Baylor University calls upon scholars to unite strength of character, wisdom of mind and the power of action to advance knowledge that serves humanity. Here compassion, innovation and ethical inquiry converge to address the world’s greatest challenges, transforming research into action and purpose into enduring good for all.
From humble beginnings as a pioneering Texas university more than 180 years ago, to its present status as a global research university, Baylor is distinct as one of just 52 private R1 institutions and the largest protestant R1 university in the nation.
What does this mean?
Throughout campus, Baylor faculty and students utilize their God-given gifts and passions to address the world’s greatest challenges through research. Their work and its impact are “Baylor in Deed” to those who benefit from those efforts.
“An action orientation is important to Baylor. Being a Christian research university is not just theoretical. It's about impact, and making a difference in the world, in people's lives, and in communities and beyond,” President Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D., says. “Baylor has been intentional in setting the course for greater global engagement and impact.”
To that end, Baylor’s investment in research has nearly tripled in the last seven years – from $29.4 million in 2016-17 to the more than $82 million in 2023 – with research doctorates more than doubling from 110 to 227 in that same time frame. The result of that investment is a dramatic uptick in research productivity, enhanced infrastructure, and significant growth in research staff, highlighted by nearly 50 new endowed faculty positions.
In the years ahead, Baylor In Deeds, the University’s strategic plan, charts a course for increased interdisciplinary research focus that builds on the University’s strengths, expands emerging areas of study and captures the energy of Baylor’s location in the burgeoning Texas Triangle.
Baylor Research is ultimately grounded in our University mission, compelled by a call to serve neighbors close to home and around the world — a reach reflected in the University motto, which reads Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, Pro Mundo: “For the Church, for Texas, for the World.”