Research Infosource Inc. released its 2008 rankings of Canada's top 50 research universities on Wednesday, October 29 and, once again, McMaster placed among the country's best.

With a total sponsored research income of $346.3 million – up more than $15 million from last year – McMaster maintained its sixth position in the rankings.

In terms of research intensity – a measure of research income per full-time faculty member – McMaster placed third in the country, averaging nearly $294,000 per faculty member, well above the national average of $158,000 per faculty member.

The numbers are significant, according to Mo Elbestawi, McMaster's vice-president of research and international affairs, but it's the placement that really tells the story – a story, he says, is a direct result of the talented researchers who call McMaster home.

“We've more than held our own when it comes to competing with universities significantly larger than ours,” says Elbestawi. “This is a true testament to our Faculty, the people who attract the funding and who, collectively, have created a research enterprise that has earned McMaster national – indeed global – recognition as a research powerhouse.”

Research Infosource obtains its data from Statistics Canada and the Research Infosource Canadian R&D database.