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The '''State Farm Research and Development Center''' opened in January 2005 at the Research Park of the [[University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign]]. The insurance company [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] has been involved in academic programming, student assistance and research at U of I for over 35 years, but this facility allows for of college [[intern]]s working on projects to benefit the company as a whole, while students get to apply what they learn in class to business problems.<ref>[http://www.sfresearchcenter.com/index.htm State Farm Research Center]</ref>

==Departments and Majors==
The Research & Development Center (RDC) is located about {{convert|50|mi|km}} from [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]]’s Corporate Headquarters making it easy to communicate back and forth on projects. This location allows [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] associates to interact with the campus community and provide real-world education opportunities to students.<ref>[http://www.researchpark.uiuc.edu/resources/tenantprofiles/?ID=57 University of Illinois Research Park]{{Dead link|date=May 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref><ref>[http://www.statefarm.com/about/careers/career_areas/plan_research.asp State Farm]</ref> The RDC houses three main departments or areas. The Actuary works with pricing insurance, Systems works with [[information technology]], and Strategic Resources department works with corporate research functions.<ref>[https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/ro/www/ActuarialScienceClub/state_farm_research_center.htm University of Illinois Actuarial Science Club]{{Dead link|date=May 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref>  There are also interns working in the MAGNet program.

The Research & Development Center hires [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]] students for fall, spring, and summer [[intern]]ships from a variety of majors and backgrounds. The RDC started with 16 [[intern]]s and four full-time staff members,<ref>Arney, Steve (2004, November 30). “Insurer gains partner at U of I”. The Pantagraph</ref> but has expanded to house up to 70 [[intern]]s and 14 full-time staff.<ref>[http://sfresearchcenter.com/interns_staff.htm State Farm Research Center]</ref> Some of the majors that have been employed at the RDC are [[Actuarial Science]], [[Statistics]], [[Computer Science]], [[Accountancy]], [[Engineering]], [[Mathematics]], [[Finance]], [[Economics]], [[Media Studies]], [[Communication]], [[Advertising]], [[Marketing]], [[Business administration|Business Administration]], [[Urban Planning]], [[Political Science]], and [[Psychology]]. The RDC paid [[intern]]ship runs [[Part-time job|part-time]] around 10–15 hours/week during the fall and spring semesters, and full-time in the summer.

==Expansion==
In 2006, the Research and Development Center facility doubled in size, to nearly {{convert|6000|sqft|m2}}.<ref>Miller, Scott (2006, February 18). “State Farm increases commitment to research at U of I”. The Pantagraph, A14</ref> 2007 saw more growth as the Center for Consumer Feedback opened adding another {{convert|3400|sqft|m2}}.<ref>[http://www.sfresearchcenter.com/aboutus/history.htm State Farm Research Center]</ref>

In January 2007, [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] was announced as a Private Sector Partner for the [[National Center for Supercomputing Applications]] (NCSA) located at U of I.<ref>[http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/News/07/0126NCSAadds.html NCSA]</ref> [[Intern]]s began working Research Center [[intern]]ships located at NCSA the following summer and continue on today.

In the fall of 2009 the Research & Development Center underwent a major expansion adding over {{convert|8600|sqft|m2}}.<ref>TED Update. {{cite web |url=http://www.vpted.uillinois.edu/PDFs/Reports/BOT%20TED%20FY09%20Q3%20FINAL%2004%2024%202009.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2010-02-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100609223849/http://www.vpted.uillinois.edu/PDFs/Reports/BOT%20TED%20FY09%20Q3%20FINAL%2004%2024%202009.pdf |archive-date=2010-06-09 }}</ref>

==MAGNet==
Students have an opportunity to apply analytical skills to [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] business issues through MAGNet, short for the Modeling and Analytic Graduate Network. Students in MAGNet are expected to enroll in a new master's curriculum created via a relationship between State Farm and the U of I's Statistics Department. MAGNet is similar to a 50% graduate assistantship as students work at the Research & Development Center 20 hours per week during academic semesters and receive a pay rate similar to that of graduate assistants at the university. Students are also offered tuition assistance while working in MAGNet. Those staying on in the summer will work [[Full-time job|full time]] and receive higher pay. Interested students apply in the fall of their senior year and begin work the summer before their [[Graduate school|graduate program]] begins.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stat.uiuc.edu/MagnetBrief.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2008-04-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511144746/http://www.stat.uiuc.edu/MagnetBrief.pdf |archive-date=2008-05-11 }}</ref>

==Center for Consumer Feedback==
Another portion of the Research & Development Center is the Center for Consumer Feedback (CCF). This part of the Research & Development Center mostly hires students or community members on a part-time basis and not as part of an [[intern]]ship.  The center collects [[marketing research|consumer research]] via phone and online surveys. Hiring processes for the CCF are conducted through [[Spherion]].<ref>[http://www.sfresearchcenter.com/opportunities.htm# State Farm Research Center]</ref>

==Name Change==
In the second half of 2009 the State Farm Research Center officially changed its name to the State Farm Research and Development Center. The addition of "and Development" came about from a natural evolution in the work being done at the center. When founded in 2005, most interns produced whitepapers based on Internet and other types of research. However, by 2009 Research Center interns were also frequently involved in developing application prototypes. The focus had shifted from pure research activities to research and development.

==Recognition==
[[Computerworld]] selected [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] as one of the top 100 workplaces for information technology (IT) professionals in its 2008 rankings. Research completed at the Research & Development Center is cited as one of the major reasons to work there.

This year's rankings were based on a comprehensive questionnaire regarding company offerings in categories such as benefits, diversity, [[career development]], training, and retention. In addition to this year's company portion of the survey, Computerworld randomly surveyed employees to collect data on employee satisfaction with management, benefits, workplace culture, compensation, and job duties.
<ref>[http://www.computerworld.com/spring/bp/detail/67 Computerworld Article.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924122608/http://www.computerworld.com/spring/bp/detail/67 |date=2008-09-24 }}</ref>

This is the second year in a row [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] has been named in these rankings.

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* [http://sfresearchcenter.com/ State Farm Research Center]
* [http://www.statefarm.com State Farm]
* [http://www.statefarm.com/bank/bank.asp State Farm Bank]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080509160318/http://www.researchpark.uiuc.edu/ Research Park at the University of Illinois]
{{State Farm|state=expanded}}
{{University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign campus}}

[[Category:University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign centers and institutes]]
[[Category:State Farm]]
[[Category:2005 establishments in Illinois]]