The Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey, successor to the Survey of Research and Development Expenditures at Universities and Colleges, is the primary source of information on R&D expenditures at U.S. colleges and universities. The survey collects information on R&D expenditures by field of research and source of funds and also gathers information on types of research and expenses and headcounts of R&D personnel. The survey is an annual census of institutions that expended at least $150,000 in separately budgeted R&D in the fiscal year.

When comparisons to key groups including institutions in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, 1890 Land Grant Institutions, Aspirational Institutions, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities, KSU in many instances outperformed and reported steady growth in research expenditures over the past five-years. Below are some facts/figures that provide an account of the aforementioned comparison groups.

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