By focusing on research in areas important to Massachusetts, the University of Massachusetts helps to fuel the state economy in established and emerging industries alike.
From supporting life sciences in Worcester and fisheries in Dartmouth to exploring brain sciences in Boston, data science in Amherst and robotics in the Merrimack Valley, UMass committed a record $813 million to research in 2022.
While life science is a pivotal part of UMass research and makes up more than half of all of its R&D expenditures, each campus also conducts a wide variety of research aimed at benefiting the regional, state and local industries.
The UMass Amherst Institute for Applied Life Sciences is a $150 million investment in improving human health. The campus’ Center for Data Science has partnered with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative for a project called Computable Knowledge, which aims to create an intelligent and navigable map of scientific knowledge using a branch of artificial intelligence known as knowledge representation and reasoning.
UMass Boston is focused on the needs of the community, from global inclusion and social development to biomedical, health and life sciences, and from STEM research, sustainability and brain science to transnational, community and cultural studies. Researchers are discovering ways to help teachers improve the classroom experience for students with autism, fight climate change, make strides in cutting-edge cancer treatments and provide free pension counseling.
UMass Dartmouth has joined forces with the South Coast Development Partnership to help the region compete in the blue economy. The School for Marine Science & Technology’s seawater lab and the Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship’s prototype development programs both support research into sustainable fisheries management, marine engineering and wind energy.
At the cutting-edge Fabric Discovery Center, researchers are developing high-tech fabrics, flexible electronics and medical textiles. Known as the NERVE Center, the New England Robotics Validation and Experimentation Center improves and tests the development of robots throughout the design cycle. Throughout a series of public health centers, researchers focus on improving population health, reducing manufacturing toxins and protecting worker safety. Through numerous campus initiatives, alternative fuels are continually being explored, including solar, wind and biofuels.
The largest research enterprise of the UMass system focuses on life sciences. Committed to cutting-edge discoveries in basic, behavioral, clinical and translational sciences, UMass Medical School facilities support bioinformatics, deep sequencing, mutagenesis and mass spectrometry. UMass Medical School's research community includes a Nobel laureate, a Lasker Award recipient, two members of the National Academy of Sciences, two members of the Institute of Medicine and five Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators.
