According to a report from the National Science Foundation published this month, in FY24 (ending September 30, 2024), overall R&D spending (science and engineering and non-science and engineering) by US higher education institutions grew 8.1% to $117,719 million. The federal government was the leading source of spending. But spending growth was the fastest for state and local government, and the institutions themselves, rising 11.6% and 9.1%, respectively. Comparatively, spending by the federal government and all other sources rose 8.4% and 5.6% and grew only 2.1% for business.

Higher Education R&D Expenditures by Source of Funds, FY24

Basic research accounted for more than half of FY24 higher education R&D expenditures, at 63%, compared to applied research and experimental development at 27% and 10%, respectively. The percentages were largely the same for both federal and non-federal spending.

In the case of the life sciences, total R&D expenditures for higher education gained 7.4% to $66,821 million, with agricultural sciences showing the fastest increase. By share among life science fields, health sciences led all categories by far, accounting for 57%. Biological and biomedical sciences was second at 31%. Agricultural sciences represented 7%, while natural resources and conservation accounted for just 2% and other life sciences made up 3%.

Also, for life sciences, the federal government represented 55% of spending, while higher education institutions represented 24%. With much smaller shares, business, nonprofits, state and local government, and all other expenditures accounted for 6%, 6%, 5% and 3%, respectively. In all life science fields, the federal government was the leading spender.

For all US higher education institutions, Johns Hopkins spent the most on R&D, $4,129 million, in FY24, an 8.6% increase. It was also the institution that received the highest amount of federal R&D expenditures at $3,618 million. The institution receiving the greatest amount from nonprofits for R&D was the University of Washington in Seattle at $229 million. The U. Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center received the most business funding for R&D at $263.0 million. The most state and local government funding for higher education R&D also went to U. Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, at $325.7 million. As for the institution whose own institutional funding accounted for the highest share of its FY24 R&D funding, it was the University of Pennsylvania at $782 million.

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