As the sole comprehensive public research university in the state's system of higher education, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, has the threefold mission of:

• providing for the instructional needs of New Jersey's citizens through its undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education programs;
  
  
• conducting the cutting-edge research that contributes to the medical, environmental, social and cultural well-being of the state, as well as aiding the economy and the state’s businesses and industries; and
  
  
• performing public service in support of the needs of the citizens of the state and its local, county, and state governments.

Each component of the university's mission reinforces and supports the other two. For example, research creates the new knowledge so necessary to support quality instruction and innovative public service. The mission of the university is accomplished through its three regional campuses (Camden, Newark, and New Brunswick/Piscataway) and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, which complement and support each other, permitting the most effective use of state resources.