NIH funding profile · La Jolla, CA · Higher education
University of California San Diego NIH Funding
Also known as UCSD, UC San DiegoNIH RePORTER recipient name: University of California, San Diego
Reviewed by Dr. Meng ZhaoLast reviewed October 16, 2026Data refreshed October 16, 2026Editorial standards
University of California San Diego received $505.9M in NIH award funding in fiscal year 2026 across 853 award records and 787 principal investigators. That ranks #16 of 2,407 NIH-funded institutions and #3 in California, down 11.2% from FY2025.
Part of University of California. See its combined NIH funding across every member NIH records separately.
FY2026 closed on September 30, 2026, but NIH keeps posting that year's awards to RePORTER for several weeks. FY2026 figures reflect records available on October 16, 2026 and may rise slightly at the next refresh.
FY2026 NIH funding
$505.9M
−11.2% vs FY2025
National rank
#16
Down 4 places from #12 vs FY2025
Rank in California
#3
10.0% of California NIH funding
Awards · PIs
853
787 investigators · 193 new projects
NIH funding trend, FY2022–FY2026
University of California San Diego received $2.81B in NIH awards over these five fiscal years. Annual funding moved −14.5% from FY2022 to FY2026. Its best national rank in the period was #12 (FY2025).
| Year | Funding | Change | Awards | PIs | U.S. rank | CA rank | Top IC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $505.9M | −11.2% | 853 | 787 | #16 | #3 | NIDA |
| FY2025 | $569.6M | +1.1% | 938 | 820 | #12 | #3 | NIAID |
| FY2024 | $563.6M | −2.2% | 1,042 | 854 | #13 | #3 | NIDA |
| FY2023 | $576.4M | −2.6% | 1,092 | 830 | #14 | #4 | NCI |
| FY2022 | $591.9M | — | 1,095 | 845 | #13 | #4 | NIA |
NIH institutes funding University of California San Diego, FY2026
24 NIH institutes and centers administered awards here in FY2026. The largest, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), accounted for 12.6% of the institution's NIH funding across 73 awards.
- NIDA · National Institute on Drug Abuse$63.6M · 12.6%
73 awards · vs FY2025: +2.7%
- NCI · National Cancer Institute$55.2M · 10.9%
88 awards · vs FY2025: +19.1%
- NIA · National Institute on Aging$46.9M · 9.3%
72 awards · vs FY2025: −14.2%
- NIGMS · National Institute of General Medical Sciences$45.2M · 8.9%
99 awards · vs FY2025: −14.2%
- NIAID · National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases$44.6M · 8.8%
82 awards · vs FY2025: −28.8%
- NINDS · National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke$40.8M · 8.1%
79 awards · vs FY2025: −20.0%
- NHLBI · National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute$39.9M · 7.9%
75 awards · vs FY2025: −6.3%
- NIDDK · National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases$38.6M · 7.6%
50 awards · vs FY2025: −16.0%
- NIMH · National Institute of Mental Health$37.9M · 7.5%
58 awards · vs FY2025: +13.1%
- NICHD · Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development$20.0M · 4.0%
46 awards · vs FY2025: +11.6%
Also: NCATS $11.9M · NEI $10.5M · NHGRI $7.9M · OD $7.5M · NIAAA $7.4M · NCCIH $5.8M · NIAMS $5.0M · NIEHS $4.4M · NIDCD $4.3M · NIDCR $3.0M · NIBIB $2.9M · NIMHD $1.4M · NLM $993K · FIC $292K
Award mechanism mix
Share of NIH award dollars by activity-code family in FY2026, with the FY2022 share for comparison. R01-equivalent research grants were 52.5% of funding.
- R01-equivalent52.5% · FY22 53.0%
- Cooperative agreements (U)19.1% · FY22 15.6%
- Other research (R)14.4% · FY22 12.0%
- Centers & program projects (P)6.0% · FY22 7.3%
- Career development (K)3.0% · FY22 3.3%
- Institutional training (T)2.6% · FY22 2.8%
- Other1.4% · FY22 5.2%
- Fellowships (F)0.6% · FY22 0.5%
- Contracts (N)0.4% · FY22 0.4%
Top activity codes, FY2026
| Code | Awards | Funding | Share | Average award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R01 | 400 | $247.4M | 48.9% | $618K |
| U24 | 20 | $33.7M | 6.7% | $1.7M |
| U01 | 32 | $33.6M | 6.6% | $1.0M |
| R35 | 61 | $30.8M | 6.1% | $504K |
| P30 | 9 | $19.9M | 3.9% | $2.2M |
| UM1 | 4 | $16.0M | 3.2% | $4.0M |
| R21 | 41 | $13.6M | 2.7% | $331K |
| T32 | 27 | $11.6M | 2.3% | $430K |
| R33 | 10 | $7.5M | 1.5% | $754K |
| R37 | 11 | $7.4M | 1.5% | $674K |
| R24 | 8 | $6.6M | 1.3% | $825K |
| U54 | 2 | $6.5M | 1.3% | $3.3M |
Largest FY2026 awards
The biggest single award records by FY2026 dollars. Each links to its NIH RePORTER project page.
