Our goal is to be a premier comprehensive research university that is recognized nationally and internationally for high-impact research and scholarship. Momentum is on our side. UMass Lowell’s research and scholarship have grown considerably in recent years, fueled by the hiring of outstanding faculty, expanded and renovated research facilities, new degree programs and increased student financial support. Our students deserve to have access to, and participate in, world-class and world-transforming research.
Our key values of excellence, integrity, equity, diversity and inclusion must continue to underpin our entire research enterprise. Continued growth and sustained excellence require additional investments across a broad range of touchpoints to ensure comprehensive, accessible and coordinated support for faculty and staff and formative opportunities for students to engage in cutting-edge research and scholarship. We must grow our investments in research infrastructure and increase our collaborations internally and with other universities, the government, industry and the community.
Our goals fall under of five key areas of focus. Our focus on facilities and hard infrastructure includes the physical space, capital equipment, core research facilities and facilities services to support cutting-edge research needs. Faculty recruitment, retention and success covers recruiting and mentoring exceptional junior and midcareer faculty with a special focus on traditionally underrepresented groups. Student research success includes increasing the number, quality and diversity of student applicants to enhance our research culture. Research support services covers administrative, professional development, technical and library support. Communications focuses on creating a strategy to promote the significant discoveries, technologies and scholarship we are regularly pioneering.
Our road to success.
Identify multidisciplinary research focus areas and use these to promote resource and facilities sharing and to inform cluster hiring.
Evaluate resource sharing through an equity lens to promote efficiencies in use. Support multidisciplinary research areas and cluster hiring to enhance faculty recruitment, satisfaction and success by connecting new faculty with colleagues in related and synergistic fields.
Measured by overall Carnegie classification and its metrics (including external and total research expenditures), number of interdisciplinary proposals submitted, number of researchers included and success rate of submitted proposals in identified focus areas.
Increase resources and support for faculty mentoring student researchers and formalize the recognition of these efforts.
Provide resources and professional development for faculty who are mentoring students in research and scholarship. Increase recognition of the importance of and effort required for student mentorship, and work toward a more balanced and reasonable faculty investment in teaching, research and service.
Measured by average number of undergraduate and graduate students mentored in research and scholarship activities by faculty by college and rank, as well as by administrative service reductions and increase in resources provided and the resulting faculty satisfaction with balance of workload demands.
Increase graduate student support and help students identify research opportunities.
Expand recruitment and experience of graduate students across campus. Ensure that current programs are being adequately marketed; create pathways for student research and scholarship to increase experiential learning',advance of research and scholarship; and provide co-curricular opportunities that enhance the student experience.
Measured by overall Carnegie classification and its metrics (including number of doctoral degrees conferred), number of undergraduate and graduate students participating in research activities (paid and unpaid) and average graduate stipends by college over time.
Increase library resources and research administrative support services.
Ensure equitable access to collections and services needed to support the diverse research and scholarly activities of the campus. Promote equitable research administration and development support for faculty pursuing and managing extramural funding. Decrease faculty administrative burden while maintaining compliant and consistent research administration.
Measured by number of FTEs in research administration and development directly supporting faculty, number of FTEs in library supporting research activities, the amount of funds supporting research-related library collections, and faculty opinion of research and library support services.
Expand promotion and branding of UMass Lowell research and scholarship activities and improve communications related to research support and research-related activities.
Build a culture of public dissemination of research and scholarly activities to enhance UMass Lowell’s research reputation and attract potential students, faculty, research collaborators and sponsors. Provide timely and easily accessible information on policies, procedures, personnel, resources, tools and funding opportunities (internal and external) available to support faculty in their pursuit and management of funding for research and scholarly activities.
Measured by internal and external media recognition, communication and publicity promoting research activity.
Supplement government funding and fill gaps where government funding is not available. This will also lead to new partnerships that may expand into other university initiatives.
Measured by total dollars donated to research-related activities, endowed chairs and space per year.
Increase transparency, efficiency and equity in research space distribution and prioritize research space improvements that support the growth of the research portfolio.
Find creative solutions for shared lab opportunities to overcome limited space for growth. Guided by an interdisciplinary research space coordination committee, research facility resources can be targeted to reinforce productivity and collaboration.
Measured by the rate of external research funding per square foot of space allocated to research use on campus, recognizing the diversity of requirements among disciplines.