Oakland University

Oakland University, a public research institution in Rochester, Michigan, acts as a federal grant recipient and prime contractor delivering basic and applied research, workforce training, and educational services across biomedical sciences, engineering, computer science, and materials science. The university competes predominantly in the full-and-open federal grant and contract landscape without set-aside designations, operating across 78 distinct federal customer agencies with a recent footprint of $11.6 million in combined potential value across 450 awards (427 prime, 23 sub).

Oakland's research portfolio concentrates in life sciences and engineering. Representative grant work includes a $619,838 NSF Faculty Early Career Development award from the Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CFDA 47.041) to investigate sulfur phases in energy storage systems, paired with undergraduate research and K-12 outreach; a $573,750 National Institute of General Medical Sciences award (CFDA 93.859) examining apical extracellular matrix regulation in tracheal tube development; a $1,087,979 NSF STEM Education grant (CFDA 47.076) providing scholarships and mentoring to 72 low-income STEM students across a six-institution consortium; and a $528,011 National Park Service Save America's Treasures award for conservation work at Meadow Brook Hall. Contract work includes a $82,054 Army Corps of Engineers firm-fixed-price contract for Microbial Source Tracking research on the Clinton River and a $44,000 NOAA purchase order for photopigment analysis supporting harmful algal bloom monitoring.

Customer concentration reflects heavy engagement with research funders rather than operational procurement. The National Science Foundation leads by award count (93 awards), followed by the Department of the Army (44 awards, $82 thousand combined potential value), and the Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health (25 awards). By dollar magnitude, the Army Materiel Command Contracting Command Detroit Arsenal anchors the portfolio with 13 awards worth $3.2 million combined potential value, while the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery maintains 23 awards worth $1.5 million—primarily tuition and fees delivery orders supporting military personnel education. The top five customers account for 44 percent of awards and 44 percent of combined potential value, with NSF representing the single largest source of research funding.

Oakland's vehicle footprint centers on research grant mechanisms rather than contract IDVs. The Basic Ordering Agreement N0018914GZ021 carries 21 task orders worth $1.5 million in combined potential value for Navy tuition-and-fees work. Four additional indefinite delivery contracts with the Army (DAAE0781C4058, DAAE0782C4024, DAAE0783CR052) and Navy (N0001477C0293) place smaller volumes. Most recent activity has declined modestly—28 awards in 2022 to 20 in 2025 and 6 in 2026 year-to-date—with 26 awards (combined potential value $126 thousand) reaching ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, creating modest recompete exposure.

Oakland's subcontractor role is minimal (5 percent of award volume). Recent sub-award positions include work with Auburn University on behavioral intervention optimization, the University of Iowa on offspring cardiovascular assessment protocols, and Michigan State University on particulate matter sensing and monitoring development. The university's sub-work tends to be collaborative rather than vendor-driven, supporting co-investigator roles in broader multi-site federal research initiatives.

The award portfolio reflects Oakland's identity as a research university. Award concentration in PSC codes R&D–Defense System Tank/Automotive (29 awards) and Education/Training–Tuition/Registration/Membership Fees (26 awards) signals dual exposure: engineering research aligned with regional automotive and defense priorities, and steady-state educational delivery to military and federal populations. NAICS concentration in Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (24 awards) and Administration of Education Programs (22 awards) confirms that Oakland operates primarily as an educational and research recipient, not as a service or product vendor. Obligated dollars ($286.2 million) vastly exceed potential value, indicating mature, ongoing grant and contract execution spanning decades—the source data spans awards from 1977 forward—rather than a pipeline of new procurements.