Research and innovation at CU Boulder is changing the world. While CU Boulder researchers, faculty and staff lead the charge, this transformational work increasingly includes collaborations with undergraduate and graduate students, postdocs, entrepreneurs, and government and industry partners.
At the heart of this focus are the diverse contributions of a wide range of world-class experts, working together in new and innovative ways to accelerate ideas through the entire innovation life cycle, from idea to impact.
Explore the diverse avenues through which CU Boulder innovators are creating impact around the world—and learn how you can participate.
Major Research & Innovation Services and Initiatives
Office of Contracts and Grants
The Office of Contracts and Grants (OCG) partners with faculty and staff to prepare and submit proposals, including budgets, for external research funding. OCG is authorized to negotiate and accept sponsored research agreements on behalf of the Regents, monitor and provide guidance throughout the life of an award, and ensure final project closeout.
Office of Research Integrity
The Office of Research Integrity supports CU Boulder's commitment to scientific and ethical integrity, as well as academic excellence in all research activities with which our students, faculty and staff are associated.
Office of Animal Resources
The Office of Animal Resources is a service center responsible for providing high quality animal care, veterinary care and support for the research and teaching missions of CU Boulder.
Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs enhances and supports postdoctoral training and career development, helps build a sense of community among postdocs, and serves as a resource to campus and affiliated national labs.
Research Development and Funding Opportunities
Research Development offers a variety of tools and resources to help faculty, students and staff identify and develop opportunities for scholarly activities.
Industry & Foundation Relations
The Industry & Foundation Relations (IFR) team is dedicated to building collaborative, mutually beneficial relationships with industry partners and foundations. The IFR team is part of the university’s effort to deliver “a partner-centric strategy and an on-campus support team that aligns financial investment in the research, discovery and creativity of Boulder’s faculty and students with satisfied corporate and foundation partners.”
Venture Partners at CU Boulder
As the commercialization arm of CU Boulder, Venture Partners prepares campus innovators to bring technologies and ideas to market through IP and licensing consultation, startup formation and support, early-stage funding and more.
AeroSpace Ventures
The CU Boulder AeroSpace Ventures initiative creates a collaborative environment in which CU Boulder's aerospace engineering and earth and space science faculty, students and industrial researchers work together to solve complex problems that lead to new discoveries and innovations.
Grand Challenge
CU Boulder's response to the Grand Challenge, Our Space. Our Future., fuses CU Boulder's unique strengths in earth, space and social sciences with new technologies and partners to address the pace and pattern of changes for our environment, our resources and our planet.
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
CU Boulder fosters an environment for innovative thinking and entrepreneurial mindsets, offering a variety of programs and resources developed to foster and support creative ideas for new initiatives. From academic programs and student groups to community-wide support, you will find the resources and people to help you develop and launch ideas.
Research Institutes
CU Boulder's 12 research institutes account for more than half of all sponsored research dollars at the university—and they employ some of the most productive researchers in the country. With more than 900 researchers, students and supporting staff, the institutes make a major contribution to the university's research and education missions, as well as the local and area economy.
Research Centers
In addition to the large research institutes, there are more than 75 research centers housed within academic departments or as subsets of the research institutes themselves. They can be found in all fields of the university, including humanities and the arts, social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, business and law.
Research Computing
Research Computing provides services for researchers that include large-scale computing resources, storage of research data, high-speed data transfer capabilities, and support for data sharing. Additionally, Research Computing provides consulting in computational science and data management, and will support grant proposals by partnering or providing letters of support.
To learn more about our major research and innovation services and initiatives, visit the Research & Innovation Office webpage.