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Research

  • $826M In annual research spending
  • #1 public university in New England
  • $41M generated in licensing income in FY22

Groundbreaking Research

At the լ, our internationally renowned faculty members are a driving force for revolutionary research, development and discovery. With some of the brightest minds in the world, the university’s faculty includes Nobel Laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners, members of the National Academy of Sciences, an American Book Award winner and Fulbright, Guggenheim, MacArthur and Mellon fellows.

The լ conducts more than $826 million in research across the campuses every year, making it the third-largest research university in Massachusetts, and the fourth-largest in all of New England, behind only Harvard, MIT and Yale. Our faculty, researchers and students are making world-changing discoveries across a variety of fields, especially those critical to Massachusetts, like the life sciences, data science, climate science, and advanced manufacturing, among many others.

UMass Research Video

The Impact of Discovery

As the state’s public research university, UMass provides critical research and development support to the Massachusetts economy and partners in business, government and academia. Through its distinguished research programs, and the campuses’ respective focus on their regions, UMass is anchoring significant economic development in all corners of the state.

Whether it is anchoring a life sciences cluster in Worcester, or working to ensure the long-term sustainability of the scallop industry in New Bedford, UMass is firmly committed to serving the needs of the Massachusetts economy through its research and engagement programs.

In addition to supporting the state’s economy, much of the research at UMass has the potential to be commercialized, often leading to spin-off companies and new products.

UMass has more than 90 core research facilities across the state of Massachusetts that are available to researchers from government, academia and industry on a fee-for-service basis. These shared resources offer a wide range of services to the research community, including cutting-edge technologies, high-end instrumentation, as well as technical support for basic, translational and clinical research.

Our research expands the boundaries of human understanding and helps to drive the Commonwealth’s innovation economy. We want to continue to build on that research and help make sure that prosperity flows more evenly and is distributed across the state.” Marty Meehan President, լ

Leading Minds

Across all UMass campuses, the university is home to a distinguished and diverse faculty dedicated to groundbreaking research across disciplines, in fields like medicine, economics, robotics, data science, climate science, advanced manufacturing and marine science.

UMass faculty are recognized as some of the world's top scientific minds. UMass had 19 faculty members on Clarivate Analytics’ 2023 list of “Highly Cited Researchers”, an analysis of the top 1% of researchers around the world.

Research and Teaching

At the լ, research, teaching and service complement one another. An active faculty research agenda informs and stimulates teaching, bringing the most up-to-date information and the newest insights directly to the classroom. Wide-ranging faculty research and professional activity bring exciting educational and professional opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students alike.

Research collaborations with industry provide opportunities for internships for students that often prove excellent stepping-stones to attractive employment upon graduation. Working with faculty on research projects can prepare students with the unique perspective and critical skills needed to solve tomorrow’s challenges.

Research - Core Facilities

Core Facilities Voucher Program

For small and medium-sized businesses, a new state voucher program provides access to world-leading research facilities at UMass campuses at significantly discounted rates. The voucher program is designed to accelerate business development for start-ups and small- and medium-sized companies.

World-Changing Discoveries

Throughout its history, UMass faculty have been responsible for remarkable advancements in scientific knowledge.

  • UMass Chan Medical School professor Craig C. Mello and his colleague Andrew Fire were co-recipients of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries related to RNA interference.

  •  In 2020, began serving policymakers and scientists at the CDC and the White House with the most accurate coronavirus forecasts in the nation.  

  • was awarded a 2023 NSF CAREER grant to advance his work developing algorithms that allow robots to learn from humans. 

Growing Research & Development Enterprises

UMass generates more than $826 million in annual research, 16 percent of all research conducted in Massachusetts.

Find a UMass Program

The լ has hundreds of degree programs at four world-class undergraduate/graduate campuses across the state and top-tier medical and law schools.

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Use our Campus Finder tool to learn about the characteristics that make the four undergraduate/graduate campuses exciting and unique places to learn.