Research Strategy 2020 - 2025

We will carry out research that transforms lives, addressing fundamental global and societal challenges by:

• Offering research opportunities for staff and students
• Engaging the community in impactful research
• Adapting flexibly to research partnerships

1. Develop a diverse community of research engaged staff, students and innovators

• Further develop our multidisciplinary thematic approach to research to achieve diversity and staff engagement, providing appropriate space and facilities.
• Extend and enhance our successful researcher development programme operated through the Doctoral College to support all research students and research-engaged staff.
• Increase the research student supervisory capacity for traditional, industrial and professional doctoral programmes.
• Recognise, support and reward staff and students to conduct innovative research and to develop new products and services.

2. Deliver teaching enriched by research

• Further promote and provide training for research enriched teaching together with sharing of good practice through our Learning and Teaching Innovation Centre.
• Encourage and develop cutting edge curricula informed and shaped by our research.
• Facilitate the outcomes of research being readily shared in a classroom environment.

3. Develop a multidisciplinary whole community research-rich culture that fosters intellectual curiosity

• Promote multidisciplinary research within broader strategic themes addressing key global challenges.
• Develop and enhance the university and our stakeholder communities through a range of events which promote intellectual engagement and inquiry.
• Ensure an experience of exposure to, and engagement with research for all students.

4. Develop sustainable global partnerships that address societal and industrial priorities and grow our global research profile

• Build on and strengthen our network of strategic global partnerships to address key societal and industrial challenges.
• Increase funding from a diversity of international sources either as institutional bids or as part of national and international consortia.
• Increase funded research collaboration with strategic commercial partners world-wide.

5. Encourage research outcomes that are impactful, accessible and widely communicated

• Facilitate external stakeholder engagement at every stage in the research life cycle.
• Support the engagement of a diverse public throughout the duration of our research enquiries.
• Develop robust communication channels with a variety of different platforms to share widely the outcomes of our research.

6. Champion a community of learning, thought and knowledge

• Advocate research as a fundamental part of the University’s mission in all our corporate communications.
• Support researchers at every stage of their development with time and resource to create a sustainable community of learning, thought and knowledge.
• Engage local, regional, national and international communities with our research.