Florida State ranks in annual Top 100 Worldwide Universities List for 7th year in a row

Florida State University is on a hot streak after ranking in 2023’s Top 100 Worldwide Universities List by the National Academy of Inventors for the seventh consecutive year.

The academy ranks the top universities granted utility patents, and FSU came in 90th place — moving up from no. 99 in 2022 — with a total of 38 patents.

“Universities are full of talent, innovation and curiosity,” FSU’s Vice President for Research Stacey Patterson said in a prepared statement. “As a public institution, it is part of our mission to take the technologies we develop and turn them into products and services that benefit our communities, state and nation.”

The National Academy of Investors was created at the University of South Florida to recognize inventors for their achievements in patents, which are exclusive rights that are granted for inventions. A report with the top 100 universities ranking has been published annually since 2013 in partnership with the Intellectual Property Owners Association.

Data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is used to create the annual report as it highlights the significant role patents play in university research, which includes supporting and promoting local innovation to help create new businesses and job opportunities.

Besides FSU, four other universities in the State University System of Florida (SUS) were ranked in the Top 100 Worldwide List as they were also recognized for the seventh year in a row — the University of Florida with 142 patents, the University of South Florida with 88 patents, the University of Central Florida with 57 patents and Florida International University with 55 patents.

“These rankings show our system’s commitment to invention, research and innovation, which leads to increased commercialization for our local communities, our state and the nation,” Florida Board of Governors Chair Brian Lamb said in a release.

FSU’s 2023 ranking as no. 90 is tied with Sichuan University, a public institution in Chengdu, China, and Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, which is a public institution in Nanjing, China.

The top three universities on the worldwide list are the Regents of the University of California with 546 patents, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with 365 patents and the University of Texas System with 235 patents.

“At the academy, it is important for us to recognize and celebrate research and commercialization happening at the university level, as well as spread awareness on how intellectual property can benefit innovators and their institutions,” National Academy of Inventors President Paul Sanberg said in a prepared statement. He is also USF's senior vice president for research, innovation and economic development.

More FSU rankings: FSU slips to no. 23 in U.S. News rankings; president says that's 'odd'. Here's why.

Here are the rankings of the five universities in Florida's SUS that made it in the 2023 Top 100 Worldwide Universities List, along with their placements in 2022:

• 13. University of Florida (up from 17th in 2022)

• 34. University of South Florida (up from 36th in 2022)

• 52. University of Central Florida (up from 53rd in 2022)

• 57. Florida International University (same ranking in 2022)

• 90. Florida State University (up from 99th in 2022)

Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on X: @tarahjean_.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU ranks no. 90 in Top 100 Worldwide Universities List for 2023