Talking Points for Graduate Research

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Margery Dennis
8 years ago
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1 1. Public Investment in University Research Talking Pints fr Graduate Research State financial supprt fr higher educatin research is an investment in the public gd and future f the state. Califrnia's public funded universities and the research they prduce are the building blcks f the state s ecnmic grwth, nging scial mbility, physical well being and the innvatin that is respected and admired glbally. The tangible results f UC led research affect every aspect f ur lives and prduce significant cntributins t Califrnia, including advances that: (1) prtect and make mre abundant the fd that we eat, (2) ensure the health and well being f ur citizens by develping new medical devices, pineering drug breakthrughs and fstering new treatments fr debilitating diseases and illnesses, and (3) make glbal cmmunicatin faster, safer and less cstly. Sme examples f hw UC research is changing ur wrld can be fund in ur leave behind materials. UC graduate students are 7 percent f America s Ph.D. ppulatin, but hld 20 t 30 percent f the mst prestigius fellwships in science, arts and the humanities. Mre than 20 UC graduate students have gne n t win the Nbel Prize. 2. The Rle f Graduate Research and Graduate Students UC graduate students and the strength f ur graduate prgrams represent an unrivaled brain trust fr Califrnia, drawing creative, innvative thinkers frm arund the state and the wrld. UC graduate students represent the tp schlars in their field, with ne r mre UC campuses maintaining a tp 10 ranking in virtually every field f graduate study. Frm the Silicn Valley t the Central Valley, frm the labs at ur academic medical centers t grundbreaking wrk at the fur Califrnia Institutes fr Science and Innvatin, ur graduate students are at the frefrnt f discvery that is changing the wrld, but prducing even mre benefit here in Califrnia. UC graduate students represent the faculty f tmrrw in higher educatin. They will inspire the next generatin f Califrnians t think critically, t questin, t explre, t discver and t lead. UC graduate prgrams prduce mre than a quarter f UC and CSU faculty.

2 UC graduate students dn t nly g int higher educatin. They als prvide an imprtant surce f the highly educated and innvative wrkfrce that keeps Califrnia a leader in the glbal ecnmy. Amng UC graduate degree recipients wrking in Califrnia in 2012, apprximately half went int sectrs ther than higher educatin, including gvernment, medicine, business and manufacturing, engineering and K 12 educatin. By 2018, the number f jbs in the United States that require a graduate degree is expected t grw by 2.5 millin. UC s leadership in graduate educatin ensures that Califrnia will be well pised t meet this demand. 3. Imprtance f State Supprt Reduced funding greatly threatens the health f graduate prgrams. Hwever, state investment in graduate educatin is nt a matter f dllars alne. It als invlves a cntinued cmmitment t supprting the resurces that enable these students t flurish, such as the faculty time required t mentr and train graduate students. Graduate research is an investment that pays ff. It enables the life changing discveries that emerge frm the cllabratin f dzens f researchers and schlars building ff each ther s ideas. It develps the mentrs and future university prfessrs central t maintaining Califrnia s visinary leadership in higher educatin. And it prmtes the develpment f the wrkfrce that will help ur ecnmy grw, attracting industry and investment frm arund the wrld.

K 12 educatin. By 2018, the number f jbs in the United States that require a graduate degree is expected t grw by 2.5 millin.

3 The facts: UC graduate research In a century and a half f public university research, UC has generated new technlgies, new industries and the skilled wrkfrce that fuel Califrnia s ecnmy. UC graduate students are central t these achievements. Thrugh its graduate prgrams, the University f Califrnia trains and supprts mre than 26,000 graduate researchers and 6,400 pstdctral fellws wh are engaged in riginal research. UC graduate students tackle issues critical t Califrnia, such as identifying sustainable surces f energy, reducing greenhuse gas emissins, prtecting against earthquakes, advancing cmputer technlgy and imprving public health. They shape ideas abut ur wrld and cultures, break new grund in the arts, and strengthen the ecnmic and scial infrastructure f ur cmmunities. Cllectively, UC graduate research prduces the breakthrughs that advance medicine, create startup cmpanies and lead t the develpment f entire industries, creating pprtunity fr millins f Califrnians nt nly thse with graduate degrees. The state must d its share t supprt graduate educatin if Califrnia is t remain a leader in innvatin and wrkfrce develpment. UC RESEARCH BENEFITS THE STATE AND BEYOND UC graduate students advance the theries, pursue the new avenues f inquiry and d the hands-n wrk that mve discvery frward. They are critical t the research that imprves ur quality f life and brings millins f dllars f investment t the state. UC investigatrs received $4.2 billin in research funding in the fiscal year. Fr every $1 in research funding prvided by the state f Califrnia, UC secures $7 mre in federal and private dllars. UC researchers prduced 1,727 new inventins in 2013, an average f nearly five a day. Many f UC s 4,254 active patents have led t the creatin f tday s leading industries. They als have imprved ur health, changed the way we d business and enriched ur lives: UC patents include vaccines fr hepatitis B, drugs t treat prstate cancer, mbility binics that enable paraplegics t walk, varietals f strawberries, grapes and citrus, and the nictine patch, t name just a few. UC research hatched 71 start-up cmpanies in T date, sme 640 startup cmpanies have been frmed with UC inventins r by UC researchers, many based n innvatins that UC graduate students helped pineer. Amng these are multinatinal bitechnlgy firms Genentech and Chirn, OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITYOFCALIFORNIA.EDU 01

Thrugh its graduate prgrams, the University f Califrnia trains and supprts mre than 26,000 graduate researchers and 6,400 pstdctral fellws wh are engaged in riginal research.

