Research
Boldly innovating to impact society and transform the world.
Northeastern University has achieved the prestigious recognition as a top-tier R1 institution for research activity among U.S. colleges and universities by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Our tradition of partnership and engagement guides a use-inspired and interdisciplinary research enterprise that is strategically aligned with three global imperatives: health, security, and sustainability. Our annual Annual Report highlights pioneering research and achievements over the past year.
The College of Engineering has over 240 tenured/tenure-track faculty, each bringing complementary areas of research expertise to address pressing global challenges. Their state-of-art-research looks at critical issues in materials, processes, systems, infrastructure, hardware and software at every scale—nano to macro to global—grounded in a translational approach that integrates the values of fundamental and applied research.
Our faculty boldly innovate by collaborating across engineering disciplines and the university, as well as with government, academia, and industry. The College of Engineering has more than 20 multidisciplinary research centers and institutes with funding from eight federal agencies. Our commitment to conducting transformative research to better the world can be seen by our growth in external research funding, which exceeds $100 million annually, and by an investment in research facilities such as our 223,000 square foot, six-story Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex and 367,000 square foot, eight-story EXP facility for teaching and research.
Research At-A-Glance
External Research Funding (FY2024)
Research Centers and Institutes
Young Investigator Awards (as of Aug. 2024)
Patents 2018-Aug. 2024
Related Resources
Understand how Northeastern partners with industry for research and workforce development
View the faculty directory for more information on individual researchers.
Recent News
Zhao’s Research Featured on Cover of Nanoscale
ChE Assistant Professor Qing Zhao’s research on “Computational progress of designing single-atom alloy catalysts for methane activation” was featured on the back cover of Nanoscale.
Tang’s Research Featured on Cover of Nanoscale
MIE Assistant Professor Xiaoyu Tang’s research on “Controlling particle dynamics in dead-end channels via boundary effects” was featured on the inside front cover of Nanoscale.
Structural Engineers Outline Complex Safety Steps Needed to Save Damaged Manhattan Skyscraper
CEE Interim Dean Jerome F. Hajjar and Professor Mehrdad Sasani are weighing in on the highly unusual buckling of a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper, explaining how complex building systems redistribute weight during localized structural failures. The faculty experts emphasize that extensive temporary shoring, load-redistribution analysis, and continuous sensor monitoring will be required by engineers to safely rehabilitate the structure.
Patent for Long-Range Wireless Charging Tech Designed to Help in Natural Disasters
ECE Associate Professor Aatmesh Shrivastava was awarded a patent for “Ultra-low power beamforming wireless power transfer system.”