NMSU faculty named among world’s top research scientists

Stanford University and Elsevier named 50 NMSU faculty among the top 2 percent of scientists worldwide — up from 41 last year — reflecting the university’s expanding impact in research and discovery across disciplines.

NMSU faculty named among world’s top research scientists
(Josh Bachman / New Mexico State University)

Fifty NMSU faculty members rank among the world’s most cited researchers, marking a rise from 41 last year and underscoring the university’s growing global research profile.

Adriana M. Chávez, New Mexico State University

LAS CRUCES - Fifty researchers from New Mexico State University have been named among the top 2 percent of scientists worldwide, an increase compared to lists from previous years.

Last year, NMSU saw 41 of its researchers named to the list compiled by Stanford University and publishing company Elsevier.

“This recognition highlights the significant contributions NMSU faculty are making to scholarship and discovery worldwide,” said Patricia Sullivan, interim NMSU vice president of research, creativity and economic development. “It serves both as a milestone and a springboard, demonstrating the impact of their work across disciplines while reinforcing the importance of research in advancing knowledge, education and opportunity. The increase from 41 to 50 faculty ranked among the top 2 percent of scientists worldwide reflects the collective strength and growing visibility of NMSU’s research enterprise, and underscores NMSU’s rising recognition as a quality R1 university.”

Faculty members who rank in the top 2 percent for their career include Paul W. Bosland, Frank A. Ward and Paul De Ley from the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences; Andrew Conway, Michael Engelhardt, Matthias Burkardt, Gary A. Eiceman, Kathryn A. Hanley, David Trafimow and Stefan Zollner from the College of Arts and Sciences; Abdessattar Abdelkefi, Thomas A. Manz, Jay I. Frankel, Nirmala Khandan, Pei Xu and Finley Charney from the College of Engineering; and Jagdish Khubchandani and Kimberly Oliver from the College of Health, Education and Social Transformation.

Faculty members who rank in the top 2 percent for 2024 include Bosland, Ward, De Ley, Brandon T. Bestelmeyer, Rajan Ghimire and Djaman Koffi from the College of ACES; Ranjit Koodali from the Graduate School; Burkardt, Conway, Trafimow, Hanley and Jon Holtzman, from the College of Arts and Sciences; Abdelkefi, Voelz, Manz, Xu, Raja Jayaraman, Catherine E. Brewer and Di Shi from the College of Engineering; and Oliver, Khubchandani and Michael Kalkbrenner from the College of HEST.

The list also contained NMSU faculty members who are now retired, no longer with the university, or have passed away. They include Jinfa Zhang, Jeffrey B. Arterburn, Zohrab A. Samani, David G. Voelz ,Hung T. Nguyen, James W. Herndon, Greg H. Mack, Jaime Ramirez-Angulo, David M. Boje, Walter G. Whitford, Robert Jenness, William Weber, Thomas Schmugge, Walter G. Stephan, Anatoly Klypin, Leon Radziemski, Hermann Wollnik, Wayne Van Voorhies, Albert Rango, Matthew E. Gompper, Vincent Gutschick, P. J. Wierenga, and Igor Sevostianov.

“I’m honored to be recognized again among the top 2 percent of scientists worldwide. This recognition reflects not only my own work but also the support of my colleagues and students at NMSU who inspire and challenge me every day,” said Ward, a Distinguished Achievement Professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business who has been at NMSU since 1978. “My career here at NMSU has focused on understanding how societies can manage water and climate challenges more efficiently and fairly. Being recognized on this list is gratifying because it shows that work on these critical issues is resonating internationally, and it highlights NMSU’s role in addressing some of the world’s most pressing problems.”

Stanford professor John P.A. Ioannidis directed the creation of the database, which ranks the most cited authors across all scientific disciplines. The database classifies the publications in 22 scientific fields with 174 subfields and is publicly available.

In another milestone, based on data reported by Google Scholar, NMSU now has more than 50 scholars who have received more than 5,000 citations for their research publications, and more than 200 scholars who have been cited at least 1,000 times for their published research across their careers.

Adriana M. Chávez writes for New Mexico State University Marketing and Communications and can be reached at 575-646-1957, or by email at adchavez@nmsu.edu.

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