MSU ranks 61st among nation's public research universities

Mississippi State has climbed to 61st among public universities in science and engineering research.

According to the National Science Foundation's latest figures, the university also ranks 89th among all institutions-public and private-in research and development expenditures for fiscal 1996, the most recent year for which nationwide data are available.

Both the public university and the overall rankings are the highest ever for Mississippi State, which has been among the top 100 research institutions for well over a decade. The rankings are reported in the NSF's latest annual edition of Academic Research and Development Expenditures.

The most recent rankings for Mississippi State are based on research and development expenditures of more than $84 million.

President Malcolm Portera said MSU is aiming for a spot among the nation's top 75 research universities within the next few years. To achieve a complementary goal of membership in the Association of Research Libraries, the university is adding $1 million a year to its library budget for at least the next three years to help reach that status.

No Mississippi university is among the 120 in the United States and Canada currently meeting ARL standards.