Centennial College continues to grow its applied research portfolio with a 17 percent rise in research income for a total value of $6,364,000 in 2016 – a healthy increase that places the Toronto college eighth in Canada, up from ninth last year, according to Research Infosource’s annual ranking of Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges.
The Top 50 survey provides strong evidence that public colleges are making great inroads in applied research activity, often in partnership with commercial enterprises looking for assistance in pursuing research to bring new products and services to market. Together, the country’s leading colleges garnered a combined research income of $201.7 million in 2016, a gain of 20.2 percent over the previous year, according to Research Infosource Inc.
“Significant growth can be attributed to the founding of our Wearable, Interactive and Mobile Technology Access Centre for Health (WIMTACH),” says Dr. Deepak Gupta, Executive Director of Applied Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Services at Centennial. “As a dedicated Technology Access Centre, WIMTACH has undertaken several projects related to digital health and innovation with a variety of companies and public health institutions.”
“These projects include growing industry contributions and engage rising numbers of students who learn experientially through research and innovation. Our model is built on enabling student success, and it is exciting that we continue to be a Top-3 college in the country for students employed in research and innovation activities.”
Centennial is ranked third in terms of the number of college students employed and paid for conducting applied research activities. The college had 205 students involved in applied research in 2016. Only George Brown (237 students) and Humber colleges (210) had more students employed in the country. It’s a key statistic that Dr. Gupta likes to see highlighted in the report.
“I am delighted that we continue to transform lives and communities through learning,” he says, by offering real-world research work to students who gain a comprehensive understanding of how enterprises develop their ideas from back-of-the-napkin sketches into new, advanced products. “We continue to serve as an exemplary anchor institution contributing to innovation and economic development,” he points out.
Toronto’s George Brown College led the Top 50 with $13.2 million of research income, followed by Fanshawe College ($12.3 million) and Lambton College ($11.0 million). Colleges reported a total of 2,845 active formal research partnerships with external organizations and had completed 2,766 research projects, a 12.8 percent improvement over the previous year. Research funds received from industry sources rose to $40.5 million, a gain of 8.4 percent over 2015.
For more Infosource Top 50 results, please visit https://researchinfosource.com/.