The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education declared the University of Rhode Island a top-tier research institution with an R1 designation on Feb. 13.
The declaration is given based on the amount of money the university attracts from outside sources like federal agencies, according to theCarnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education website.
“Earning R1 designation is a distinction only held by 4.8% of degree-granting postsecondary institutions nationally,” a statement by the university said.
“Oftentimes it [the R1 designation] helps us attract top undergraduates,” Bethany Jenkins, vice president of research and economic development, said. “It really means we’re seen as a hub for research, and it attracts the top talent in the country.”
URI has been trying to receive this designation since Marc Parlange became the president of URI almost four years ago, according to Brenton DeBoef, dean of the graduate school and a professor of chemistry at URI.
“This has been a goal for us for a long time, and it’s kind of like it’s just a validation of who we’ve always been,” DeBoef said.
URI has been steadily increasing in research popularity in the past few years and it’s been a collective effort from every research department, according to Jenkins.
One benefit of having the R1 designation would be the number of doctoral students who will want to fulfill their degree at URI, according to DeBoef.
“Our undergrads have access to world class research laboratories, and so they can work and contribute to these research efforts as well,” DeBoef said. “The undergraduates in my group and other groups have published papers and built strong careers based on the work that they started, you know, in a research lab at URI.”
URI is home to many PhD granting institutions, including biological sciences and oceanography, the latter being the highest enrolled and most prominent at URI, according to the Office of Institutional Research.
Oceanography has 335 students enrolled in graduate programs within those departments and over 2,000 students total, including undergraduates, according to the institutional research office. The engineering program has increased its research output as well, with 216 students enrolled in graduate programs and 1,520 students total, including undergraduates, according to the Office of Institutional Research.
The Graduate School of Oceanography typically uses its research funds to create fisheries in parts of the world outside of URI’s campus, with locations in both the Philippines and Indonesia, according to DeBoef.
Other research developments are coming from the chemistry department where they’re looking at polymers and materials to see if they can be used to make objects, according to DeBoef.
The chemistry department is doing additional research on nanotechnology and forensic chemistry and even bomb technology, all of which were paid by federal research grants awarded to URI, according to DeBoef.
URI has postdoctoral programs in place where researchers can come in on federal grants in order to use URI’s facilities for research, according to DeBoef.
“I like to call URI a best kept secret when it comes to research,” DeBoef said. “But now the secret’s getting out and organizations like the Carnegie Foundation are starting to notice as well and we’re at a really good place.”
For student opinions on URI’s R1 recognition refer to The Good Five Cent Cigar Newscast on Youtube, @goofivecentcigar.
