UC Rises Five Spots, Leads All Tri-state Universities In Patent Income

For the third straight year, the University of Cincinnati led all universities in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana in patent income, according to the latest national rankings released by the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM).

UC's earnings came in at a record $5.4 million in fiscal year 2001, according to a report just released by AUTM. That was good for a No. 28 ranking nationally, out of 142 research universities participating in the study.

"This report highlights the strength and productivity of our research efforts," said Richard Kordal, UC's director of intellectual property.

In the fiscal 2000 report, UC was ranked No. 33 nationally and earned $4.7 million. That marked the first time that the university had broken through the $4 million mark in any single year.

Other figures in the AUTM report also attest to UC's research strength.

UC shows a tremendous return on investment for the research dollars it does receive. The No. 28 ranking in patent income contrasts with UC's more modest ranking in research funding, coming in at No. 82 in that category in fiscal 2001 out of the 142 institutions surveyed.

UC research produced 69 invention disclosures in fiscal 2001. The rule of thumb for measuring successful research is one invention disclosure for approximately every $2.5 million received in funding. UC's ratio is approximately twice as productive as the national average.

The outlook for continued research success at UC is bright. In a separate new research report, UC ranked No. 46 nationally in federal research funding in the fiscal 2001 National Science Foundation (NSF) rankings. That is up from a ranking of No. 47 in fiscal 2000.