From Discovery to Real-World Application
At Northeastern, the global leader in experiential learning, research is cross-disciplinary and use-inspired, designed for impact. Working across disciplines and industries, we’re finding solutions to 21st-century threats in realms like health, security, and sustainability.
Our research is innovative and entrepreneurial. Faculty secured $140.7 million in external research funding in 2016-2017. That same year, faculty and students filed 211 patent applications. They also developed startups, aided by a robust ecosystem of resources and advisers.
The university encourages faculty and students to turn their findings into products, services, materials, tests, and tools. Our Center for Research Innovation provides a path to identifying, patenting, and developing discoveries with commercial potential. And our venture accelerator, IDEA, offers mentorship, in-kind resources, and seed funding to would-be entrepreneurs.
From World-Class Facilities, Cutting-Edge Advances
Students clarify and pursue their interests in state-of-the-art facilities, working alongside faculty members who are thought leaders in their fields. Innovations include:
The George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security, where students help advance national security and intelligence. Its revolutionary Nano-OPS manufacturing technology prints sensors and devices 4,000 times thinner than a human hair, 100 to 1,000 times faster than current inkjet-based electronic and 3D printers.
With universities and companies worldwide, students at the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute use data from actual privacy and security breaches to protect personal data on connected devices, enhance cryptography, secure the cloud, and thwart malware attacks.
The Coastal Sustainability Institute addresses the deterioration of vital ecosystems due to burgeoning human populations and climate change. At our Marine Science Center, a keystone facility, students and faculty are building robotic technologies that detect underwater explosives and other coastline threats.
At the Global Resilience Institute, students can explore the impact of sudden disasters man-made and natural, such as Hurricane Sandy, and slow-moving disruptors, like climate change. The goal: to empower societies around the world to recover, adapt, and build more resilient interdependent systems and networks.
Inside our groundbreaking Network Science Institute, students glean fresh insights from vast troves of data—exploring, for example, how the brain works, and how pandemics like the Zika virus spread.
You can access a full list of Northeastern’s research centers and institutes.
Advancing Discovery, Nurturing Problem Solvers
Northeastern doctoral degrees—both research (doctorate of philosophy) and professional—prepare students to become knowledge creators in high-demand fields from STEM to the humanities to the social sciences. All programs are distinguished by Northeastern’s signature use-inspired research approach, high-caliber faculty, and interdisciplinary environment.
In addition to two types of doctoral degrees, Northeastern offers professional science master’s programs in fields like biotechnology, bioinformatics, marine biology, and biomedical nanotechnology. Students learn in ways that advance their career goal, be that a role in academia or a job in industry. They become well-rounded problem solvers. Professionals with deep expertise. Communicators who can reach a broad audience. Entrepreneurs versed in business principles, intellectual property, and patent law.
Students have opportunities to gain practical, hands-on experience, whether through a co-op lasting six months or an eight-week project. Such endeavors allow students to explore a field, apply their research to industry, and launch the next phase of their career.