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University · Blacksburg · United States

Virginia Tech

In research, Virginia Tech stands highest in Physical Sciences (#254 of 12,888 worldwide), Engineering (#132 of 6,636 worldwide) and Social Sciences (#231 of 10,521 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Architecture, Software and Media Technology — Architecture is 6.4× its share of world research.

vt.eduROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#283
of 28,054 · #179 all time
Rank in United States
#62
of 4,192
Research works
92k
▲ 8% vs 2013–17
Citations
2.5M
27.0 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
20.6%
record average 16.5%
Open access
28%
world 28%

What is Virginia Tech known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #254 of 12,888 19.4%6,373 #149
EngineeringField #132 of 6,636 17.9%2,920 #38
Social SciencesDomain #231 of 10,521 24.8%2,375 #128
Computer ScienceField #117 of 4,667 21.6%1,324 #100
Business, Management and AccountingField #85 of 2,578 29.9%253 #58
Social SciencesField #279 of 6,365 26.8%1,117 #149
Environmental ScienceField #181 of 3,551 20.6%791 #119
Artificial IntelligenceSubfield #100 of 1,884 22.7%490 #129
Life SciencesDomain #416 of 7,800 20.4%1,550 #369
Sociology and Political ScienceSubfield #147 of 2,578 29.2%361 #111

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where Virginia Tech sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Physical Sciences#149 #254
  2. Engineering#38 #132
  3. Social Sciences#128 #231
  4. Computer Science#100 #117
  5. Business, Management and Accounting#58 #85
  6. Social Sciences#149 #279
  7. Environmental Science#119 #181
  8. Artificial Intelligence#129 #100
  9. Life Sciences#369 #416
  10. Sociology and Political Science#111 #147
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

What does Virginia Tech specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Architecture takes 6.4× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. ArchitectureSubfield · 28.7 works6.4×
  2. SoftwareSubfield · 27.3 works3.7×
  3. Media TechnologySubfield · 116.5 works3.2×
  4. Hardware and ArchitectureSubfield · 40.2 works3.1×
  5. VeterinaryField · 48.4 works3.1×
  6. Human-Computer InteractionSubfield · 72.8 works3.1×
  7. Small AnimalsSubfield · 40.8 works2.9×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 1.21× its world share, 660 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.99× its world share, 609 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.75× its world share, 87 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.98× its world share, 182 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.29× its world share, 12 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 0.93× its world share, 37 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.74× its world share, 133 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.48× its world share, 1,324 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 1.32× its world share, 237 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.54× its world share, 57 worksEnergyEngineering: 1.69× its world share, 2,920 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 1.39× its world share, 791 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.91× its world share, 365 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 1.16× its world share, 157 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 1.38× its world share, 352 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.08× its world share, 5 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.61× its world share, 186 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.42× its world share, 920 worksMedicineNursing: 0.49× its world share, 28 worksNursingVeterinary: 3.10× its world share, 48 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.58× its world share, 192 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.68× its world share, 253 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.89× its world share, 209 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.60× its world share, 148 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.30× its world share, 456 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.77× its world share, 1,117 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Veterinary, 3.1×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at Virginia Tech?

Ranked on the composite score, Theodore S. Rappaport, Jih‐Sheng Lai and I. J. Good lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Virginia Tech.

  1. 1 Theodore S. Rappaport · #235 worldwide 3.7k citations · 152 works
  2. 2 Jih‐Sheng Lai · #2,216 worldwide 2.8k citations · 139 works
  3. 3 I. J. Good · #2,525 worldwide 1.7k citations · 170 works
  4. 4 William Moore · #6,161 worldwide 1.1k citations · 61 works
  5. 5 Muzaffer Uysal · #7,404 worldwide 1.1k citations · 85 works
  6. 6 F.C. Lee · #8,603 worldwide 1.5k citations · 114 works
  7. 7 William H. Woodall · #9,545 worldwide 996 citations · 76 works
  8. 8 Wenjing Lou · #9,593 worldwide 1.6k citations · 103 works
  9. 9 Barbara B. Lockee · #9,715 worldwide 1k citations · 50 works
  10. 10 James E. McGrath · #11,945 worldwide 1.4k citations · 69 works
All ranked researchers at Virginia Tech

Which keywords describe research at Virginia Tech?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Machine Learning, Climate Change, Deep Learning, Power Electronics, Engineering Education, Neural Networks, Renewable Energy Integration and Sustainability.

