University Research and the Economy

University Research: A Definition

Every year, university departments, centers and institutes conduct scholarly, professional and creative activities with the support of external funding. Government and private organizations award grants, contracts and cooperative agreements to faculty to assess current programs and systems; propose solutions; or provide a needed service for the state. Some examples include addressing ways to educate young students about diversity, improving health care, protecting our natural resources, evaluating new industries and jobs, developing educational tools and promoting new technologies. Many of our current programs, conveniences and therapies began in a university center or department.

What Does University Research Do for North Carolina?

• Attracts financial resources
  Many of the universities receive grants or contracts from entities outside the state. Instead of using state dollars to pay for equipment, supplies, services and salaries, a university research center can use dollars from a grant or contract to pay for them, allowing the state to save its dollars for other needs.
• Creates jobs
  Research grants and contracts from other states or organizations often pay the salaries of UNC non-tenured faculty. In addition, many staff and graduate assistant positions come from dollars generated by research grants.
• Attracts students and visitors
  Out-of-state students who come to a NC university to work on a research project ultimately spend their money in North Carolina for housing, food, clothing, books and entertainment. Even if they are not involved in a specific project, many students from other states are interested in the UNC system specifically because of its reputation as a research institution.
• Formation of human capital
  Knowledge-based jobs require employees to have a college degree. Depending on the industry, employers may be looking for people with a specialized degree and many even be looking for workers who have gained experience elsewhere. Research labs, centers, and institutes at UNC employ thousands of graduate students and give them the experience they need to be competitive in the professional marketplace.
• Development of new technologies
  Many new information technologies, medicines, environmental breakthroughs and other inventions that increase efficiency often begin at a university. For example, an environmental scientist at North Carolina State University discovered the algal bloom Pfiesteria that caused fish kills in the Neuse River. UNC-Wilmington is studying hurricane landfall to try to better predict hurricanes.

Source: The Economic Impact of the UNC System on the State of North Carolina. Office of Economic Development, Kenan Institute, UNC-Chapel Hill.