Skip to main content

Selected Research Areas

The University of Maryland is engaged in a broad variety of research areas addressing regional, national, and global challenges, ranging from science, engineering, business, social sciences, arts and humanities, and other disciplines. Below are a selected sample of research areas where University of Maryland researchers are discovering new knowledge, contributing fearless ideas for innovation, and achieving societal impact.


Researchers discussing flooding

Climate Change

UMD researchers are addressing environmental and energy challenges through a unique approach, combining natural and social science research with sustainable technologies. UMD researchers contribute to actionable science, offering policy makers direct data to help them make decisions about how to adapt to the conditions of our evolving environment.

Learn More about Climate Change Research
Quantum computer lasers running during an experiment

Quantum Research

The University of Maryland is an established powerhouse of quantum discovery and innovation. With over 200 researchers on campus, partnerships with government laboratories, strong connections with industry and an international research network, UMD and its partners are leading the United States and global community into a quantum future.

Learn More about Quantum Research
Young girl holds hands with a robot at a market.

AI and Data Science

The University of Maryland has world-class expertise in these areas, including: machine learning, statistics, data visualization, natural language processing, algorithms, social scientific theory and analysis, and others.

Learn More about AI & Data Science Research
padlock icon on a blue circuit board

National Security

UMD researchers are engaged in intensive research on a range of national security issues, including better understanding the causes and consequences of terrorism, how to respond to it, and how to proactively address future threats to help prevent potential terrorist activity.

Learn More about National Security Research
COVID-19 virus

Health

Our laboratories and research programs are making a difference in critical areas, from understanding how respiratory viruses spread through air to climate change’s impacts on health, physical activity’s benefits to aging brains, innovative approaches to treating cancer, and advancing health equity, among others.

Learn More about Health Research
Frederick Douglass Square at the University of Maryland

Social Justice

Our research across disciplines focuses on a variety of topics, including social policies and reforms, policing, the criminal justice system, sentencing and incarceration, voting and social movements, health equity, work and the economy, family, violence, the arts and humanities, geography, and climate.

Learn More about Social Justice Research
Back to Top