Colby College research and development spending, FY2024
- Waterville, ME
- Private nonprofit
- Standard form filer
Colby College in FY2024
$4.5 million
spent on research and development in FY2024, as reported to the NSF HERD Survey
- National rank
- #482 of 925
- Change on FY2023
- up 1.3%
- Rank change
- down 16
Colby College reported $4.5 million of research and development spending in FY2024, ranking #482 of the 925 institutions in the survey. That is up 1.3% on FY2023's $4.5 million; its national rank was down 16 places. Federal government is its largest funding source at 71.7% ($3.2 million), followed by all other sources at 12.0%. Its largest field of research is life sciences, $2.7 million or 60.6% of the total.
Over time
Research spending, FY2010 to FY2024
Standard-form totals FY2010 onwards as revised by NCSES in the newest release; rank is within that series.
Year-by-year figures
| Fiscal year | R&D expenditure | Rank in series |
|---|---|---|
| FY2010 | $1.8 million | 483 |
| FY2011 | $1.8 million | 506 |
| FY2012 | $2.0 million | 497 |
| FY2013 | $1.8 million | 500 |
| FY2014 | $1.7 million | 509 |
| FY2015 | $1.7 million | 504 |
| FY2016 | $1.9 million | 500 |
| FY2017 | $2.1 million | 494 |
| FY2018 | $2.2 million | 498 |
| FY2019 | $1.9 million | 537 |
| FY2020 | $1.5 million | 556 |
| FY2021 | $1.7 million | 556 |
| FY2022 | $2.5 million | 526 |
| FY2023 | $4.5 million | 464 |
| FY2024 | $4.5 million | 481 |
FY2024 breakdown
Where the money came from, and what it paid for
FY2024 funding sources and research fields
Funding sources
The 5 NSF funding sources Colby College reported in FY2024, largest first. Shares are of its own FY2024 total, and the rank is national within that source.
| Source | FY2024 | Share | Change on FY2023 | US rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal government | $3.2 million | 71.7% | +7.5% | 422 |
| All other sources | $542 thousand | 12.0% | +6.9% | 234 |
| Institution funds | $523 thousand | 11.6% | −9.8% | 545 |
| Nonprofit organizations | $182 thousand | 4.0% | −48.9% | 477 |
| State and local government | $30 thousand | 0.7% | — | 567 |
| All sources | $4.5 million | 100.0% | +1.3% | 482 |
Fields of research
The 8 NSF research fields Colby College reported in FY2024, largest first.
| Field | FY2024 | Share | Change on FY2023 | US rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life sciences | $2.7 million | 60.6% | +9.2% | 371 |
| Physical sciences | $469 thousand | 10.4% | +2.9% | 392 |
| Non-S&E | $404 thousand | 9.0% | −20.5% | 474 |
| Social sciences | $276 thousand | 6.1% | −51.4% | 365 |
| Computer and information sciences | $217 thousand | 4.8% | +197.3% | 358 |
| Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences | $198 thousand | 4.4% | +96.0% | 346 |
| Mathematics and statistics | $156 thousand | 3.5% | +22.8% | 303 |
| Psychology | $60 thousand | 1.3% | −49.6% | 417 |
Neighbours
Ranked around Colby College
Institutions ranked immediately above and below
The five institutions ranked above Colby College and the five below it in the FY2024 national ranking.
| Rank | Institution | FY2024 R&D |
|---|---|---|
| 477 | Bentley University | $4.6M |
| 478 | Fort Lewis College | $4.6M |
| 479 | University of Detroit Mercy | $4.5M |
| 480 | Spelman College | $4.5M |
| 481 | Davidson College | $4.5M |
| 482 | Colby College | $4.5M |
| 483 | Stephen F. Austin State University | $4.5M |
| 484 | University of Central Oklahoma | $4.5M |
| 485 | St. Cloud State University | $4.4M |
| 486 | University of Northern Iowa | $4.4M |
| 487 | Monmouth University | $4.3M |
Keep looking
Where this institution sits
Related rankings
Data: NSF HERD FY2024, built from NSF's published tables on September 8, 2026. Page updated September 13, 2026.
Data: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation, Higher Education Research and Development Survey, FY2024.
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