UNC Charlotte is poised to gain R1 status in 2025 — a classification that recognizes the ever-increasing amount of research it conducts and its roster of top-level talent. It also stands to catapult the university — and region — forward.
Just two major metropolitans in the United States — Charlotte and Portland, Oregon — don’t have an R1 university. The official 2025 classifications are expected to be released early next year, but projections show UNC Charlotte would qualify under new metrics, according to the American Council on Education.
“I believe higher education is one of those anchor institutions in a community,” says Sharon Gaber, UNC Charlotte chancellor. “I think it broadens the opportunities for us.”
R1 will bring additional federal and state research dollars to the table. It will lure talented faculty and researchers to the region, while spurring enrollment growth. The status also could play a role in attracting business and industry here, building on a strong talent pipeline and the potential for research partnerships with local companies.
“Having a designation simply makes it all a little bit more credible,” says John Daniels, vice chancellor for research. “Our challenge is updating that muscle memory, to say ‘Hey look, we also have this critical mass of expertise and ability to be relevant in terms of startup companies, corporate partnerships and federal investment.’”
UNC Charlotte has been classified as an R2 university since 2005. Those institutions have over $5 million in research grants and award 20 research doctorates annually.
Currently, there are 146 R1 universities — roughly 4% of all colleges and universities across the country. North Carolina is home to three: UNC Chapel Hill, Duke University and N.C. State University.
Projections show 168 universities will reach R1 status in 2025. Universities must spend at least $50 million on research and development and produce 70 research doctoral degrees to qualify.
UNC Charlotte had $55.2 million in research and development spending in fiscal 2023 with 156 research doctorates awarded.
East Carolina University is projected to move up into the R1 category as well.
Meanwhile, a cap on the number of R1 universities will be eliminated.
Gaber says UNC Charlotte’s current strategic plan prioritized R1 status. It is targeting research expenditures of $125 million by 2035.
“We’ve used the analogy that it’s like a Michelin star recognition. It is that all-of-a-sudden, you’ve-got-this thing that is externally validated, saying you’ve reached this set of criteria, this threshold,” Gaber says. “That means we are doing the work.”
UNC Charlotte marked its 77th anniversary this year. It was long seen as a commuter school, but the perception of the university is shifting.
“I think we’ve grown up since then,” Gaber says. “We are still teaching. We are still bringing in more students than we ever have been. So, we’re not reducing anything in order to do additional research. It’s that we’re saying this is important.”
Retired Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) CEO Hugh McColl sits on the university’s board of trustees. He sees R1 status as critical.
“I just know it’s the right answer for us. We’re one of the largest cities in America that doesn’t have one,” he says. “We know it pays off. We know what attracts capital and other companies to come here.”
McColl notes the city lacks venture capital, but UNC Charlotte’s R1 status could help change that. That capital comes alongside the ability to invest in ideas produced by research. Raleigh has already benefited from research universities there, he says. Charlotte also is home to companies that can profit from further research at the university level, he adds.
“I’m very bullish about it,” he says. “I think we’re poised in a way we haven’t been before. I think the opportunities for us are going to be immense.”
Truist Financial Corp. (NYSE: TFC) CEO Bill Rogers says R1 status provides a good platform to build on — not only for the financial institution, but when it comes to attracting future tech and research companies to the region.
“I don’t want to underestimate the importance of, not only this designation, but this designation with a university that can really do something with it,” he says. “I think this is like the proverbial pebble in the pond for growth in Charlotte.”
Truist, through a $5.3 million investment, has joined forces with UNC Charlotte to create the Truist Institute for Student Success. Think scholarships, experiential learning activities and leadership development activities.
He says UNC Charlotte’s talent pipeline is critical. Truist benefits from interns and recent graduates, and Rogers has even added three Charlotte 49ers to his leadership team. He’s learned that graduates are committed to the region, have gained valuable education experience and are hard working.
“We are all in with UNC Charlotte,” Rogers says. “It was really one of the criteria of us choosing Charlotte as a city.”
Truist also has a business innovation program tied to specific research projects. Rogers says much of the work is around data science, with payments and client consumer research as focus areas. “We’ve already started this framework of doing research together. I think this is just an accelerant.”
R1 identifies UNC Charlotte as a serious research institution and positions the region to be seen as a tech hub.
“Charlotte’s getting ready to remove all the ‘we’re the only city’ (labels). We were the only city our size that doesn’t have a medical school. We were the only city that doesn’t have an R1 designation. Charlotte’s on the move. This is just one more arrow in the quiver,” Rogers says.
The city’s growth and ranking nationally helps fill gaps when it comes to those big-city needs of prospects, says Rob Horton, chief marketing and communications officer for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance.
Atrium Health’s $1.5 billion Wake Forest University School of Medicine Charlotte and innovation district is one example. Elon University expanding its law school offerings here is another.
Horton says top-level research is a talking point, not a deal breaker, when it comes to a company’s decision to expand or relocate here.
He says Charlotte is a brain-gain market attracting graduates from tier-one universities throughout the South. Horton sees UNC Charlotte’s talent pipeline as a bigger selling point. Having a tier-one university that graduates thousands of students a year, with many who remain in Charlotte, increases the market’s attractiveness.
“Talent has become the No. 1 criteria for companies when considering expansion or relocation in the region. They want to know that you have the talent here on the ground,” Horton says.
Achieving top-tier status should open the door to more grants, creating economic impact. It will draw talented faculty to the region, which in turn will help grow enrollment.
“As a tier one, the volume and the magnitude of those grants will just increase. That work will help the university expand, but it will also benefit the region,” Horton says.
The push is on for a North Tryon tech hub in Charlotte’s center city, where research and companies would collide. The common denominator to successful tech hubs in other cities has been an unambiguous academic lead, Daniels says.
He sees runway ahead when it comes to attracting research dollars as the university grows to fit the region’s needs. UNC Charlotte’s top areas for research funding in 2023 include education and STEM — biological sciences, information systems/computer science, engineering, data science and cyber security.
“When you have that ecosystem, where you’ve got great faculty, willing partners, and unique resources, it just enables your impact to be so much greater, and that is going to manifest in terms of an economic impact,” Daniels says.
