January 5, 2018
UW ranks No. 5 nationally for social science research funding
The University of Washington is ranked fifth among more than 400 U.S. colleges and universities for social science research funding, according to a new report.
The Consortium of Social Science Association’s 2018 College and University Rankings for Federal Social and Behavioral Science R&D was released this week. The UW, with $38.6 million in social science funding in fiscal 2016 (the year on which the report was based), has moved up into the top five. Last year, it was seventh.
“This is a very significant recognition of the quality of work by our faculty and their graduate students in the social sciences,” said Gerald Baldasty, UW provost and executive vice president. “Our undergraduates also benefit from the opportunity to participate in this research, as well as from the knowledge the research produces.”
The consortium is a nonprofit organization made up of colleges, universities, research institutes and professional associations that advocates for the social and behavioral sciences.
Among those disciplines, according to the consortium, are law, communication, social work, psychology, political science and anthropology.
At the UW, social science research encompasses a wide range across schools and departments, including studies of people with dementia (by Janelle Taylor, Department of Anthropology), HIV prevention among Native Americans (Cynthia Pearson, School of Social Work), and racial and ethnic disparities in mental disorders (Katie McLaughlin, Department of Psychology).
“UW’s success in generating funding support for social science research reflects our capacity to address a broad range of pressing issues,” said UW political science professor George Lovell, divisional dean of the social sciences. “We are at a historical moment when understanding social interaction and interdependence is especially important. Research and teaching by UW’s social scientists develops and shares knowledge and understanding of markets, government, values, identity and culture.”
In compiling its rankings, COSSA used federal research expenditures reported in the National Center for Science and Education Statistics’ Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey.
Tag(s): Rankings
