Research University

UNT student working with the electron microscope

A unique collection of high-powered microscopes at UNT gives its nanotechnology research and College of Engineering a competitive edge.

With a clear focus on growing as a major public research university, UNT is furthering its impact in science, engineering and nanotechnology while building on its foundation in the arts, education and business. The university is committed to providing the best educational experience for students while also meeting the social, business and cultural needs of the region, state and nation.

A state report issued in 2011 finds that UNT offers the most affordable public research university education in Texas. It comes at a time when UNT is making good on its commitment to admit more top-quality students and graduate more students each year while providing exceptional support and a rigorous classroom experience.

Through its collaborative, multidisciplinary research cluster initiative, UNT is focused on carrying out innovative, high-impact research to address scientific, environmental and societal problems. The clusters engage leading researchers, faculty, students and institutions in seminal research. The synergistic exchange of ideas and resources have spurred on faculty research and helped the university attract a growing number of prominent world researchers. A wide range of disciplines are represented — from fine arts, humanities and education to sciences, engineering and business.

The initiative, which launched in fall 2008, has developed 21 collaborative, cross-disciplinary research clusters and strategic areas of investment. The 15 clusters are:

Learn more about UNT's research clusters.

Students and faculty work together in UNT’s more than 65 research centers and institutes to advance knowledge and improve society. This includes the Center for Spanish Language Media, the nation’s first comprehensive training and research program for Spanish-speaking media professionals, and the Center for Play Therapy, the largest play therapy program in the world.

UNT student working with a professor in a lab

UNT has six researchers who have been awarded a National Science Foundation CAREER award, the most prestigious recognition offered by the foundation for young researchers.

UNT’s state-of-the-art research centers include TALON, a high performance computing system for advanced computational research, and the federally funded Center for Advanced Research and Technology (CART), one of the nation’s most extensive facilities for materials characterization and analysis. In fall 2010, UNT began construction on a new Nanofabrication Analysis and Research Facility that will allow faculty and students to work at the leading edge of nanotechnology and advanced materials. The facility, funded in part by the National Science Foundation, will integrate CART with a new clean room. A new Zero Energy Laboratory is under construction and will be a research hub for students and faculty in developing next generation sustainable technologies.

Many of UNT’s research facilities are housed at Discovery Park, UNT’s 300-acre research park that is one of the largest university research parks in the region.

UNT’s research extends beyond the campus, with field stations as close as a neighboring lake and as far away as southern Chile. In January 2011, UNT and its partners opened the Cape Horn Field Station — the world’s first field research facility dedicated to environmental philosophy, science and policy.