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November 7, 1996

Pitt's medical school gets largest percentage increase in NIH funds

In 1985, 1.3 cents of every dollar that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded to medical schools went to Pitt.

By 1995, Pitt's share had risen to 2.3 cents on the dollar, a 77 percent increase — the largest such NIH "market share" gain by any medical school, according to an analysis by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).

See chart.

The dollar amount of the NIH research funding Pitt's medical school received during that time increased from $27.3 million in 1985 to $98.7 million in 1995, placing Pitt fifth among medical colleges nationally in terms of increased dollar amounts.

The Johns Hopkins University medical school ranked No. 1, having increased its NIH funding from $75.3 million in 1985 to $168 million in 1995.

In 1995, Pitt as a whole ranked 10th nationally in total NIH dollars received. The University was awarded more than $140 million.

Johns Hopkins ranked first, having been awarded $251.8 million by the NIH in 1995.

"Particularly because NIH dollars are awarded competitively, and only after a rigorous assessment, we are very proud of this record," said Chancellor Mark Nordenberg, who described those and other Pitt research accomplishments at the Oct. 24 Board of Trustees meeting.

Also at the meeting, Pitt Office of Technology Management director Arthur Boni reported on his office's efforts to create start-up companies and joint ventures that would use technology developed at the University. See story on page 5.

Besides leading the nation in NIH funding growth, Pitt had the largest percentage increase in National Cancer Institute (NCI) support over the past five years, Nordenberg reported. The University, which ranks fourth nationally in NCI funding, received $36.9 million in 1995, a 158 percent increase over the $14.3 million Pitt received in 1990.

The chancellor also cited a preliminary ranking of 77 U.S. economics departments, in which Pitt tied for 15th place this year with Johns Hopkins.

The survey, conducted by the University of Texas-Austin, was based on the number of journal article pages that a department's faculty published in eight leading economics journals from 1990 through 1994. Pitt ranked 20th in last year's survey. This year's final rankings will be published in the Journal of Economic Literature later this fall.

— Bruce Steele

Filed under: Feature,Volume 29 Issue 6

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