USF climbs national research rankings, outpaces peers

The latest research rankings reinforce the University of South Florida’s position as an emerging research powerhouse, showing the university growing at a faster rate than most of its peers in higher education. 

According to the National Science Foundation's latest Higher Education Research and Development survey, USF ranks No. 47 among the nation’s 422 reporting public universities and No. 69 out of more than 900 public and private institutions when it comes to research spending — significant jumps over last year’s rankings. 

USF ranks second among Florida’s public institutions, the survey says. 

The university’s research funding reached $522 million in the 2024 fiscal year, which is a $61 million increase over the previous year, the research found. 

More than half of that money came from awards from federal agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Defense and National Science Foundation. USF’s 13% year-over-year growth rate is higher than 90% of its peers in the Association of American universities, according to a release. 

Over the past two years, USF’s research spending has increased by nearly 29%. 

“USF researchers are driving discoveries that advance health, security and resilience for our local communities and beyond,” USF Provost and Executive Vice President Prasant Mohapatra says in the release. "Our continued rise in national research rankings reflects the power of their collaboration and their unwavering commitment to serving the public good.”

Research in Computer and Information Sciences saw the biggest gain in research funding at USF since the 2022 HERD survey, with $25.3 million in research expenditures — many the result of faculty research in the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing. 

In the 2024 fiscal year, the National Science Foundation awarded USF its largest cybersecurity grant to date — a $3.7 million investment that launched the Cybersecurity Research and Education for Service in Government program, called CREST, which prepares students to become cybersecurity professionals working for the federal government. 

USF also saw increases in research spending in Geosciences, Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences, as well as in mathematics and statistics, with both categories climbing multiple spots in the rankings over the previous fiscal year. 

The HERD survey plays a key role in how the Florida Board of Governors evaluates state universities in its Preeminent Research Universities metrics, the release says.