UC San Diego highly cited professors Irene Litvan, Julian Schroeder, Ananda W. Goldrath, Prashant Mali; bottom row: highly cited professors Siavash Mirarab, Jennifer M. Dan, Douglas Galasko, and Daniela Weiskopf.

The University of California is North America’s leader in scientific research, according to Clarivate’s 2024 Highly Cited Researchers list, with 289 faculty and scientists from across all 10 campuses named among the most influential in their fields.

Clarivate awarded 6,886 Highly Cited Researcher designations to scientists and researchers around the globe this year. UC accounted for 4.4 percent of the world’s most frequently cited researchers — more than any other university or university system in the United States. UC also accounted for more than half (55 percent) of the 522 Highly Cited Researchers based in California.

To receive inclusion in Clarivate’s list, a researcher must author multiple papers that rank in the top 1 percent by citations in their field over the past decade. Few of the world’s scientists and social scientists make the cut — those on the list account for 1 in 1,000 of the world’s researchers and represent those whose work is at the leading edge of their discipline.

Learn about the recognized researchers at the UC Newsroom