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by Vanessa Williamson, Seneca Innovation
in the Fall 2017 issue
There’s a lot of buzz around campus recently about applied research and innovation (ARI). One of the questions that we most often receive from faculty is about why they should get involved. Here is the Seneca ARI Top Ten List of Why Faculty Should Get Involved in Applied Research, in no particular order…
10. Stay current on industry trends.Working with emerging start-ups and established organizations to address their immediate and longer-term business problems provides you with a firsthand opportunity to see where industry is going, and to apply your knowledge to help the business succeed.
9. Build your network.Applied research collaborations can expose you to new people and partners, providing opportunities for future collaborations, guest speakers in your classes, and more.
8. Enhance curriculum.You can take what you learn from working on applied research projects back to the classroom to enhance student learning. This can be in terms of formal curriculum integration or simply “stories” that you can share in your classes and labs.
7. Publishing opportunities.Many projects can provide you an opportunity to publish aspects of your work and enhance recognition in your field.
6. Cross-disciplinary opportunities.Often there is a chance for you and your students to work with faculty in other schools and departments.
5. Help students develop their “soft skills” and differentiate your graduates.Give students the opportunity to practice their “soft skills,” such as collaboration, communication, problem solving, and critical thinking. These skills are in demand more and more by employers, even from recent graduates. Students that work on applied research projects have a considerable edge when entering the workforce.
4. Work at the interface of “business” and “innovation.”Working directly on a real-world business problem provides an opportunity to think not only about the “technical” aspects of the challenge, but also the business implications, providing a much more holistic picture.
3. Help Seneca College achieve its academic and strategic goals.Enhancing the student experience through applied research and innovation is a key pillar at the College; you can be a key contributor to this!
2. ARI is here to help you!We have a full suite of services to support you including partnership development, sourcing funding, grant writing and project management. This means that you can focus on what you do best…doing the research and working with your students.
1. Because Applied Research is cool!And is there really any better reason than that?
In you are interested to get involved, please reach out to Brian Gordon, Director, Applied Research brian.gordon@senecacollege.ca or any of our Research Project Managers.
View the Fall 2017 issue of the Academic Newsletter.
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