WPI 2024 Research Expenditures Reach Record High of $71.6 Million
Worcester Polytechnic Institute spent a record $71.6 million on research and development activities during the 2024 academic year, up 8% over the previous year, as expenditures grew on projects funded by federal agencies and nonprofit organizations.
University researchers also launched 234 multiyear projects in 2024 and received a record $60 million in public and private awards for research activities.
“WPI’s extraordinary faculty, staff, and students are conducting research that tackles some of the world’s most pressing problems, and the awards they have received from government, corporate, and private funders are a testament to their innovative thinking,” said Bogdan Vernescu, WPI vice president and vice provost for research and innovation.
WPI’s research growth follows a decade of investment and work by students, faculty, and staff. The university was recently designated an R1 institution, the top tier of American research colleges and universities, based on its 2023 research spending and doctorate degrees.
Newer data shows that WPI’s expansion of research and development continued in 2024. Information on research expenditures was recently submitted to the National Science Foundation, and WPI published award data in late 2024.
About 83% of all research dollars awarded to WPI during 2024 were provided by the federal government. The Department of Defense sponsored more than $15 million in awards to WPI, followed by the NSF with nearly $14 million in awards, and the Department of Health and Human Services with more than $9 million in awards. Other large federal funders included the Department of Energy and the Department of Education, each with more than $2 million in awards to WPI researchers.
State and local governments sponsored about 10% of the research funds awarded to WPI, and the remaining awards were sponsored by corporate, foundation, and other sponsors.
Among those who received awards were a range of researchers across multiple disciplines.
• Neil Heffernan, the William B. Smith Professor of Computer Science, received a $3.7 million award from the Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences to develop an AI math tutor to help students as they do their homework.
• Sergey Makaroff, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was awarded $3.7 million from the National Institute of Mental Health, which is part of the National Institutes of Health. He leads a multicenter project that is developing a new method for modeling brain activity.
• Rodica Neamtu, professor of teaching in the Department of Computer Science, was awarded $2.5 million from the National Science Foundation to develop strategies and resources to boost the enrollment, retention, and graduation rates of low-income computer science undergraduates.
• Vladimir Vantsevich, professor in the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, was awarded $2 million by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to support the development of a new laboratory for autonomous vehicle simulations.
Successful research led to commercial activities, too. WPI inventors were awarded 21 patents during 2024, the university closed six technology licensing deals, and one new startup company focused on WPI technology was formed, WoundSys LLC. Founded by computer science Professor Emmanuel Agu, WoundSys is developing a smartphone-based technology that nurses could use to assess chronic wounds, incisions, and injuries while treating patients in their homes.
In addition, several clean tech and climate tech companies with ties to WPI faculty and alumni were named to TIME magazine’s list of America’s Top GreenTech Companies of 2024. Among those named to the list and later honored by Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey at a statehouse ceremony were Ascend Elements and AM Batteries, both co-founded by Yan Wang, the William B. Smith Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Ascend Elements focuses on lithium-ion battery recycling, and AM Batteries is pioneering cleaner battery manufacturing.
To set the stage for additional grants in the years ahead, WPI awarded $360,000 in seed funding to more than a dozen research projects. The largest awards went to three photonics projects, each of which were awarded $70,000 from the Gapontsev Family Collaborative Venture Fund for research focused on lasers and laser applications. The President’s Research Catalyst Grants Program also awarded $50,000 each, from research-designated gift funds, to three faculty-led groups that will develop proposals for large research centers focused on making advances in bioengineering, new materials, and mental health.
“Researchers across the university are using these seed grants to set the stage for larger, more expansive research in the future,” Vernescu said. “We expect these projects to result in bigger grants and an expanded research footprint involving faculty members across the campus.”
