0
        Chemistry 42,247 23,314 0 15,726 2,034 1,156 17
        Materials science 19,933 15,370 0 4,248 65 250 0
        Physics 22,886 10,597 0 8,368 4 3,427 490
        Physical sciences nec 5,252 1,988 0 2,942 322 0 0
      Psychology 3,316 1,817 0 1,426 0 36 37
      Social sciences 23,363 11,247 0 9,169 117 2,379 451
        Anthropology 1,577 383 0 928 49 205 12
        Economics 8,318 5,247 0 2,836 0 32 203
        Political science and government 834 186 0 576 1 71 0
        Sociology, demography, and population studies 493 0 0 483 0 10 0
        Social sciences nec 12,141 5,431 0 4,346 67 2,061 236
      Sciences nec 22,022 12,677 17 7,333 1,699 286 10
    Engineering 93,785 57,708 0 27,653 5,008 2,910 506
      Aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Bioengineering and biomedical engineering 20,128 14,520 0 4,655 49 692 212
      Chemical engineering 12,688 7,677 0 2,963 1,745 217 86
      Civil engineering 7,457 5,126 0 1,777 417 137 0
      Electrical, electronic, and communications engineering 8,452 6,005 0 1,475 633 310 29
      Industrial and manufacturing engineering 3,127 1,977 0 908 242 0 0
      Mechanical engineering 8,038 5,481 0 1,735 770 26 26
      Metallurgical and materials engineering 18,076 12,508 0 4,710 670 112 76
      Engineering nec 15,819 4,414 0 9,430 482 1,416 77
    Non-S&E 39,291 4,440 0 28,491 244 5,092 1,024
      Business management and business administration 15,511 1,160 0 13,857 0 307 187
      Communication and communications technologies 3,353 984 0 1,795 17 545 12
      Education 12,464 1,902 0 6,020 0 3,721 821
      Humanities 4,761 177 0 4,462 37 81 4
      Law 1,509 217 0 870 190 232 0
      Social work 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      Visual and performing arts 1,693 0 0 1,487 0 206 0
      Non-S&E nec 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Prior to FY 2016, expenditures for natural resources and conservation, materials science, anthropology, and industrial and manufacturing engineering were not collected separately. R&D expenditures in agricultural sciences decreased in FY 2016 because a number of disciplines previously reported in that field are now reported separately under natural resources and conservation.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Higher Education R&D Survey

Federally funded R&D expenditures, by federal agency: 2023–14
(Dollars in thousands)
Source of funds 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Federal Agencies 678,062 618,771 572,975 531,654 502,300 469,525 446,609 432,413 393,186 391,946
  DOD 51,407 50,435 45,744 43,595 43,448 42,721 37,140 38,566 35,124 36,909
  DOE 33,607 30,065 28,064 22,672 21,580 20,189 21,968 21,294 21,359 26,987
  HHS 521,988 467,367 432,853 402,269 374,302 344,380 324,778 305,371 280,136 271,475
  NASA 4,253 3,872 3,213 3,457 3,961 5,555 3,625 3,440 1,818 2,350
  NSF 56,367 57,278 53,359 49,659 48,728 42,916 45,192 48,927 45,979 45,011
  USDA 318 411 307 448 137 233 35 37 8 113
  Other 10,122 9,343 9,435 9,554 10,144 13,531 13,871 14,778 8,762 9,101

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Higher Education R&D Survey

Headcount of R&D personnel: 2023–17 [temporarily discontinued]
Year
2023 . . . .
2022 . . . .
2021 . . . .
2020 . . . .
2019 10,096 1,337 8,759 .
2018 9,603 1,293 8,310 .
2017 9,333 1,263 8,070 .

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Higher Education R&D Survey

Science and engineering research space in academic institutions, by field: 2023–14
(Net assignable square feet in thousands)
Field, medical school space, and research animal space 2023 2021 2019 2017 2015
  All research space 2,479 2,471 1,173 1,085 1,003
    Agricultural sciences 0 0 0 0 0
    Biological and biomedical sciences 403 397 210 265 249
    Computer and information sciences 19 18 6 0 0
    Engineering 385 366 166 187 166
    Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences 24 24 8 7 9
    Health sciences 877 892 448 445 399
    Mathematics and statistics 22 22 4 4 4
    Natural resources and conservation 9 7 3 4 1
    Physical sciences 277 271 134 137 140
    Psychology 43 43 12 13 14
    Social sciences 153 168 19 11 12
    Other 268 263 163 12 10

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Data from the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities is collected every two years.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities

New construction of science and engineering research space, by field and time of construction: 2025–16
(Net assignable square feet in thousands)
Field, medical school space, and research animal space Planned to start in FY 2024 or FY 2025 Started in FY 2022 or FY 2023 Started in FY 2020 or FY 2021 Started in FY 2018 or FY 2019 Started in FY 2016 or FY 2017
  All research space . . . 18,726 335,981 0
    Biological and biomedical sciences . . . . 98,542 0
    Engineering . . . 18,726 70,333 0
    Health sciences . . . . 101,944 0
    Physical sciences . . . . 27,968 0
    Other . . . . 37,194 0

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Data from the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities is collected every two years.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities

Costs for repair and renovation of science and engineering research space in academic institutions, by field and time of repair and renovation: 2025–16
(Dollars in thousands)
Field, medical school space, and research animal space Planned to start in FY 2024 or FY 2025 Started in FY 2022 or FY 2023 Started in FY 2020 or FY 2021 Started in FY 2018 or FY 2019 Started in FY 2016 or FY 2017
  All research space 189,209 138,290 75,693 59,124 86,532
    Agricultural sciences 0 0 0 0 0
    Biological and biomedical sciences 119,105 21,671 16,135 2,347 7,459
    Computer and information sciences 1,336 11,923 0 13,200 0
    Engineering 21,249 18,913 12,970 9,003 19,216
    Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences 0 0 0 0 0
    Health sciences 13,834 26,357 28,675 13,727 8,583
    Mathematics and statistics 0 0 0 0 0
    Natural resources and conservation 0 0 0 0 0
    Physical sciences 10,893 29,440 3,124 11,303 8,931
    Psychology 250 0 0 0 281
    Social sciences 21,916 1,098 1,821 387 0
    Other 627 28,888 12,969 9,157 42,061

NOTE:
  • . = data were not collected at this level or institution was not eligible to participate for this survey year.
  • Data from the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities is collected every two years.

SOURCE: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities

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