|
TSR&TP Surveys Show High Trainee Productivity and Significant Impact on Faculty Careers |
TSR&TP Trainee Studies
The TSR&TP conducted two studies to examine the contributions of former TSR&TP trainees to economic development. Our first study performed in 1998 analyzed responses to a survey sent to the former trainees from the first decade of the program (1985-1995) that we could locate.
|
|
As of 1998, the 214 trainees that responded to our survey had the following characteristics: 46% were still in academia, some as postdoctoral fellows, reflecting the youth of this cohort. 36% were in private industry, and 15% in the public (government agency) sector. 68% were still in California, with 23% in other states and 9% abroad.
A policy brief based on this study has been published through the California Policy Research Center.
The second study, completed in summer 2000, was a followup survey sent to the original survey respondents to obtain additional information covering a subsequent two-year period in their professional lives.
The surveys asked a number of questions about economic contributions. In the less than ten years the 1998 survey respondents had been in the work force, they had received over $100 million in grant funds. The follow-up survey found that about two-thirds of these original respondents had amassed an additional $30 million in new grants in the subsequent two years. If these respondents are typical of all former trainees (nearly 700 in all), the total "return on investment" would be about three times these numbers!
Economic Contributions of TSR&TP-Funded Faculty
|
We also surveyed all of the UC faculty that had received support from the TSR&TP. We asked about the impact the TSR&TP had on their individual careers. A surprisingly large number of the survey respondents, about 60% of the total, told us their TSR&TP funding had a "significant impact" or was a "turning point" in their careers. |
|
|
|
When we cross-correlated career impact with funding received from multidisciplinary collaborative grants, we found that the 60% of faculty on whom the TSR&TP had made a significant (or greater) impact accounted for more than 85% of the Center funding recipients. This observation supports the hypothesis that TSR&TP seed funding and lead campus components stimulate interdisciplinary research groups that are competitive for large extramural grants based on establishing a track record for collaborative research interactions. Please see the complete report for additional details on these studies. |
|
Table of Contents Previous Article Next Article