The male-dominated makeup of the industry partners who are meant to lead the commercialisation of research could undermine the work towards gender equity in Australian universities.
Australia has world-class research but low rates of research commercialisation by global standards. The scale and cultural focus of the government’s plan mean it could have an impact on this problem.
The question for universities is no longer whether to offer work-integrated learning but how to do it well, especially now that digital technology has expanded the scale of what is possible.
The lack of dedicated funding and support for research commercialisation, on top of the other obstacles academics face, means Australia’s poor performance is no mystery.
The federal government is right to focus on improving Australian universities’ success rate in commercialising research, but can take specific steps itself to help achieve this.
Government incentives might boost the numbers of collaborative research projects, but academics also must work on their relationships with industry practitioners to ensure everyone contributes fully.
The freeze on university funding not only limits opportunities for students, it puts limitations on the communities unis serve, the economy, and business interested in forming collaborations.
To make graduates employable and close the training gap, we need to strengthen links to industry and pay attention to the changing needs of businesses.
The innovation report fails to mention the risk of bias for researchers collaborating with industry. We must ensure that researchers maintain their independence.
With graduate employment at its lowest since records began in the 1980s, universities are trying to come up with ways to make their graduates more attractive to employers. One common way is involving employers in their teaching solutions, but this has rarely worked.
The Departments of Education and Industry jointly released a paper, Boosting the Commercial Returns from Research, this morning. While somewhat short on details, the document clarifies that the Commonwealth…
Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane this month suggested that the funding of research grants to universities should be decided on the basis of the number of patents generated rather than the number of academic…
Senior Lecturer, School of Archaeology and Anthropology; Director, Australian National Centre for Latin American Studies, Australian National University