interior of building with spiral staircase

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 235 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 a 101% increase in external research funding from FY2017 to FY2023, and by an investment in research capabilities 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.

Government and Industry Partnerships

Industry and government partner with Northeastern for basic and applied research. The reason is simple: they know that at Northeastern, our two guiding principles are interdisciplinary collaboration and engagement with the real world. These principles are reflected in our research programs, which are driven by critical issues in materials, processes, systems and infrastructure. Our research collaborations are a win-win-win: our partners receive knowledge and products tailored to their needs, our researchers validate and extend their work, and our students receive training and experience to become the next generation of effective technologists.


Research At-A-Glance

$118M

External Research Funding (FY2023)

20

Research Centers and Institutes

142

Young Investigator Awards (as of Aug. 2023)

154

Patents 2017-Aug. 2023


Recent News

edmund yeh

Patent for Faster Computing in Distributed Networks

ECE Professor Edmund Yeh was awarded a patent for “Network and method for servicing a computation request.” Abstract Source: USPTO A framework for joint computation, caching, and request forwarding in data-centric computing-based networks comprises a virtual control plane, which operates on request counters for computations and data, and an actual plane, which handles computation requests, […]

Oakland Engineering Students Design Toys to Teach STEM to Elementary Schoolers

First Year Engineering Associate Teaching Professor Leila Keyvani Someh led Cornerstone of Engineering students at Northeastern’s Oakland campus in researching, designing, and building toys. The students then presented their toys and projects to elementary schoolers and teachers.

Ning Wang

Patented Molecule that Eliminates Cancer Cells Commercialized

A patented anti-cancer molecule invented by Ning Wang, professor of bioengineering and director of the Institute for Mechanobiology, along with three collaborators, is being replicated and commercialized as a research product by several companies, a significant advancement that validates the invention.

Learning from Tragedies During Historical Building Renovations

CAMD/CEE Associate Professor David Fannon provides insight into the risks of renovations that may lead to tragedies like the recent fire at the Old Stock Exchange in Copenhagen.