Rutgers Improves NAI Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted Utility Patents Ranking by Nine Spots
Rutgers moved into the top-40 in the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted Utility Patents, improving its ranking by nine spots to come in 33rd after finishing 42nd in 2025.
The collaboration between Rutgers researchers and the Office for Research (OfR) resulted in 69 U.S. patents in 2025, the most in a single year since 2022, and a jump of 16 spots in the worldwide standings. The university has appeared in every NAI Top 100 Worldwide Universities list since it began in 2013, and in every top 100 U.S. Universities ranking since its introduction.
“Rutgers prides itself on being one of the top higher education research institutions in the world,” said Michael E. Zwick, PhD, senior vice president for research at Rutgers and head of the Office for Research. “These rankings are the results of the teamwork between researchers who strive to answer the challenges of today and tomorrow, and a research office that supports their work.”
“Our team collaborates with researchers throughout the patent process to protect their innovations, and I am thrilled to see that the hard work from both groups has led to this placement in the rankings,” said Deborah Perez Fernandez, PhD, MBA, executive director of the Technology Transfer unit within OfR. “Every year we aim to improve our output from the previous year, and I am incredibly proud of the team for this accomplishment.”
Rutgers' technology transfer process kicks off when a faculty member reports a new innovation through the Rutgers Innovator Portal. This initiates the journey of safeguarding, promoting, and licensing technologies with high commercial potential. The Rutgers Office for Research Technology Transfer unit evaluates various aspects of the submission, such as the technology's unique features, development stage, patentability, and market applications and potential, to determine whether a US provisional patent application should be filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
These evaluations continue throughout the patent application process, with the tech transfer team collaborating closely with the inventor(s) and external legal advisors to ensure proper patent protection. Once a patent application is filed, marketing and outreach efforts commence. The Rutgers Technology Transfer team aims to license the technology to a large corporation, small business, or start-up that has the interest and capability to further develop and commercialize the innovation. For more details about the process, click here.
Released annually, the Top 100 U.S. Universities ranking highlights and celebrates U.S. academic institutions that play a significant role in advancing innovation through the critical step of securing their intellectual property through patents. By protecting their intellectual property, these universities can translate their inventions into commercial technologies, creating tangible societal and economic impacts.
“These universities and their inventive faculty are at the forefront of driving national innovation and competitiveness,” said Dr. Paul R. Sanberg, FNAI, President of the National Academy of Inventors. “By moving their ideas to market and protecting their IP with patents, these institutions are ensuring that the U.S. not only remains competitive on the global stage, but directly shapes the future of innovation.”
NAI has published its first ranking list, the Top 100 Worldwide Universities list, since 2013. The Top 100 U.S. Universities list was introduced in 2023 to provide a more focused view of the national innovation landscape and the contributions made by U.S. academic institutions. Collectively, the universities on the 2025 Top 100 U.S. list secured over 6,700 patents in 2025. Over 6,000 of those patents are attributed to NAI Member Institutions.
The Top 100 U.S. Universities List is one of three annual rankings that are published by the National Academy of Inventors. These rankings are based on calendar-year data from the USPTO and aim to provide a comprehensive view of intellectual property protection in the innovation ecosystem. The 2025 Top 100 Worldwide Universities ranking was published in February, and the Top 60 Non-Profit Research Institutions and Government Agencies rankings will be released this spring, leading up to NAI’s 15th Annual Conference held in Los Angeles, California.
