The University of Iowa gathered roughly $438 million in external funding for research for the fourth consecutive year, according to a UI press release.

Additionally, UI researchers were awarded 2,124 grant and contract awards, and total external funding increased 3.2 percent over the last fiscal year, the release said.

“We are pleased to have recorded another strong year in research funding despite fiscal challenges in Washington and the budget uncertainty with federal funding agencies as well as belt-tightening elsewhere due to the sluggish economic recovery,” Jordan Cohen, the UI’s vice president for research and economic development, said in the release. “I am proud of our faculty — proud of their commitment to excellence in their scholarship and their impact on Iowa. I continue to be impressed with how they continue to effectively compete for grants in an increasingly competitive federal funding environment.”

— by Kristen East