- CTSA UM1 Program at University of California San Diego Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute (opens NIH RePORTER)
5UM1TR005449-02 · NCATS
$10.3MUM1
- An interactive resource to generate and provide integrated knowledge of the human pancreas (opens NIH RePORTER)
4U24DK138512-04 · NIDDK
$5.5MU24
- UC San Diego FIRST Program (opens NIH RePORTER)
5U54CA272220-04 · NCI
$5.2MU54
- Specialized Cancer Center Support Grant (opens NIH RePORTER)
2P30CA023100-38 · NCI
$5.1MP30
- ABCD-USA Consortium: Coordinating Center (opens NIH RePORTER)
5U24DA041147-12 · NIDA
$4.7MU24
- ABCD-USA Consortium: Coordinating Center (opens NIH RePORTER)
3U24DA041147-12S1 · NIDA
$4.7MU24
Recently started projects
The latest new (Type 1) FY2026 awards by notice date, out of 193 new projects NIH funded here this year.
- Connecting Mechanics and Molecules to Understand Cell and Tissue Invasion by Apicomplexan Parasites (opens NIH RePORTER)
1DP2AI192730-01 · NIAID · Notice Sep 21, 2026
$480KDP2
- The role of endogenous retroviruses in maintaining gut barrier function (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R03DE036231-01 · NIDCR · Notice Sep 18, 2026
$341KR03
- MACE-Alert: An Artificial Intelligence based Assessment and Triage of Undifferentiated Chest Pain (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R21LM015128-01 · NLM · Notice Sep 18, 2026
$216KR21
- RICE: Rice-grain-sized Intracranial Cortical Electrical Stimulator (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R18NS145987-01 · NINDS · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$825KR18
- Immunomodulatory nanoparticles for preventing rheumatoid arthritis flares (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01AR085747-01A1 · NIAMS · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$684KR01
- Mechanisms of miR-210-induced cardiometabolic injury in combined sustained and intermittent hypoxia (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01HL188314-01 · NHLBI · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$668KR01
Other NIH-funded institutions in California
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of California, San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA | $822.6M |
| 2 | Stanford UniversityStanford, CA | $665.6M |
| 3 | University of California San DiegoLa Jolla, CA | $505.9M |
| 4 | University of California, Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA | $462.9M |
| 5 | University of Southern CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA | $367.3M |
| 6 | University of California, DavisDavis, CA | $308.2M |
| 7 | University of California, IrvineIrvine, CA | $225.1M |
| 8 | Scripps ResearchLa Jolla, CA | $155.5M |
| 9 | University of California, BerkeleyBerkeley, CA | $138.8M |
Nearby in the national ranking
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | University of WashingtonSeattle, WA | $517.1M |
| 14 | Emory UniversityAtlanta, GA | $514.0M |
| 15 | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY | $512.9M |
| 16 | University of California San DiegoLa Jolla, CA | $505.9M |
| 17 | University of California, Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA | $462.9M |
| 18 | Northwestern UniversityChicago, IL | $459.4M |
| 19 | NYU Grossman School of MedicineNew York, NY | $455.2M |
Similar universities and medical schools
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | University of WashingtonSeattle, WA | $517.1M |
| 14 | Emory UniversityAtlanta, GA | $514.0M |
| 15 | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY | $512.9M |
| 16 | University of California San DiegoLa Jolla, CA | $505.9M |
| 17 | University of California, Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA | $462.9M |
| 18 | Northwestern UniversityChicago, IL | $459.4M |
| 19 | NYU Grossman School of MedicineNew York, NY | $455.2M |
About these numbers
Source: the public NIH RePORTER API, refreshed October 16, 2026. See our data methodology and the guide to reading NIH funding rankings by university.
- Who is countedAwards made to NIH recipient organization code 577507 (University of California, San Diego). A university's medical school, affiliated hospital, or other campuses can be separate NIH recipients with their own totals.
- What is countedTotal award amount (direct plus indirect) obligated in each fiscal year for grants, cooperative agreements, training awards, SBIR/STTR, and R&D contracts. Subprojects, intramural research, and interagency agreements are excluded.
- InstitutesEach award is credited in full to its administering institute, even when other institutes co-fund it.
- SubawardsNIH reports the prime recipient only, so research this institution performs under another organization's grant is not included here.