CHAPEL HILL, N.C., Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Research spending at Carolina has topped $1.55 billion, fueling the state’s economy, powering new discoveries, driving innovation, and creating a better quality of life for people in North Carolina and beyond. This is the eighth year in a row the University’s research activity totaled over $1 billion, and research expenditures increased across all of Carolina’s funding sources.

“This achievement translates to greater impact for our state, from providing tailored health care treatments, to improving our understanding of the environment to building more resilient communities,” says Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “The growth of our research enterprise and the expertise of our faculty means that Carolina will continue solving our most critical challenges.”

These rankings are released each year by the National Science Foundation’s Higher Education and Research Development Survey, which collects information on R&D expenditures by field of study and source of funds. The survey evaluates over 900 institutions and provides the main source of data on R&D expenditures by U.S. higher education institutions.

Here’s a look at some key facts and figures for Carolina:

7th largest public research university9th largest overall research university (up from 12th)$1.55 billion in annual research activity (up from $1.36 billion)34th for industry-sponsored R&D among U.S. private and public institutions (up from 36th)5th for health sciences research (up from 7th)3rd for social sciences research (up from 4th)

Among all ranked universities, 16 of the top 30 were public, a clear indication of the impact that state schools have on the economy, health, and safety of their communities. UNC-Chapel Hill is now the top institution in the state in research activity, exemplifying the University’s values of serving North Carolina with unwavering commitment to being one of the world’s great research institutions. This research activity provides tangible support for students and equips them with life-changing experiences that increase their competitiveness for jobs and enrich North Carolina’s workforce.

“This significant milestone is a testament to the power of Carolina’s research enterprise,” says Vice Chancellor for Research Penny Gordon-Larsen. “We are not only advancing knowledge but also improving lives, driving innovation, and strengthening our economy. Breaking back into the top ten of all U.S. institutions is a testament to the hard work and ingenuity of our faculty, staff, and students.”

A look behind the numbers

Carolina’s excellence in specific research areas propelled its growth in expenditures by $190 million in the latest fiscal year. The following are examples of projects that solve critical challenges to better the health and well-being of people, communities, and environments.

Preventing and curing diseases

Lindsey James explores medicinal chemistry and epigenetics with the goal of making strides in cancer care and treatment. She and her team develop small-molecule tools that could be useful against an array of cancers. James’ translational research bridges the gap between promising early-stage science and the development of products and services that benefit society.

In collaboration with scientists and clinicians, Wubin Bai specializes in combining artificial and biological materials to create next-generation medical devices needed by the health care field, from robots that mimic human skin to a wearable patch for wireless drug delivery to a device that can communicate with 3D cell structures called organoids.

Environment, water, and energy

Jingsong Huang is collaborating with NC State University to boost North Carolina’s energy production and reduce dependence on out-of-state fossil fuels. In his lab, scientists and engineers are focused on making solar cells more affordable, longer lasting, and more effective at converting sunlight to electricity by using a material called perovskite.

In a partnership with the Audubon of North Carolina, researchers from the Carolina Drone Lab use aerial imagery to assess marsh health in the Outer Banks. This past summer, the collaborative research unit within the UNC Institute for the Environment visited four marsh sites along the Currituck Sound as part of a study on the applications of drone technologies for coastal resilience to ensure the safety of Carolina’s coastline.

Brain, behavior, and well-being

In the first university-wide cluster hire program led by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, Carolina will hire up to four researchers to build a new cross-disciplinary team that expands our capacity to develop substance use disorder (SUD) resources. The Catalyst Faculty Cluster Program will recruit a group of researchers with complementary expertise in behavioral science, clinical research, and neuroengineering to create a cutting-edge approach to understanding and treating SUD.

Researchers in the Winston National Center on Technology Use, Brain, and Psychological Development are conducting groundbreaking research that links social media habits to brain changes, while also providing career training and public awareness. The center has created videos, a middle-school curriculum, and other resources for people to learn about how digital media can affect children and adolescents.

Healthy and resilient communities

Jason Surratt, in collaboration with Barbara Turpin, have developed a new method for measuring PFAS in real-time and directly from the air to more effectively monitor and regulate PFAS pollution. This technology can significantly improve public health and environmental protection across our state, especially in areas with industrial sites.

Nabarun Dasgupta — recognized by TIME100 Next for his work responding to the national opioid overdose epidemic — is easing access to naloxone and testing street drugs. He collaborates with community partners and a multidisciplinary team of scientists with backgrounds in health communication, public health, medicine, and chemistry to develop novel approaches to understanding and addressing health problems arising from opioid use.

Shaping the future

Research plays a critical role in the educational experience for Tar Heels. Every Carolina undergraduate student is required to take at least one Research and Discovery course. These courses provide students the opportunity to immerse themselves in a research project, learning new skills as they produce original scholarship or creative work.

There are currently more than 1,000 undergraduate students employed in labs across our campus. One example is Lilly Nekervis. After joining the Interactive Robotics and Novel Technologies Lab, she embarked on a research project to transform the lab’s robot into a guide dog for individuals with visual impairments.

Nekervis and her lab were one of more than 25 projects showcased at the first annual Research & Discovery Fair during the 2024 University Research Week, which more than 600 undergraduates attended. Students saw what research looks like in action, talked to lead investigators, and signed up to participate in labs and studies.

In the 2023-24 academic year, 12 graduate students won Impact Awards honoring discoveries that contribute to a better future for North Carolinians. More than 300 received external funding awards to fuel their research and creative scholarship, like Mark Ciesielski, who is working to restore North Carolina’s oyster communities by exploring the driving factors that may be leading to their demise.

With 32 Carolina faculty named in Clarivate’s 2024 list of highly cited researchers in the world, our faculty continue to demonstrate their significant and broad influence in their fields of study. The significant accomplishments of Carolina’s students and world-class scholars speak to the quality of the University’s research enterprise and academic programs.

Moving forward, Carolina will continue building upon its excellence with a strategic plan to accelerate research growth. The University will leverage its existing strengths and strategically focus on enabling projects that have the greatest potential to drive impact, with a goal of $2 billion in research activity by 2034 to take on the world’s biggest challenges, drive new breakthroughs, and benefit North Carolina and beyond.

UNC-Chapel Hill Media Contact: mediarelations@unc.edu

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SOURCE University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Office of Communications