“Real” costs of research not met by funding available to universities.
Although more opportunity exists for university-based researchers to be innovative, and there is more financial support for innovation than ever before, the cost of university research is rising to new levels and presents a serious funding problem. The “real costs” of research—costs that include indirect costs—often extend far beyond support from a university’s central research office and are almost never covered by funding. As a result, the aggressive research agendas set by universities have costs that often outweigh the ultimate revenue universities hope to gain from research.
The paper appears in the current special issue of Technology and Innovation- Proceedings of the National Academy of Inventors®
“There is a significant gap between the real costs of university research and the funding that is available to support university research,” said Karen Holbrook, former president of The Ohio State University. “Greater administrative financial support is needed for investigators and new, external funding sources need to be explored to pay for indirect costs, such as staff, equipment, educational resources, and travel.”
University-based research is vitally important to the communities served by universities, said the authors, and needs to continue at high levels.
According to co-author Dr. Paul R. Sanberg, distinguished university professor and senior vice president for research and innovation at the University of South Florida (USF), externally-funded research dollars are of great value to the community when the “imported money” translates into more highly skilled, high-wage jobs, the sales of goods and services and expertise that can be accessed by the community.
“University-based medical research is a case in point,” said Sanberg. “This research saves and extends lives, and the universities conducting this kind of research are often key to companies relocating to the area.”
However, aggressive research agendas need adequate financial support, and Holbrook and Sanberg want to see university central research offices do better when it comes to a number of fundraising-related functions, such as resource acquisition and management, marketing the university, building external relationships, institutional investment, and institutional accountability, performance, and productivity.
The authors also list external revenue sources that can be tapped to support university-based research, including state, federal, and private sources; special state support (such as tobacco settlement or oil spill-related dollars); equity ownership in startup; and small companies housed at university business incubators.
Holbrook and Sanberg also call for a university’s central research office to be more aware of current issues in higher education; account better for time, money, and activities related to research; place greater emphasis on entrepreneurism; and be more proactive at developing strategic partnerships within the academy as well as locally and globally.
The Latest on: Costs of research at universities
via Google News
The Latest on: Costs of research at universities
- Texas A&M regents vote to approve urban research campus in Fort Worthon May 19, 2022 at 4:09 pm
The Texas A&M Board of Regents gave initial approval to add an urban research campus in downtown Fort Worth that's being dubbed "Aggieland North." On Thursday, May 19 inside the Frost tower in ...
- Average cost of studying abroadon May 19, 2022 at 4:06 pm
The number of students who choose to study abroad has been on the rise, with more than 350,000 students studying abroad in 2018-19, according to Open Doors data. Most undergrads do a study abroad ...
- Chaminade University professor secures $100,000 federal granton May 19, 2022 at 4:06 pm
An associate professor at Chaminade University recently won a $100,000 grant from the United States Department of Education, Chaminade officials announced Thursday. Dr. Eva Washburn-Repollo — an ...
- ‘New Era of Health Care’: UH College of Medicine renamed in honor of Tilman Fertitta after $50M pledgeon May 19, 2022 at 2:37 pm
Prominent businessman Tilman J. Fertitta and his family have pledged $50 million to the University of Houston College of Medicine to ignite a new era of innovative and equitable health care in Houston ...
- Top 10 cheapest cities for university students revealed - and Newcastle is one of themon May 19, 2022 at 12:19 am
New research shows which university locations across the UK are the cheapest for students to live in - Newcastle comes in at number five ...
- The pandemic’s true health cost: how much of our lives has COVID stolen?on May 18, 2022 at 2:14 am
COVID-19 has killed an estimated 15 million people since it emerged at the end of 2019, but its impact on health reaches much further. For hundreds of millions of people around the world, infection ...
- Post-pandemic, four years of college steadily loses its appealon May 16, 2022 at 8:23 am
Between a strong jobs market and the rising cost of college, nearly three-quarters of high schoolers now say programs with a direct path to a career are key.
- Researchers identify the high costs of living with sickle cell diseaseon May 16, 2022 at 7:46 am
Americans ages 64 and younger with commercial health insurance who live with sickle cell disease (SCD) pay almost four times more in out-of-pocket medical costs over their lifetimes, a total of ...
- If governments were really concerned about tax and the cost of living they would cut the cost of childcareon May 12, 2022 at 5:57 pm
Angela Jackson has received funding to undertake research related to childcare costs and female participation ... and Gender Equity Victoria. Monash University and University of Melbourne provide ...
- 'We're struggling to pay for it': A student's perspective on the rising cost of collegeon May 9, 2022 at 2:39 pm
The cost of college is rising and the amount of tuition covered by financial aid is going down. A Wisconsin Policy Forum report investigates this trend. In 2002, Pell Grants and Wisconsin Grants ...
via Bing News