ELEVEN ODU PROGRAMS REACH NSF TOP 100
Old Dominion University attains Top 100 ranking in 11 academic areas, according to the latest research and development (R&D) expenditure data released by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Mohammad A. Karim, the ODU vice president for research, said the university maintained its overall R&D expenditure ranking of 71st among institutions that do not have medical schools.
The fiscal 2006 NSF figures also show no change from a year earlier in ODU's overall position of 166th in total R&D expenditures by public or private institutions.
The university's rankings in federal-source R&D expenditures showed gains in four categories, including a jump of eight places (135th to 127th) in NSF sponsorship. ODU also now ranks 67th in R&D funding from the Department of Defense and 50th from NASA.
"ODU is making significant headway and investments in newer, thematic areas of research such as in energy, the environment, health, modeling and simulation, and transportation," Karim said. "With new talented faculty joining the university each year, we hope to further improve our overall research climate and knowledge base and, in turn, the health and economic conditions of the region."
Karim noted that among Virginia schools, ODU, George Mason University and The College of William and Mary have almost identical fiscal 2006 R&D totals. W&M listed $52 million in total expenditures, $29 million of which was from federal sources. ODU and GMU each listed $50 million in total expenditures, respectively $28 million and $36 million of which were from federal sources.
These figures place W&M at 118th, GMU at 119th and ODU at 120th in the NSF ranking for total R&D expenditures among public institutions. Virginia Tech is 36th, the University of Virginia is 49th and Virginia Commonwealth University is 73rd in the same category.
Elsewhere in Hampton Roads, total expenditures are $33 million for Eastern Virginia Medical School, $29 million for Hampton University and $5.1 million for Norfolk State University.
ODU's Top 100 academic programs in total R&D expenditures include aerospace engineering (19th), electrical engineering (39th), civil engineering (85th), mechanical engineering (85th), engineering (81st), mathematics (86th) and computer science (98th).
In total non-science and non-engineering, the top programs are education (25th), business and management (13th), humanities (30th) and visual and performing arts (13th). Within the broad category of federal R&D expenditures in science and engineering, ODU ranked at 92nd in environmental science.