4 wireless technlgy leaders Qualcmm and Bradcm, agrchemical cmpany AgraQuest, and hundreds f thers. Many start-ups have been launched by graduate students, r emerged directly frm their discveries. Technlgy start-up Nansys, based n a technique develped by Ph.D. students n fur UC campuses, emplys tiny, man-made crystals t bst the clr vibrancy f digital displays. Imprint Energy, c-funded by UC dctral student Christine H, creates ultra-thin, flexible batteries that can be screen printed at virtually any shape and size. Redwd Bisciences, launched by UC dctral student David Rabuka, emplys precisin biengineering t enable new means f treating disease. These are just sme recent examples. UC graduate research helped create and grw the bitechnlgy industry; frmer UC graduate students were pivtal in the develpment f industries such as electrnics, pharmaceuticals, telecmmunicatins, nantechnlgy and the special effects film industry, amng thers. These industries have prduced millins f jbs fr wrkers at all levels. AN UNMATCHED INCUBATOR FOR IDEAS AND INNOVATION UC advanced degree prgrams are amng the mst highly regarded in the natin, attracting tp students frm the U.S. and arund the wrld. UC ffers nearly 700 master's, dctral and prfessinal degree prgrams at its 10 campuses. These range frm aerspace engineering t wrld cultures and histry, frm biinfrmatics t visual arts. UC awards mre than 4,000 Ph.D.s a year, 8 percent f the natin s Ph.D.s. In Califrnia, UC awards 65 percent f all dctrates, and 70 percent f thse awarded in science, technlgy, engineering and mathematics. Mre than 20 UC dctral students have gne n t win a Nbel Prize. UC graduate and prfessinal prgrams rate highly in numerus surveys and rankings, including the U.S. News and Wrld Reprt s annual rankings. In the Natinal Research Cuncil s assessment f Ph.D. prgrams, 142 UC prgrams ranked in the tp 20 percent f prgrams natinally. BUILDING THE BRAIN TRUST TO SUCCEED IN THE 21 ST CENTURY As mentrs and teaching assistants, UC graduate researchers give undergraduates first-hand expsure t the prcess f unearthing new ideas. Many f ur dctral candidates g n t becme the prfessrs wh inspire the next generatin f students t think critically, explre, discver and lead OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITYOFCALIFORNIA.EDU 02

Imprint Energy, c-funded by UC dctral student Christine H, creates ultra-thin, flexible batteries that can be screen printed at virtually any shape and size.

5 One quarter f all UC and Califrnia State University faculty received their Ph.D.s frm a UC graduate prgram. UC Ph.D. earners als are strngly represented in the wrkfrce in fields utside f academia. Amng UC graduate degree recipients wrking in Califrnia in 2012, apprximately half went int sectrs ther than higher educatin, including gvernment, medicine, business and manufacturing, engineering and K-12 educatin. The U.S. Bureau f Labr Statistics estimates that the number f jbs requiring advanced degrees will grw by 2.6 millin by UC s rle in educating these students ensures that Califrnia will be an imprtant surce f this talent. MAINTAINING RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE Reduced funding greatly threatens the health f gradute prgrams. Hwever, state investment in graduate educatin is nt a matter f dllars alne. It als invlves a cntinued cmmitment t supprting the resurces that enable these students t flurish, such as the faculty time required t mentr and train graduate students. Graduate research is an investment that pays ff. It enables the life-changing discveries that emerge frm the cllabratin f dzens f researchers and schlars building ff each ther s ideas. It develps the mentrs and future university prfessrs central t maintaining Califrnia s visinary leadership in higher educatin. And it prmtes the develpment f the wrkfrce that will help ur ecnmy grw, attracting industry and investment frm arund the wrld OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITYOFCALIFORNIA.EDU 03

K-12 educatin. The U.S. Bureau f Labr Statistics estimates that the number f jbs requiring advanced degrees will grw by 2.6 millin by 2020.

Submission of the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance on the 2015 Federal Budget

Submission of the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance on the 2015 Federal Budget Submissin f the Canadian Assciatin fr Graduate Studies t the Huse f Cmmns Standing Cmmittee n Finance n the 2015 Federal Budget Summary The Canadian Assciatin fr Graduate Studies (CAGS) thanks the Huse