Collaboration

Work with a UK universityStart from the capability, not the postcode.

There are six practical routes between a company and a university, and they are not interchangeable. This page explains each one, then points at the 22 universities and 27 research organisations UKIZ holds, and the 120 evidenced capability records behind them.

Counts are read from live records when the page is built. Nothing here is a claim about availability, price or willingness to partner.

My UKIZ

Six routes that actually exist

  • Contract research

    The company sets the question and pays for the work. The university runs it and reports back.

    Suits: A defined technical problem with a deadline, where the answer matters more than the publication.

    UKIZ records the research organisations and the capability they publish. Terms, cost and lead time come from the organisation, not from UKIZ.

  • Collaborative research grants

    Public funding supports a joint project, usually with the company contributing cash or staff time.

    Suits: Work that is genuinely shared and too early or too broad for one party to fund alone.

    Funding routes are listed under Funding with their source. UKIZ does not state whether a competition is open today.

  • Doctoral partnerships and studentships

    A funded doctoral researcher works on a problem the company cares about, supervised by both sides.

    Suits: A multi year question, and a route into recruiting the person who answered it.

    Live studentships appear under Jobs by role type. Partnership arrangements are agreed directly with the university.

  • Consultancy and expert access

    Short, paid access to a named academic or research group for advice, review or diagnosis.

    Suits: A decision that needs a specialist opinion rather than a programme of work.

    UKIZ maps expertise access as a capability family, with the organisation's own published evidence behind each record.

  • Facility and equipment access

    Paid or negotiated use of laboratories, testbeds, pilot lines or specialist instruments.

    Suits: Work that needs equipment it would be irrational to buy.

    Access is recorded separately from capability. Holding a facility is not the same as offering access to it, and UKIZ keeps those two facts apart.

  • Licensing and spin-outs

    University intellectual property is licensed to a company, or a new company is formed around it.

    Suits: A technology that already exists and needs a route to market.

    Spin-outs and commercialisation routes are listed on university profiles where the university publishes them.

Start from what you need

Most failed approaches start with an organisation rather than a question. Search the capability first, read the evidence behind the record, then approach the organisation that actually publishes it.

Where to go next

Questions people actually ask

How do I start a collaboration with a UK university?
Identify the capability you need first, then the group that publishes evidence of it, then approach the university's business engagement or knowledge exchange team with a specific question. A named problem gets a faster answer than a general enquiry.
Do I need to be near the university to work with it?
It depends on the work. Contract research, consultancy and licensing are routinely run at distance. Work that depends on repeated hands on sessions, shared specialist equipment or people moving between sites benefits from being close. UKIZ treats geography as one factor, not proof of relevance.
What does it cost?
UKIZ does not publish prices. Cost depends on the route, the length of the work and whether public funding is involved, and it is set by the university.
Can UKIZ tell me whether a facility is available?
No. UKIZ records durable capability with the evidence behind it, and records access arrangements separately where an organisation has stated them. Live availability is confirmed with the organisation.
Is UKIZ an intermediary?
No. UKIZ helps you find the right organisation and the evidence for it. You approach them directly. UKIZ does not sell introductions and does not sell member data.

My UKIZ