School Research Strategies Simon J Lovatt Director, Research & Enterprise | Office of the Vice-Chancellor
The Univ he Univer ersity sity has has an o an over erall all Str Strate tegy y and and a R a Resear esearch h Plan Plan Research Plan 2018-2021 1. Improved quality and quantum of University research 2. Increased income from Research and Development activities 3. Mātauranga Māori in Waikato Research 4. Research excellence embedded in academic programmes ... but the Research Plan applies to the whole university and it is not obvious to individual researchers what they should do to align with that plan. Hence ...
The Univ he Univer ersity sity Resear esearch h Plan r Plan requir equires es tha that eac t each Sc h Schools de hools develops elops a plan tha a plan that • identifies a few key areas of focus for • encourages cross-School research research in the School where we have relationships and builds linkages with or plan to build national leadership and collaborators outside the University. international recognition • sets its own standards of what it • includes actions to develop the considers to be a suitable level of excellence and impact of each research production of academic research, per area over the next five to ten years, and level of appointment. develop research-area-specific • aligns (where applicable) with School measures of both excellence and operating targets in terms of impact to track improvements over time. student:staff ratios, teaching loads and • includes actions to build capability and external research income so that they capacity, in terms of both staff and are consistent with sustainability and postgraduate students, to support those future potential funding levels, includes research areas. sufficient time for staff to carry out their research roles, and establishes clear • develops a plan to increase doctorate timeframes over which those targets and research masters enrolments and must be met (in alignment with the thesis completions. Academic Plan 2017-2019) • identifies key stakeholders, industry and • thus leads to excellent research, research partners and end-users and creates benefits for NZ and regional has actions to engage and grow our stakeholders and the research relationships with these groups. community, and provides sustainable growth of external income to support staff and postgraduate research.
Challenges Challenges and Benefits and Benefits Challenges Benefits • Gaining agreement in a School to • Builds research strength in make strategic choices of a few particular areas, hence citations, focus areas has been hard for reputation, become known as the some Schools place to come for those research areas (for industry, collaborators) • Reluctance to set (or difficulty to etc. agree on) specific, measurable • Helps in making academic hiring targets (for excellence, level of production of research, etc.) and asset purchasing decisions • Academic staff outside the focus • Helps with resource allocation for areas may feel left out Research Office because we can support a few focus areas rather than the individual interests of dozens of academic staff
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