After more than a year of review, the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS) has become the first university organization to be designated a University Institute. The primary goal of University Institutes is to enable faculty and students to engage in interdisciplinary and collaborative work and to attract external funding at levels that would not otherwise be possible.

EOS is UNH's largest research enterprise, receiving more than $30 million each year in external research support. Founded in 1985, EOS is known for its emphasis on interdisciplinary collaborations between Earth, ocean and space scientists. UNH is consistently ranked among the top U.S. schools in NASA funding in large part due to the multitude of EOS projects funded by the agency.

“The faculty and staff in EOS are to be commended for achieving this significant milestone,” said John Aber, vice president for research. “We are confident that EOS will continue to excel and to be a leading example of the university’s comprehensive mission as a public, land-grant institution.”

University Institutes will be established for the purpose of supporting and coordinating well established, successful and complementary centers and other working groups in order to significantly advance the education, research, and engagement missions of the university.

University Institutes differ from other centers and institutes in the university in several important ways:

1. University Institutes involve faculty from two or more colleges or schools.
2. Directors of University Institutes will report to the Provost and Executive Vice President with the advice of the Vice President for Research.
3. Institute directors will serve as members of the Deans Council.
4. Faculty associated with a University Institute will have teaching and governance responsibilities in graduate programs related to the Institute.
5. University Institutes will be sufficiently large and financially complex to qualify for designation as an "RC Unit" within the Responsibility Center Management budgeting process.
6. While University Institutes are expected to be financially viable primarily through grants, contracts, private endowments, and foundation support, they may also receive institutional funding associated with teaching at the graduate level, consistent with prevailing RCM policies and guidelines.

In deciding whether to grant EOS University Institute status, key governance groups including the Faculty Senate, Graduate Council, Deans Council, and Cabinet reviewed successive proposal drafts, an external peer review panel provided critical recommendations regarding the proposal, and the Provost and Vice President for Research worked closely with EOS director Berrien Moore and the EOS executive committee to assure that the proposal meets the purposes outlined above.

“We anticipate that other well-established interdisciplinary organizations on campus will be designated as University Institutes in the future, following the same rigorous review process which EOS experienced,” said Bruce Mallory, provost and executive vice president. “Ultimately, we expect to have a small number of such centers of excellence (perhaps no more than three or four) reflecting the university’s core research strengths and commitments.”