Krista Davidson

Memorial University’s Board of Regents approved the Enrolment Plan 2020 and the Strategic Research Intensity Plan 2014-20, a set of initiatives that will launch forth new and innovative recommendations to help Memorial University become one of the most graduate-intensive and research-intensive universities in Canada by the end of 2020-21.

These plans build on the recommendations of Memorial University’s Teaching and Learning and Research Strategy Frameworks.

Delivering both plans will result in doubling research and scholarly output, and increase graduate enrolment by approximately 35 percent. It will also bring a significant increase in research funding as well as additional graduate-level programs over the next seven years.

The plans were approved at a board meeting on May 8, after several phases of consultation including Memorial University’s academic and administrative heads, student representatives, appropriate advisory and decision-making bodies of the university, and the entire university community before finalization and approval. The implementation of recommendations will begin immediately.

 “The Strategic Research Intensity Plan reflects a synergistic and integrated approach for strengthening all aspects of research at Memorial University, including scholarship and creative activities, as well as the translation of knowledge into products, practices and policies, and other forms of community engagement,” said Dr. Richard Marceau, vice-president (research).

“The university will be better equipped to attract and retain top researchers and scholars, and appropriately qualified students from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, and abroad by providing enhanced access to equipment, funding and quality research opportunities.”

The Strategic Research Intensity Plan goes hand in hand with Enrolment Plan 2020, a comprehensive, pan-university document that will target growth in graduate enrolment by 32-37 per cent by 2020-21. Both plans will implement a comprehensive approach for serving graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, while enhancing and broadening their research learning and training experience.

“Enrolment Plan 2020 sets undergraduate and graduate enrolment targets for 2020-21, provides direction for Memorial’s recruitment and retention activities, while simultaneously improving supports for student academic success,” said Dr. David Wardlaw, provost and vice-president (academic). “The next step is to identify the enrolment management teams proposed in the plan. These teams will then drive the plan by leading the implementation of its various recommendations.”

The Strategic Research Intensity Plan 2014-20 and the Enrolment Plan 2020 will be used to inform the Infrastructure Plan, currently under development.

The Strategic Research Intensity plan aims to initiate an historic generational transformation of Memorial University’s ability to:

• Accelerate the production and dissemination of scholarly outcomes, and strengthen its capacity to compete successfully for grants from Canada and abroad;
• Intensify its ability to supervise and graduate master and doctoral candidates, and grow the pool of highly qualified human capital so important for building Newfoundland and Labrador, and Canada;
• Continue to build its reputation, facilitating the recruitment of high quality students, faculty members and staff to the university, and the province; and,
• Enhance its capacity to address the research priorities of government, industry, and society at large in Newfoundland and Labrador.