A total of 194 current and former University of Nebraska–Lincoln researchers rank among the world’s most influential scientists, according to the 2026 Stanford/Elsevier Top 2% Scientists list.
The annual publication identifies researchers whose published work has had significant influence in their fields, as measured by citations from other scholars. Inclusion indicates that a researcher’s work ranks among the most frequently cited in their discipline worldwide.
Current and former Nebraska researchers and affiliates on the 2026 ranking include 73 from the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources; 59 from the College of Arts and Sciences; 40 from the College of Engineering; 16 from the College of Education and Human Sciences; three from the College of Business; two from the College of Architecture; and one from the College of Law.
The complete list, organized by college, is available below. Because researchers’ institutional affiliations in the database can vary, some Nebraska researchers may not be listed under the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Researchers included in the Elsevier rankings but not on the list below should contact Troy Fedderson at [email protected] or 402-472-8515.
The rankings draw on publication and citation data from Scopus, an international research database. The 2026 update includes career-long research impact through 2025, as well as citations received in 2025.
The analysis considers several measures, including total citations, h-index, co-authorship-adjusted impact and researchers’ positions on published papers. These measures are combined into a composite indicator, known as the c-score, to assess research influence.
Researchers are classified across 20 scientific fields and 174 subfields. The database includes the top 100,000 scientists by composite score, as well as researchers who rank in the top 2% of their respective subfields. The 2026 edition is based on an Aug. 1, 2026, snapshot of Scopus data.
Citation rankings provide one measure of research influence but do not capture every aspect of research quality or impact. Nebraska researchers also contribute to advances in agriculture, health, engineering, technology and other areas that affect communities in Nebraska and beyond.
Stanford University and Elsevier, a Netherlands-based information and analytics company, collaborate on the annual database. The project is led by Stanford professor John P.A. Ioannidis and uses Scopus data to compile standardized citation indicators for researchers worldwide.
Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources
- Muhammad Ahmad, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Farhad Alavi, Food Science and Technology
- James R. Alfano, Plant Pathology
- Craig R. Allen, Natural Resources
- Timothy J. Arkebauer, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Todd W. Arnold, Natural Resources
- P. Stephen Baenziger, Agronomy and Horticulture (emeritus)
- Andrea D. Basche, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Andrew K. Benson, Food Science and Technology
- Paul N. Black, Biochemistry
- Humberto Blanco-Canqui, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Bruce W. Brodersen, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Tami M. Brown-Brandl, Biological Systems Engineering
- Nicole R. Buan, Biochemistry
- Lloyd B. Bullerman, Food Science and Technology
- Edgar Cahoon, Biochemistry
- Kenneth G. Cassman, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Xun-Hong Chen, Natural Resources
- Thomas Elmo Clemente, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Saurav Das, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Edward C. Deehan, Food Science and Technology
- Gordon E. Dickerson, Animal Science
- Richard B. Ferguson, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Samodha C. Fernando, Animal Science
- Charles Andrew Francis, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Rodrigo Franco, Biochemistry
- John A. Gammon, Natural Resources
- Hernán Garcia-Ruiz, Plant Pathology
- Anatoly A. Gitelson, Natural Resources
- Richard E. Goodman, Food Science and Technology
- Patricio Grassini, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Milford A. Hanna, Biological Systems Engineering
- Bethany M. Henrick, Food Science and Technology
- Gary W. Hergert, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Glenn J. Hoffman, Biological Systems Engineering
- Robert W. Hutkins, Food Science and Technology
- Amit J. Jhala, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Terry J. Klopfenstein, Animal Science
- Stevan Z̆. Knežević, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Robert M. Koch, Animal Science
- Paul J. Kononoff, Animal Science
- L. Mark Lagrimini, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Austin J. Lewis, Animal Science
- John L. Lindquist, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Marjorie F. Lou, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Silvana Martini, Food Science and Technology
- David Scott McVey, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Jeffrey P. Mower, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Christopher Michael Usher Neale, Biological Systems Engineering
- Toshihiro Obata, Biochemistry
- Gary E. Pickard, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- James F. Power, Agricultural Research Division
- Thomas O. Powers, Plant Pathology
- Karl J. Reinhard, Natural Resources
- Devin J. Rose, Food Science and Technology
- Donald C. Rundquist, Natural Resources
- Daniel P. Schachtman, Agronomy and Horticulture
- James S. Schepers, Agronomy and Horticulture
- James C. Schnable, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Khem M. Shahani, Food Science and Technology
- James E. Specht, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Paul E. Staswick, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Steven L. Taylor, Food Science and Technology
- Harkamal Walia, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Brian D. Wardlow, Natural Resources
- Brian M. Waters, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Donald P. Weeks, Biochemistry
- Donald A. Wilhite, Natural Resources
