Publication: UND Today
Author: Joe Banish
Date: February 13, 2025
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Carnegie R1 designation classifies University as an institution supporting ‘very high research activity’
UND has ascended to Carnegie R1 status.
On Thursday, the Carnegie Foundation — the organization that regularly classifies universities into tiers of research activity — informed UND officials that the University has satisfied all requirements for designation as a Carnegie “R1” institution, placing the University into a grouping of the most highly regarded research universities in the nation.
Institutions that are classified as Carnegie R1 have “very high research activity.” This denotes that the institution has annual research expenditures exceeding $50 million and awards at least 70 research doctorates each year. UND exceeds both of these standards significantly.
Thursday’s news is a precursor to an official announcement that will be made in late April, when the Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education publish their 2025 Institutional Classification. This will mark the first time that UND has been included in the classification as a Carnegie R1 institution.
UND joins elite Carnegie R1 class
In receiving the Carnegie R1 designation, UND joins a peer group of 187 universities, according to the Carnegie Foundation’s 2025 report. Included in the R1 category are world-renowned institutions such as Harvard, Yale and Stanford, as well as ones based in the Upper Midwest, such as the universities of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nebraska.
UND President Andy Armacost said this designation is a recognition of a yearslong effort to expand research opportunities across campus in a variety of fields.
“We are thrilled to receive the coveted Carnegie R1 designation,” Armacost said.
“This recognition highlights UND’s exceptional commitment to research and discovery. It serves as a testament to the momentum we have generated through the hard work of so many faculty, students, and staff members and through our exceptional growth in research funding, including that supported by North Dakota’s elected leaders.
“Our world-class scholars at the University of North Dakota are making a difference across so many fields of study, and today’s announcement is a fitting milestone that recognizes their achievements.”
Scott Snyder, vice president of Research & Economic Development, cited UND’s growing research profile, with expenditures of $182 million in fiscal year 2023 — an increase of more than $70 million from the preceding three years — as a major factor in achieving the R1 designation.
“This is a very exciting recognition of the amazing work done by researchers across UND, and it groups UND among the top research universities in the nation,” Snyder said. “The dramatic increase in external funding for research and our impressive doctoral programs account for this recognition. We continue to celebrate all sorts of discovery and the creation of new art, ideas and knowledge across our campus.
“The R1 designation will allow UND to be even more competitive for educational and funding opportunities of all kinds.”
Provost Eric Link added that the Carnegie R1 designation is more than just a feather in the University’s cap — it will spur scholarship that serves the state as a whole.
“Receiving the R1 classification from Carnegie is a testament to the great work going on at the University of North Dakota,” he said.
“As rewarding as the recognition itself is, what it speaks to is not UND’s past, but our future. It underscores UND’s commitment to fostering innovation, addressing critical health and social issues that impact North Dakotans, and driving prosperity for the people and communities across the state and region.”
More from the Author:
Joe Banish is a 2017 graduate of Michigan State University. In 2022, he moved to Grand Forks to cover higher education for the Grand Forks Herald before joining the Division of Marketing & Communications in September 2023 as the strategic communication writer for UND Today.
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