▲ more of its work than of the world’s◆ about the world’s share▼ less than the world’s

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Machine Learning532▲ 1.42×84 topics
  2. Deep Learning489▲ 1.24×78 topics
  3. Climate Change471▲ 1.52×93 topics
  4. Sustainability286◆ 1.02×86 topics
  5. Epidemiology284▼ 0.62×126 topics
  6. Neural Networks249▲ 1.41×37 topics
  7. Globalization205◆ 0.91×88 topics
  8. Power Electronics198▲ 5.2×8 topics
  9. Environmental Impact184◆ 0.94×58 topics
  10. Education177◆ 0.90×63 topics
  11. Mechanical Properties161▲ 1.44×36 topics
  12. Remote Sensing149◆ 1.05×33 topics
  13. Energy Efficiency142▲ 1.32×31 topics
  14. Renewable Energy Integration141▲ 3.6×6 topics
  15. Engineering Education125▲ 12×6 topics
  16. Security114▲ 1.52×22 topics
  17. Thermal Management106▲ 2.8×8 topics
  18. Heat Transfer103▲ 1.81×17 topics
  19. STEM Education100▲ 1.94×10 topics
  20. Invasive Species98▲ 2.0×21 topics
  21. Autonomous Vehicles97▲ 4.0×4 topics
  22. Large-Eddy Simulation93▲ 4.2×5 topics
  23. Lifelong Learning92▲ 3.9×7 topics
  24. Assessment Methods85▲ 6.8×3 topics
  25. Electric Vehicle Charging83▲ 8.4×2 topics
  26. Model Predictive Control82▲ 2.7×6 topics
  27. Power Devices81▲ 10×2 topics
  28. High-Temperature Electronics75▲ 11×2 topics
  29. Reliability75▲ 8.4×3 topics
  30. Silicon Carbide73▲ 13×2 topics
  31. IGBT Modules72▲ 15×1 topic
  32. Wide Bandgap Semiconductors72▲ 15×1 topic
  33. Driver Behavior72▲ 8.0×2 topics
  34. Professional Skills71▲ 19×2 topics
  35. Accreditation69▲ 23×1 topic
  36. Outcome-Based Education69▲ 23×1 topic
  37. DC-DC Converters68▲ 10×1 topic
  38. High-Frequency Power Conversion68▲ 10×1 topic
  39. Career Development66▲ 5.0×5 topics
  40. Mental Workload48▲ 8.0×2 topics

Which research topics does Virginia Tech publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Silicon Carbide Semiconductor Technologies, Engineering Education and Curriculum Development, Advanced DC-DC Converters and Human-Automation Interaction and Safety.

Silicon Carbide Semiconductor Technologies: 72 fractional worksEngineering Education and Curriculum Development: 69 fractional worksAdvanced DC-DC Converters68Advanced DC-DC Converters: 68 fractional worksHuman-Automation Interac…41Human-Automation Interaction and Safety: 41 fractional worksMultilevel Inverters and Converters: 39 fractional worksCareer Development and Diversity: 35 fractional worksAdditive Manufacturing a…33Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies: 33 fractional worksTopic Modeling: 32 fractional worksVirtual Reality Applications and Impacts: 31 fractional worksFluid Dynamics and Turbu…31Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows: 31 fractional works
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringMedia TechnologySocial PsychologySafety Research4 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Silicon Carbide Semiconductor TechnologiesElectrical and Electronic Engineering 72 works
  2. 2 Engineering Education and Curriculum DevelopmentMedia Technology 69 works
  3. 3 Advanced DC-DC ConvertersElectrical and Electronic Engineering 68 works
  4. 4 Human-Automation Interaction and SafetySocial Psychology 41 works
  5. 5 Multilevel Inverters and ConvertersElectrical and Electronic Engineering 39 works
  6. 6 Career Development and DiversitySafety Research 35 works
  7. 7 Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing TechnologiesAutomotive Engineering 33 works
  8. 8 Topic ModelingArtificial Intelligence 32 works
  9. 9 Virtual Reality Applications and ImpactsHuman-Computer Interaction 31 works
  10. 10 Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent FlowsComputational Mechanics 31 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world’s own shares — the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available28.1%not open71.9%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors11.9%domestic only88.1%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has Virginia Tech's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 8% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Other research institutions in Blacksburg

All research institutions in Blacksburg

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.