- Mark Alan Wilson, Biochemistry
- Richard A. Wilson, Plant Pathology
- Charles S. Wortmann, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Haishun Yang, Agronomy and Horticulture
- Yanbin Bin Yin, Food Science and Technology
Architecture
- Zhenghong Tang, Community and Regional Planning
- Kevin G. van den Wymelenberg, Architecture
Arts and Sciences
- Luchezar L. Avramov, Mathematics
- Zoya V. Avramova, Biological Sciences
- Alexandra L. Basolo, Biological Sciences
- Kirill D. Belashchenko, Physics and Astronomy
- Robert D. Benford, Sociology
- Rick A. Bevins, Psychology
- Christian Binek, Physics
- Brian H. Bornstein, Psychology
- Paul D. Burrow, Physics and Astronomy
- Heriberto D. Cerutti, Biological Sciences
- David D. DiLillo, Psychology
- Peter A. Dowben, Physics and Astronomy
- Stephen P. Ducharme, Physics and Astronomy
- Patrick H. Dussault, Chemistry
- Lynn H. Erbe, Mathematics
- James L. Van Etten, Chemistry
- Ilya I. Fabrikant, Physics and Astronomy
- Sherilyn C. Fritz, Biological Sciences
- Alexei L. Gruverman, Physics and Astronomy
- David S. Hage, Chemistry
- Eileen A. Hebets, Biological Sciences
- John R. Hibbing, Political Science
- Xia Hong, Physics and Astronomy
- Margaret D. Jacobs, History
- Sitaram S. Jaswal, Physics and Astronomy
- Jody Koenig Kellas, Communication Studies
- Johannes Knops, Biological Sciences
- Alexey A. Kovalev, Physics and Astronomy
- Andrey L. Kutepov, Physic and Astronomy
- Rebecca Y. Lai, Chemistry
- Paul Larson, Physics and Astronomy
- Hui Li, Chemistry
- David B. Loope, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
- Tierney K. Lorenz, Psychology
- Svata Louda, Biological Sciences
- Robert A. Neimeyer, Psychology
- Kenneth W. Nickerson, Biological Sciences
- Allan C. Peterson, Mathematics
- Robert Powers, Chemistry
- Suchada Rajca, Chemistry
- M. Eugene Rudd, Physics and Astronomy
- James A.R. Samson, Physics and Astronomy
- Philip Schwadel, Sociology
- David J. Sellmyer, Physics and Astronomy
- Alexander S. Sinitskii, Chemistry
- Ralph Skomski, Physics and Astronomy
- Kevin B. Smith, Political Science
- Norman D. Smith, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
- Anthony F. Starace, Physics and Astronomy
- Jay F. Storz, Biological Sciences
- Evgeny Tsymbal, Physics and Astronomy
- Kimberly A. Tyler, Sociology
- Peter J. Wagner, Biological Sciences
- Les B. Whitbeck, Sociology
- Lynn K. White, Sociology
- Lareesa Wolfenbarger, Biological Sciences
- Kazuo Yamazaki, Mathematics
- Anthony J. Zera, Biological Sciences
- Vitaly A. Zlotnik, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Business
- Fred Luthans, Management
- Janet P. Near, Management
- Walter W. Stroup, Statistics
Education and Human Sciences
- Beth Doll, Educational Psychology
- Katie M. Edwards, Educational Psychology
- Michael H. Epstein, Special Education and Communication Disorders
- Matthew S. Fritz, Educational Psychology
- Michelle L. Hughes, Special Education and Communication Disorders
- Mary Ann Johnson, Nutrition and Health Sciences
- Kenneth A. Kiewra, Educational Psychology
- John W. Maag, Special Education and Communication Disorders
- J. Ron Nelson, Special Education and Communication Disorders
- Robert C. Reid, Special Education and Communication Disorders
- Susan M. Sheridan, Educational Psychology
- Susan M. Swearer, Educational Psychology
- Richard J. Torraco, Educational Administration
- Joseph C. Witt, Buros Center for Testing
- Yiqi Q. Yang, Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design
- Janos Zempleni, Nutrition and Health Sciences
Engineering
- Vitaly E. Alexandrov, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Ezekiel Bahar, Electrical Engineering
- John P. Barton, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Millard F. Beatty, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Florin Bobaru, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Kevin D. Cole, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Bai Cui, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Jitender S. Deogun, Computer Science and Engineering
- Yaşar Ar Demirel, Chemical and Molecular Engineering
- Yuris A. Dzenis, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Qilin Guo, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Jerry L. Hudgins, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Qing Hui, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Sanjay Kumar, Architectural Engineering and Construction
- Jung Yul Lim, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Wei Qiao Liyan, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Yongfeng Lu, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- George Morcous, Architectural Engineering and Construction
- Michael A. Nastasi, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Juveriya Parmar, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Massimiliano Pierobon, Computer Science and Engineering
- Liyan Qu, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Byrav Ramamurthy, Computer Science and Engineering
- Chittaranjan Ray, Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Peter Revesz, Computer Science and Engineering
- Ashok K. Samal, Computer Science and Engineering
- Ravi F. Saraf, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Khalid Sayood, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Leen Kiat-Soh, Computer Science and Engineering
- Eli A. Sutter, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Peter W. Sutter, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Rao Y. Surampalli, Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Christopher Tuan, Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Joseph Alan Turner, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Mehmet Can Vuran, Computer Science and Engineering
- Jian Wang, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- John A. Woollam, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Lin Wu, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Jiashi Yang, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Kuan Zhang, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Law
- Frans von der Dunk, Space Law
Source: news.unl.edu
