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Modern universities combine expertise to drive innovation and research impact
Abertay University has joined five other institutions to launch a groundbreaking initiative aimed at boosting commercialisation and innovation across Scotland’s modern universities and the college sector.
The Shared Academic Knowledge Exchange Services (ShaKEs) initiative will make it easier for universities to turn research into real-world solutions - improving lives, strengthening Scotland’s key industries, and transforming public services. Backed by the Scottish Government and the Scottish Funding Council, the initiative is designed to help the sector deliver greater impact.
The consortium includes Abertay University, Queen Margaret University, the University of the Highlands and Islands, Robert Gordon University, The Glasgow School of Art, and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, alongside Edinburgh College. Together, these institutions will pool specialist expertise and professional services to create new opportunities for research impact, skills development, and economic growth.
While these universities are smaller in size, collectively they represent a third of Scotland’s higher education institutions and employ around 1,500 academic staff. Their contribution to Scotland’s innovation ecosystem is already significant—generating 4% of the sector’s total Knowledge Exchange income, 1.5% of consultancy income, and 5% of new spin-outs and staff start-ups in 2023–24.
The new shared ShaKEs service model will develop, test, and evaluate a sustainable shared model for commercialisation and Knowledge Exchange (KE) by:
- Connecting skills with innovation to strengthen Scotland’s innovation ecosystem.
- Creating sustainable pathways to commercialisation through shared professional services.
- Embedding Community Wealth Building principles, ensuring social and environmental outcomes alongside economic benefits.
- Ensuring innovation reaches communities across Scotland.
If the pilot is successful, the service could be rolled out more widely across Scotland’s university and college sector, helping to boost economic growth, strengthen innovation, and ensure that research delivers tangible benefits for society and the economy.
Professor Nia White, Dean of Research and the Graduate School at Abertay University, said:
Abertay has a proud track record of delivering research that makes a real difference to society, from pioneering work in cybersecurity to innovations in health and wellbeing. By collaborating through ShaKEs, we can amplify that impact—sharing expertise, resources and ideas to ensure that research from Scotland’s modern universities translates into tangible benefits for communities and industries. This initiative is about unlocking potential and creating new opportunities for innovation that matter.
The Scottish Government is investing £750,000 over 15 months in the ShaKEs initiative, which will also create new posts with the option to be located at any of the partner universities across Scotland.
Minister for Higher and Further Education Ben Macpherson MSP, said:
It is excellent to see this new initiative commencing, which is a very welcome development and should help strengthen the commercialisation and innovation processes involved, by sharing best practice, expertise and professional services. I commend all of those involved in this partnership and look forward to seeing the positive difference working together will make. The extraordinary performance of research and innovation in Scotland is one of the great strengths of our university sector. Research undertaken here in Scotland is genuinely world-leading - especially when it comes to collaboration - addressing key global challenges and making positive and meaningful social, economic, and environmental impact, both locally and internationally.
