UF receives $561 million in research funding for 2007-2008

September 8, 2008

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The University of Florida received $561.6 million in research funding in 2007-2008.

The total for the fiscal year that ended June 30 is slightly less than last year’s record high of $583 million. However, the university saw double-digit increases in research support from industry and foundations.

Win Phillips, UF’s vice president for research, noted that a National Science Foundation report last fall singled out UF for jumping 10 places in the national rankings between 2005 and 2007.

“UF has had one of the fastest-growing research enterprises in the nation over the last decade, in large part because we have added new faculty who have excelled at winning research awards,” Phillips said. “This year, I think we’re seeing the impact of the current economic situation — and our reduction in hiring new faculty — reflected in these numbers.”

While research awards track grants as they are received, research expenditures track the money as it is being spent for research, and UF’s expenditures were an all time high this year, reflecting outstanding faculty performance, Phillips said.

“Thousands of research projects are under way at the university, resulting in new discoveries, new opportunities for learning, and new products,” Phillips said.

Federal funding, which accounts for more than 57 percent of the university’s total, was $322.6 million in 2007-2008, compared with $361 million the previous year. State projects totaled $94 million, down from $103 million in 2006-2007. Conversely, industry funding climbed 18 percent to $57.6 million, while awards from private foundations rose 22 percent to $71.4 million.

“Faculty in fields as diverse as agriculture and medicine continue to write proposals and win grants to conduct the valuable research that advances knowledge on all fronts,” Phillips said. “We see from these numbers that as public money has become more limited, our faculty have refocused on the private sector.”