University Of Illinois

The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, operating as the University of Illinois, is a major public land-grant research institution that receives federal funding as a prime recipient and sub-recipient across research contracts, federal grants, and R&D service contracts spanning basic and applied science, engineering, life sciences, and clinical research.

The University of Illinois operates as a state-controlled institution of higher learning and does not compete under set-asides; all awards are full-and-open or merit-based peer review. As a 1862 land-grant college, the institution has statutory authority to conduct federally funded research and pursue cooperative agreements with federal agencies. Recent activity shows broad customer concentration: the National Science Foundation leads by award count (2,330 awards), while NASA's Shared Services Center anchors the dollar ranking at $135.1 million combined potential value across 458 awards. The Department of the Army (806 awards), the Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (462 awards), and the National Institutes of Health (437 awards) round out the top five customers. The top five agencies account for 39% of recent awards; by dollars, they account for 42% of combined potential value. NASA and the Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center stand out in the dollar view, with $135.1 million and $67.8 million respectively, reflecting a concentration in large-scale infrastructure and space science research rather than the volume-driven pattern at NSF.

The University of Illinois holds a position on at least five large indefinite delivery contracts and basic ordering agreements, including Indefinite Delivery Contract F0160079D0258 (65 task orders, $1.8 million combined potential value), Basic Ordering Agreement GS05B17639 (61 task orders, $8.4 million), and Indefinite Delivery Contract DACA8899D0002 (42 task orders). These vehicles place the institution in the pool for competitive task order awards across Army, Air Force, and civilian agency customers.

Activity has been volatile: award counts peaked at 686 in 2024, dropped to 492 in 2025, and have settled at 3 awards so far in 2027 (a snapshot effect reflecting the January 15, 2027 source data cutoff). The 595 awards maturing in the next 24 months (combined potential value $44 million) signal modest recompete exposure relative to the institution's overall scale. Over the past five fiscal years, awards per year have averaged in the low to mid-400s.

The University of Illinois operates as a prime contractor on 93% of recent awards and as a subcontractor on 7%, signaling a prime-heavy posture. Service Contract Inventory data covering FY2022–FY2025 shows $13.7 million in reportable invoiced revenue across 46 prime records and 8 sub records, with FTEs ranging from 4.6 (FY2023) to 12.3 (FY2025). Median government-paid rates on SCI-reportable contracts ran around $135.89 per hour, with senior labor pricing reaching the 90th percentile at $823.51 per hour and entry-level work at the 10th percentile around $64.58 per hour. Across SCI-reportable prime contracts, subcontractors supplied roughly 18% of total contractor hours on average, and the institution engaged 32 named subcontractors; this pattern indicates the University builds much of its own delivery workforce but maintains a supplementary sub-reliance model for specialized services.

Named federal contract awards reflect the institution's research footprint: a $490,000 Federal Railroad Administration contract for rail safety research on curve stress assessment (firm fixed price, completion October 2028), a $476,755 FRA contract for rail stress adjustment innovation (completion October 2028), and a $625,000 Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate award for multi-agency communication capability development (completion September 2027). Recent NSF awards include $896,601 for AI assurance infrastructure and workforce development in trustworthy AI for scientific research, $422,457 for undergraduate computing accessibility curriculum development, and $1.5 million for Cardinal, an open-source framework for multiphysics simulation of energy systems. The National Institutes of Health portfolio includes awards for neural circuit mapping ($757,625), brain-metabolite imaging ($882,709), neuropeptidomics ($113,211), and influenza neuraminidase vaccine development ($3,068,770). The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture has funded beef cattle digital phenotyping ($650,000), sweetpotato imaging technology ($649,986), corn immune system research ($1,000,000), and a data-driven gait analysis system for beef cattle ($1,000,000). The institution also holds Cooperative Agreements with the Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy ($5.021 million for NSAVE Maize nitrous oxide reduction), the Defense Health Agency ($750,000 for aprepitant cancer research), the Department of Energy Office of Cyber Security ($1.942 million for electric cooperative cybersecurity support), and the Department of the Air Force ($227,180 cooperative agreement for bat diet characterization at Arnold Air Force Base).

Federal grant work is substantial. Recent examples include NSF awards for AI assurance infrastructure ($896,601), software-engineering agents ($530,000), AI attribution and curation ($660,307), autonomous vehicle safety ($900,000), quantum materials ($200,000), and data streaming systems ($800,000). National Institutes of Health grants span neuroscience, immunology, structural biology, and drug development. The Department of Agriculture NIFA portfolio supports agriculture, food security, animal health, and rural broadband. The institution also receives funding from the Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse for education, accessibility, and public health research.

The University operates multiple campuses and research centers, including the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (the predominant federal award recipient in this portfolio), the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Illinois at Springfield. Sub-entities include University of Illinois Research Park LLC (a for-profit limited liability company), Prairieland Energy Inc., and the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park LLC. These corporate structures reflect diversified research commercialization and real-estate holding strategies typical of major research universities.

The institution does not compete under set-asides and operates across a portfolio spanning basic research (particularly in physical sciences, life sciences, and engineering), applied research and exploratory development, clinical research, and educational innovation. Its customer base spans civilian and defense agencies, with particular strength in NSF, NASA, NIH, USDA, and DoD research portfolios. The recompete cliff of $44 million over the next 24 months is modest relative to the $627.1 million in combined potential value across the full award portfolio, indicating a mature and diversified federal research funding base with manageable competitive renewal risk in the near term.