Western Kentucky University research and development spending, FY2024
- Bowling Green, KY
- D/PU
- Public
- Standard form filer
Western Kentucky University in FY2024
$11.2 million
spent on research and development in FY2024, as reported to the NSF HERD Survey
- National rank
- #361 of 925
- Change on FY2023
- up 20.6%
- Rank change
- up 9
Western Kentucky University reported $11.2 million of research and development spending in FY2024, ranking #361 of the 925 institutions in the survey. That is up 20.6% on FY2023's $9.3 million; its national rank was up 9 places. Institution funds is its largest funding source at 48.6% ($5.4 million), followed by federal government at 40.2%. Its largest field of research is life sciences, $3.5 million or 31.4% 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 | $9.9 million | 308 |
| FY2011 | $8.3 million | 331 |
| FY2012 | $10.6 million | 305 |
| FY2013 | $9.3 million | 316 |
| FY2014 | $8.3 million | 328 |
| FY2015 | $7.9 million | 337 |
| FY2016 | $8.9 million | 328 |
| FY2017 | $10.8 million | 317 |
| FY2018 | $9.6 million | 331 |
| FY2019 | $9.3 million | 337 |
| FY2020 | $8.2 million | 355 |
| FY2021 | $6.9 million | 369 |
| FY2022 | $7.7 million | 373 |
| FY2023 | $9.3 million | 370 |
| FY2024 | $11.2 million | 361 |
FY2024 breakdown
Where the money came from, and what it paid for
FY2024 funding sources and research fields
Funding sources
The 6 NSF funding sources Western Kentucky University 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Institution funds | $5.4 million | 48.6% | +11.1% | 307 |
| Federal government | $4.5 million | 40.2% | +32.6% | 377 |
| State and local government | $1.0 million | 9.3% | +32.4% | 315 |
| Nonprofit organizations | $123 thousand | 1.1% | 0.0% | 532 |
| Business | $69 thousand | 0.6% | −11.5% | 418 |
| All other sources | $15 thousand | 0.1% | — | 440 |
| All sources | $11.2 million | 100.0% | +20.6% | 361 |
Fields of research
The 9 NSF research fields Western Kentucky University reported in FY2024, largest first.
| Field | FY2024 | Share | Change on FY2023 | US rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life sciences | $3.5 million | 31.4% | −2.5% | 349 |
| Physical sciences | $2.0 million | 17.8% | +16.2% | 253 |
| Non-S&E | $1.7 million | 15.4% | +105.6% | 321 |
| Psychology | $1.4 million | 12.5% | +29.2% | 183 |
| Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences | $1.4 million | 12.2% | +42.0% | 220 |
| Engineering | $674 thousand | 6.0% | +9.6% | 315 |
| Social sciences | $418 thousand | 3.7% | +5.6% | 321 |
| Mathematics and statistics | $61 thousand | 0.5% | +17.3% | 398 |
| Computer and information sciences | $40 thousand | 0.4% | +207.7% | 496 |
Neighbours
Ranked around Western Kentucky University
Institutions ranked immediately above and below
The five institutions ranked above Western Kentucky University and the five below it in the FY2024 national ranking.
| Rank | Institution | FY2024 R&D |
|---|---|---|
| 356 | California State University, Monterey Bay | $11.7M |
| 357 | West Texas A&M University | $11.6M |
| 358 | Central State University | $11.5M |
| 359 | California State University, San Bernardino | $11.3M |
| 360 | Appalachian State University | $11.3M |
| 361 | Western Kentucky University | $11.2M |
| 362 | Eastern Michigan University | $11.2M |
| 363 | Western University of Health Sciences | $11.2M |
| 364 | University of San Francisco | $11.0M |
| 365 | Arkansas State University, Jonesboro | $10.9M |
| 366 | California State University, Los Angeles | $10.9M |
Keep looking
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Request a demoData: 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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