DEVELOPING LINKS BETWEEN UNIVERSITY AND INDUSTRY BY CHRISTOPHER TSEGBA VANENGE

Just as the power of a broom stick lies in its numbers so is the progress of University and Industry lies mostly in their linkage. I believe my point is self-explanatory! Let us progress by explaining the key words in the theme which are ‘developing’, ‘link’, ‘university’ as well as ‘industry’. The word "developing" is a growing change for betterment in both humans, cultural, socio-economic, organization, individual and the society. The word "Link" is a relationship between two parties especially where one affects the other. University is a higher learning institution that brings men and women to a high level of intellectual development in the arts and science, and in the traditional professional disciplines, and promotes high-level research. It also signifies a community of persons engaged in study and research. Industry on the other hand as said by Michael Porter in 1979 is a group of competitors producing substitutes that are close enough that the behavior of any firm affects each of the others either directly or indirectly. As a student of mass communication, I picture the linkage between University and Industry as that of mass media and the society. There is a symbiotic relationship between mass media and the society (a give and take relationship) the media depend on the society to gather, process, and disseminate information for societal consumption. The society in return depends on the media as a societal mouthpiece for information dissemination. This is a kind of relationship that exists among universities and industries. The industry relies on the University to produce quality and skillful graduates who can work or conduct research for them when situation calls for, while the university in turn relies on industries to create job opportunities, offer jobs to its graduates, and fund for academic research when there is lack of government support. Talking about developing a linkage between university and industry, we are referring to growing or expanding relationship between these two parties. Despite the cultural differences between the university and the industry, there are mutual benefits between these two organizations, Universities are known as sources of knowledge, innovation and technological advances across the globe, it is being positioned as a strategic asset in innovation and economic competitiveness, and as problems-solvers for socio-economic issues affecting countries. Synergies between universities and industries can play a critical role in securing and leveraging additional resources for University promoting, innovation, and technology transfer, and ensuring that graduates have skills and knowledge required to effectively contribute to the workforce. The goal of supporting University and Industry linkage is to promote the relevance and contribution of universities to socio-economic development. However there is no step-by-step model to show how university and industry relationship is to be developed. As rightly said by Edquist, 2004.In the Triple Helix model developed by Etzkowtitz and Leydesdorff in 1997, innovation is seen as a product of interaction between three main actors: university, industry and the government. Universities focus on establishing institutional interface structures including industry liaison/technology transfer offices, business and technology incubators, and fostering entrepreneurialism through various policies and incentives. Etzkowtitz, 2008 opines that Universities, for example, may even look for industry to recruit entrepreneurial researchers to work among their faculty and act as role models. Universities and Industries linkage can take various forms and involve different intensities of engagement. These include training curriculum development, and consultancy. In terms of teaching and training, university and industry activities include offering professional courses on a fee-basis to respond to the particular skill and training needs of industry. Universities may engage industry and other productive sector representatives in course curriculum development to ensure that degree programme can produce graduates with the required knowledge and skills for the workforce. Creating opportunities for student attachments and placements in the productive sector is another common way in which universities link up with industries. I believe that by my explanation so far you have been educated on the topic "developing a link between Universities and Industries" but for the purpose of clarity one may still ask how will a linkage between University and industry be developed? One who asks for direction goes the right way, he who does not, goes the wrong way. In case you still fall under the people asking for the direction in the journey of "developing a link between universities and Industries" here are ways through which University-industry linkage can be developed: 1) Mechanisms: Different mechanisms can be applied in technology transfer between university research centers and industry according to their motivations and available resources. 2) Consultancy and technical services: provision of one or more parties from the university or research center provide advice, information or technical services. They have formal written contract, generally short term and specific. Faculty members or senior researchers can be hired to consult during the time they are allowed to work outside the universities. 3) Joint venture: A contract is drawn between university research center and a contractor in which costs associated with the work are shared as specified in the contract. The two parties can work together from the stage of research development to commercialization. It must be of mutual benefit to industry and the research centers, and commercially valuable data may be protected for a limited period of time. It provides some assurance that the best brain in the business will be brought together to bear on the problem, and that there will be a balance between long term, high risk research and short-term work which can be promptly commercialized. 4) Cooperative research development agreement: This is an agreement between one or more university research laboratories and one or more firms under which the university side provides personnel, facilities, or other resources with or without reimbursement. The industrial parties provide funds, personnel, services, facilities, equipment, and other resources to conduct specific research or development efforts that are consistent with the laboratory’s mission. 5) Licensing: Licensing is the transfer of less-than-ownership rights in intellectual property to a third party, to permit the third party to use intellectual property. It can be exclusive or non- exclusive and is preferred by small business. The industry as a potential licensee must present plans to commercialize the invention. 6) Contract research: It is a contract between a research center and a firm for contract research development to be performed by the research center. Industry usually provides fund, the university provides brains with the time frame ranging from a few months to years. Through contract research, the industry wants to utilize the unique capability of the research centers that works for commercial benefit. 7) Spin-offs: An entrepreneurial spin-off arises when an entrepreneur leaves an organization to start a firm of his/her own. To be a spin-off, this must also include the transfer of some rights, e.g. knowledge, from the existing organization to the new firm. Spin-offs can be categorized depending on what organization they are spun off from, and on where the entrepreneur has gained his/her background experience. 8) Science Parks Science parks have become a popular mechanism to promote university- industry interactions. There is no uniformly accepted definition of a Science Park, and there are several similar terms used to describe similar developments, such as Research Park, Technology Park, Business Park, innovation centre Etc. though the united kingdom science park association [UKSPA, 1985] defines a science park in terms of the following features. ‘’A science park is a property-based initiative which has formal operational links with a university or other higher education or research institutions, it is design to encourage the formation and growth of knowledge–based businesses and other organizations normally resident on site, has a management function which is actively engaged in the transfer of technology and business skills to the organization on site.’’ It is a commonly known fact that universities are the main talent pipeline for the industry, but sadly many students fail to get employed after graduation and the root cause of unemployment has always been a disparity of skills required by the industry and the lack of practical exposure. Hence, it is imperative that academicians and industry frontliners get on the same page, to ensure that higher education institutions are linked to contemporary market needs, particularly to boost multi-dimensional productivity that is to enhance holistic nationwide progress which covers social and economic dimensions. If an institution needs to be relevant, then I think it has to work on the training of her graduates so that they can fit the job market. Hence, institutes must concretize and try out novel concepts fashioned in the real world. However, industries on the other hand must understand that relying solely on their internal research and development would be inadequate to innovate successfully. They have to realize that universities can open up opportunities to acquire talent from a diverse pool of young and skilled graduates. Organizations must realize the importance of such linkages that opens the door to collaborative training sessions aimed at furnishing the students with the necessary practical exposure and skills to fit in the job market, which can increase the employment rate and boost economic growth. Conclusively, University-industry linkages help universities to improve the quality and relevance of academic agenda by getting access to relevant sources for research activities, additional funds, equipment, and support for students, as well as learning opportunities in field-testing. Universities play a crucial role in underpinning innovation and entrepreneurial activities. They provide the conditions, facilities and talent that foster the emergence of breakthrough ideas, Partnering with companies and businesses gives universities access to more resources to fund their research and diversify their research areas. They also receive industry feedback and guidance on their inventions helping them to improve further. It should be noted that when one keeps the toilet clean it is not for the benefit of the excreta but for the anus, the truth is the relationship between University and industry is lay solely on the benefit they derive from each other. Reference Online Journal: John Ssebuwufu,Teralynn et al. “Strenghtneng University-industry linkages in Africa”. Association of African universities. Web: http://www.aau.org