FIU among the nation’s top research universities

“FIU has retained its status as a top research university because of the dedication and commitment of our hard-working faculty and researchers,” said FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg. “Over the past several years, they have continued to move the needle and taken our efforts to the next level. They are committed to leveraging our talents to constantly innovate and move our community and world forward.”

FIU has been recognized as an institution with “highest research activity,” or R1 category, since 2015. This classification represents the highest level of research activity for doctorate-granting universities in the U.S. In the new Carnegie review, less than 3 percent of universities, from a total of 4,665 were classified as R1.

The criteria used to determine the Carnegie classification include the number of doctoral degrees awarded, total research expenditures and the research productivity of our faculty. FIU has continued to expand in all key indicator areas, specifically focusing on:

• Research & development expenditures in science and engineering, as well as non-science and engineering fields
• Science and engineering research staff producing research
• Research doctoral conferrals in humanities, social science, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), and in other fields

The university’s emphasis on research and innovation has brought success in areas such as patent production, with eight patents earned in 2014-15 to 60 patents in 2016-17, a 650 percent increase. The university also was awarded over 60 patents in 2018 and is ranked 26^th  among public universities in the nation for patent production.. In addition, FIU had $177 million in research expenditures in the 2016-2017 fiscal year. The institution has also introduced a cluster hire strategy that has brought or consolidated numerous research teams in areas such as child mental health, hurricane mitigation and research aimed at addressing environmental challenges.

“Maintaining R1 status and expansion in key indicators is a culmination of our efforts to focus on attaining BOG research preeminence,” said Provost Kenneth G. Furton. “I am grateful to the faculty and students who contributed to securing our position on this very prestigious list.”

Among the Public Universities classified R1, FIU ranks among the top 10 in total degrees conferred,  #74 in total research doctorates conferred, #41 in Social Science doctorate degrees conferred, #71in total research, #71 in the number of tenure and tenure track faculty, and #59 in postdocs and research staff with doctorates.