Industrial CASE Account - University of Cambridge 2017

The University of Cambridge is using this grant to fund doctoral training partnerships that place PhD students directly into industrial settings. This matters because the UK faces a persistent gap between academic research and commercial application. Too many promising discoveries never leave the laboratory, and too few researchers have the skills or incentives to work on industry-relevant problems. This grant addresses that gap by funding studentships where postgraduate researchers split their time between Cambridge labs and partner companies, tackling real-world engineering and physical sciences challenges. If this succeeds, it will produce a cohort of researchers who understand both fundamental science and commercial translation. These graduates will be equipped to move seamlessly between academia and industry, accelerating the journey from lab bench to market. The impact will be felt across sectors that rely on advanced engineering and physical sciences—manufacturing processes, energy systems, communications infrastructure, and medical diagnostics. The grant does not fund a specific research project; it funds the training pipeline itself, ensuring that future breakthroughs have people ready to turn them into practical technologies.