Explore Illinois Research & Innovation
By The Numbers
$731M
Total Research Expenditures, FY21
3,053
Faculty Members
3M+
Square Footage for Research
150+
Centers, Labs, and Research Institutes
Innovation and Impact
$40M in newly announced NSF awards to advance research in neuron-based computing and expand the capabilities of U.S. supercomputing
A 9% increase in DOE research expenditures (placing us third in the nation in DOE funding). Our NIH support has increased nearly 40% over the last five years.
Partnership in the Taylor Geospatial Institute, a first-of-its-kind center using geospatial science to develop solutions to global challenges.
Ten research institutes that transcend college, school, and departmental boundaries to elevate ideas, drive discovery, and push the limits of our knowledge.
Family Resiliency Center
Family and nutrition research facility featuring a simulated family home and The Autism Program.
Holonyak Micro + Nanotechnology Lab
One of the country’s largest and most sophisticated university facilities for conducting photonics, microelectronics, biotechnology, and nanotechnology research.
Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory
A lab and pilot plant that bridges the gap from basic discovery to commercialization of bioproducts
IGB Core Facilities
Instrumentation for biological microscopy and image analysis, including microscopes, nuclear magnetic resonance, tissue processing, and 3D printing.
Beckman Biomedical Imaging Center
Cutting-edge imaging facility with a newly launched Siemens Terra 7T RI scanner.
Krannert Art Museum
Expansive, permanent collection with over 10,000 works dating from the fourth millennium BCE to the present, representing numerous cultures.
Rare Book and Manuscript Library
One of the largest publicly accessible special collections in the U.S., with over 600K volumes and two miles of manuscripts.
Materials Research Lab
Advanced instrumentation for materials research, including 140+ instruments.
Krannert Center for the Performing Arts
Five unique indoor stages and an outdoor amphitheater that facilitate the realization of innovative artistic projects.
Roy J. Carver Biotechnology Center
Tools and services that support discovery in genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics.
Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Diagnostic medical testing for infectious agents, toxins, and other causes of disease in animal diagnostic samples.
Prairie Research Institute Collections
Premier archaeological, biological, and geological research collections in the U.S., including irreplaceable human artifacts, fossils, geological samples, and biological specimens.
FY20 Technology Management and Commercialization
215 new invention reports
62 active start-up companies*
201 U.S. patent applications
*Including 40 in Illinois!
Inclusive Innovation
Research is about asking questions and seeing things in new ways. Developing new knowledge requires creative, innovative thinking, work made better by a diversity of viewpoints and perspectives. Particularly when it comes to interdisciplinary research, including collaborators of different backgrounds, ethnicities, sexual orientations, physical abilities, generations, or genders isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do.
Illinois has affirmed many times that without diversity, there is no excellence. Simply put, we don’t pursue diversity for diversity’s sake. Rather, we pursue it because we are firmly fixed on achieving excellence in the Illinois research enterprise.
Members of our research community come from every corner of the globe. In the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation and our portfolio units, we firmly believe that we can only be excellent when we fully embrace people with varied perspectives and experiences. We strongly support the programs, services, and activities that ensure such inclusivity.
