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University · Cullowhee · United States

Western Carolina University

In research, Western Carolina University stands highest in Social Sciences (#2,728 of 10,521 worldwide), Social Sciences (#2,161 of 6,365 worldwide) and Health Sciences (#4,257 of 11,982 worldwide), 2022–2025.

wcu.eduROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#7,919
of 28,054 · #6,932 all time
Rank in United States
#1,056
of 4,192
Research works
3.9k
▲ 28% vs 2013–17
Citations
72k
18.2 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
14.6%
record average 16.5%
Open access
24%
world 28%

What is Western Carolina University 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
Social SciencesDomain #2,728 of 10,521 17.3%306 #1532
Social SciencesField #2,161 of 6,365 18.5%155 #1313
Health SciencesDomain #4,257 of 11,982 11.8%61 #4465
Physical SciencesDomain #7,917 of 12,888 9.7%156 #7983
EngineeringField #5,935 of 6,636 7.5%61 #8467

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where Western Carolina University 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. Social Sciences#1,532 #2,728
  2. Social Sciences#1,313 #2,161
  3. Health Sciences#4,465 #4,257
  4. Physical Sciences#7,983 #7,917
  5. Engineering#8,467 #5,935
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.

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: 0.86× its world share, 23 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.50× its world share, 15 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.10× its world share, 1 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.76× its world share, 7 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.20× its world share, 0 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 0.33× its world share, 1 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.34× its world share, 3 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.60× its world share, 26 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 1.65× its world share, 15 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.46× its world share, 2 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.71× its world share, 61 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 1.02× its world share, 29 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.18× its world share, 4 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 1.53× its world share, 10 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.44× its world share, 6 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.16× its world share, 0 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 1.39× its world share, 21 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.34× its world share, 37 worksMedicineNursing: 0.81× its world share, 2 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.95× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 2.60× its world share, 43 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 1.81× its world share, 33 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.37× its world share, 8 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.97× its world share, 12 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 3.17× its world share, 55 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 2.15× its world share, 155 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Psychology, 3.2×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at Western Carolina University?

Ranked on the composite score, James A. Lewis, Jerry R. Miller and Thomas E. Ford lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Western Carolina University.

  1. 1 James A. Lewis United States · #34,598 worldwide 255 citations · 42 works
  2. 2 Jerry R. Miller United States · #57,761 worldwide 241 citations · 40 works
  3. 3 Thomas E. Ford United States · #169,391 worldwide 148 citations · 20 works
  4. 4 Harold A. Herzog United States · #204,998 worldwide 276 citations · 21 works
  5. 5 Stephen Brown United States · #205,243 worldwide 191 citations · 87 works
  6. 6 Beverly Collins United States · #301,268 worldwide 54 citations · 19 works
  7. 7 Judith M. Stillion United States · #391,553 worldwide 4 citations · 27 works
  8. 8 Steven R. Gold United States · #435,396 worldwide 82 citations · 20 works
  9. 9 Randall A. Gordon United States · #592,591 worldwide 116 citations · 15 works
  10. 10 David J. Butcher United States · #619,395 worldwide 62 citations · 32 works
All ranked researchers at Western Carolina University

Which keywords describe research at Western Carolina University?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Social Justice, Climate Change, Democracy, Mental Health, Student Engagement, Identity, Engineering Education and Social Media.

▲ 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. Climate Change23▲ 1.53×42 topics
  2. Epidemiology19▼ 0.85×33 topics
  3. Mental Health18▲ 2.2×27 topics
  4. Globalization18▲ 1.58×36 topics
  5. Education18▲ 1.80×34 topics
  6. Machine Learning18◆ 0.94×29 topics
  7. Social Justice17▲ 5.1×19 topics
  8. Social Media17▲ 2.0×17 topics
  9. Sustainability15◆ 1.07×30 topics
  10. Identity14▲ 3.2×21 topics
  11. Mechanical Properties12▲ 2.1×15 topics
  12. Democracy11▲ 5.6×12 topics
  13. Student Engagement11▲ 5.0×12 topics
  14. Gender11▲ 3.7×16 topics
  15. Qualitative Research9▲ 1.88×13 topics
  16. Ethics9▲ 3.3×16 topics
  17. Prevalence9▲ 3.9×10 topics
  18. Engineering Education8▲ 17×4 topics
  19. Social Support8▲ 2.6×11 topics
  20. Biogeography8▲ 5.4×10 topics
  21. Community Engagement8▲ 4.3×9 topics
  22. Job Satisfaction8▲ 3.3×8 topics
  23. Microstructure8▲ 2.6×7 topics
  24. Religion8▲ 2.9×14 topics
  25. Feminism7▲ 4.6×7 topics
  26. Experiential Learning7▲ 25×5 topics
  27. Adolescents7▲ 3.3×5 topics
  28. Gender Differences7▲ 3.2×10 topics
  29. Global Warming7▲ 3.0×8 topics
  30. Technology Integration7▲ 3.9×6 topics
  31. Reflective Practice6▲ 6.0×7 topics
  32. Academic Achievement6▲ 6.2×9 topics
  33. Teacher Professional Development6▲ 6.3×4 topics
  34. Cultural Competence6▲ 8.1×7 topics
  35. Teacher Preparation6▲ 14×5 topics
  36. Environmental Attitudes6▲ 12×2 topics
  37. Stigma5▲ 6.4×3 topics
  38. Assessment Methods5▲ 7.9×3 topics
  39. Burnout5▲ 9.4×5 topics
  40. Racial Disparities5▲ 17×3 topics

Which research topics does Western Carolina University publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification, Construction Project Management and Performance, Climate Change Communication and Perception and Experimental Learning in Engineering.

Consumer Behavior in Bra…4Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification: 4 fractional worksConstruction Project Man…4Construction Project Management and Performance: 4 fractional worksClimate Change Communication and Perception: 3 fractional worksExperimental Learning in Engineering: 3 fractional worksMental Health Treatment and Access: 3 fractional worksFamily and Disability Support Research: 3 fractional worksService-Learning and Community Engagement: 3 fractional worksDiverse Educational Inno…3Diverse Educational Innovations Studies: 3 fractional worksAdditive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies: 3 fractional worksTeacher Education and Leadership Studies: 3 fractional works
MarketingManagement Science and Operations ResearchSociology and Political ScienceMedia Technology5 others

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

  1. 1 Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification Marketing 4 works
  2. 2 Construction Project Management and Performance Management Science and Operations Research 4 works
  3. 3 Climate Change Communication and Perception Sociology and Political Science 3 works
  4. 4 Experimental Learning in Engineering Media Technology 3 works
  5. 5 Mental Health Treatment and Access Social Psychology 3 works
  6. 6 Family and Disability Support Research Clinical Psychology 3 works
  7. 7 Service-Learning and Community Engagement Education 3 works
  8. 8 Diverse Educational Innovations Studies General Agricultural and Biological Sciences 3 works
  9. 9 Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies Automotive Engineering 3 works
  10. 10 Teacher Education and Leadership Studies Education 3 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 available23.8%not open76.2%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors6.2%domestic only93.8%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has Western Carolina University's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 28% 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.

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.