The fourth and latest (KEF4) results have been published by Research England.聽
KEF4 provides a publicly available snapshot of the engagement of English universities with our economy and society, in a format that encourages universities to understand and improve on their performance.聽聽
The results highlight several areas of strength across BU鈥檚 knowledge exchange activities - especially for collaborative research with external partners, where the university聽has聽achieved an outcome of 鈥榟igh engagement鈥� and a position in the top 40% in England, outperforming the average position for similar universities.
This includes continued growth in the number of Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) over the last 12 months, doubling the number of projects from two to four. Project partners include both local and regional SME businesses which are all working in areas that will generate transformative, real-world impact.聽
For example, a current KTP project being led by Professor of Data Science Marcin Budka in partnership with digital platform ImproveWell will develop artificial intelligence models to turn feedback from frontline NHS workers into evidence to support decision-making and effective use of resources.
At the same time, BU has聽raised awareness of the KTP scheme among academics and industry partners, culminating in hosting Innovate UK's annual聽KTP Practitioners'聽Conference聽in June, which was attended by 200 people from across the UK HE sector, government, and the private sector.
The results of the KEF have been published in the form of聽institutional dashboards, with institutions measured against seven perspectives - including working with businesses, the public and the third sector; intellectual property and commercialisation; and public and community engagement.
BU鈥檚 performance is captured and compared as part of 鈥榗luster E鈥�, being large universities with a broad discipline portfolio across both STEM and non-STEM generating excellent research across all disciplines.
KEF4 shows overall improvement for BU in both collaborative research (high engagement) and CPD & Graduate Start-Ups (medium engagement) compared to 2023 results, and also reflects our consistent performance in all other perspectives measured, where we have maintained a medium engagement outcome.
Professor Keith Phalp, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Quality and Acting Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange at 天美传媒, said: 鈥淲e are proud to be a catalyst for growth, using our skills and expertise to support our region and enrich society.
鈥淭he KEF provides an opportunity to assess our progress in knowledge exchange and the impact of our work. It is great to recognise the contribution of our staff, students in supporting this work on a regional, national, and international scale and making a real difference to the world around us.鈥�
Visit the聽聽to view the institutional dashboards and find out more about the KEF.聽
