With the accumulated efforts of the University of Utah’s faculty, students and administrators in departments and colleges from all corners of campus, and with decades of building quality researchers and exemplary programs and institutes, the U achieved its most successful research funding year ever in 2018, passing a $500 million milestone. The final total is actually $515 million, and it’s composed of grants large and small, from thousands of dollars to study the structural health of Utah’s rock arches to millions of dollars to discover non-opioid painkillers.
$356 million of the 2018 total was awarded to researchers at University of Utah Health, with $76.7 million from industry. Among the many standouts is the organization’s department of Biochemistry ranked in the top 20 for National Institutes of Health funding and the School of Medicine, ranked in the top 40 in its category. College of Nursing and College of Pharmacy have also earned top 20 standings for NIH funding.
The U’s milestone reflects a storied history of accomplishment in science and research. The very first grant from the NIH, the nation’s largest supporter of biomedical research, was awarded to Maxwell Wintrobe, M.D., at the University of Utah in 1945.
Scholarly metrics across the University, including the number of citations, published books and journal articles, also rose in 2018.
“I think the data speaks to the quality of the U’s remarkable faculty, trainees and staff whose increased scholarly activity has enabled us to achieve such a significant funding milestone,” said Andy Weyrich, Vice President for Research. “The success of the U’s research community is also empowered through the support we receive from the federal and state government, donors and investors who are essential to the U’s growth and drive for research excellence.”
Learn more about research funding at the U in the below infographic:
