Dear MED-nytt reader,
Research depends on projects, personnel, pennies and a place to work, while success is often counted in publications, PhDs, prizes and patents. As I approach the end of my four-year term, my experiences as Pro-Dean for Research at the Faculty of Medicine (MED) have left me even more impressed and proud of the work that our staff and students do to generate new knowledge, disseminate it, and put it to use.
The biggest boost for biomedicine
The planning and construction of a life sciences building represents the biggest single boost to date for biomedical research in Norway. In prioritising space in the building, numerous and lengthy processes have been carried out to identify which research environments and core facilities should receive a place.
For a long time, NCMM was the only unit from MED that could count on a place. Our partnership with Oslo University Hospital to fully fund and expand the building has gotten more MED researchers on board, and as a result, there will be a stronger collection of core facilities there. Still, most of the faculty’s life sciences research will be conducted outside of the building. We will also take good care of these research environments while simultaneously taking the opportunity to create strong new research groups in the building, including the connection with the core facilities.
The UiO roadmap for research infrastructure is at a crossroads
In the spring of 2019, UiO launched an effort to create a roadmap for research infrastructure. This was a completely new undertaking for UiO and stemmed from the need for better and more coordinated acquisition and operation of instruments that are costly to both buy and operate.
The roadmap is divided into three levels, the first of which is an overall description of infrastructure priorities and costs within the fields of the life sciences, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), the humanities, and e-infrastructure. Level 2 provides an overview of academic and strategic challenges, while Level 3 encompasses comments on specific technologies, including the need for instruments in the short and long term.
The roadmap has been created through a “bottom-up” process in which the environments have reported their needs. The inclusion of instruments in this document is crucial for mapping and prioritising applications for equipment in connection with both external and internal calls for proposals. In addition, the process itself has raised awareness of the need for new equipment and for the coordination of research infrastructure. The document has recently been revised and represents a crossroads for how UiO handles research infrastructures.
MED researchers coordinate important research infrastructure
As Pro-Dean for Research, I have had the pleasure of seeing the Research Council of Norway providing grant funding to applications for national infrastructure coordinated by MED researchers in the fields of proteomics (NAPI) and advanced light microscopy (NALMIN). We are also participants in several other applications that have been granted. By the end of my four-year term, I estimate that the faculty will have received NOK 41.5 million for advanced research infrastructure from UiO, while the faculty will have distributed approximately NOK 32 million.
Access to advanced research infrastructure is an important success criterion for a great deal of the research at the faculty. This is expensive equipment that must be shared by many people whenever it is practically possible to do so. UiO is in the process of introducing the BookItLab booking and invoicing programme for the core facilities and will most likely require that it will be used for UiO-funded equipment. The faculty and departments will assist in the implementation of the programme.
Significant awards to MED
The Research Council of Norway’s funding cuts will be palpable in the faculty, departments and NCMM. It’s heartening to see our researchers compete with great success for Norwegian Centre of Excellence designations. The faculty has received two new centres, while one is being phased out. Congratulations are also in order for researchers who have recently received research funding from the Norwegian Cancer Society.
It is a stated goal that we should succeed in competing for research grants from the EU. During my four-year term, there has been an increasing interest, especially among younger researchers, in applying for “ERC starting grants”. It was therefore very gratifying to receive two new grants over the past year, in addition to an “advanced grant”. In thematic calls for proposals from the EU, our researchers have also been increasingly successful in applications in which they serve as coordinators and partners. In particular, I would like to mention that Gravitate Health is our and Norway’s first coordinator project funded by the EU’s “Innovative Medicines Initiative” (IMI).
Life Science Growth House promises possibilities
Funding from the EU and through innovation will play an increasing role in financing new projects. The establishment (in collaboration with the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences) of the Life Science Growth House as UiO’s innovation unit for life sciences, health and technology significantly boosts researchers’ opportunities to further develop ideas that can be utilised both at the application stage and as projects. The future location of the Growth House in the life sciences building will create a very functional and central arena for researchers and innovators.
Organised research training is essential
Organised research training is a key element of MED’s activities. No other faculties in Norway have as many public defences, and this year we are on track for just under 200. By the end of my four-year term, almost 800 candidates will have defended their thesis at the faculty. Just over a year ago, the faculty passed the public defence No 5000 in its 200-year history. This achievement is a testament to the outstanding work of our research groups and the faculty’s academic and administrative staff, not least during the pandemic. A big thank you goes to everyone who contributes to these efforts!
One important goal has been to reduce the administrative procedure for admission to the PhD programme. Unfortunately, many prospective candidates have had to wait a long time to receive an answer to their applications, and this is regrettable. As one of the measures to address this issue, we introduced a temporary admission policy to ensure that there would be no delays in the implementation of the training programme. The faculty’s PhD unit has done a tremendous job clearing the backlog, so that applications can now be processed continuously upon submission. It has also helped that we increasingly receive complete applications.
The formalised organised research training should be seen in a more holistic perspective. To this end, we have revised the faculty’s quality management system for the PhD programme into a quality management system for the organised research training. Currently, the research option and the postdoctoral fellowship programme are included in the quality management system, together with the PhD programme. The next step is to implement programmes for the education of supervisors and to include them in the faculty’s quality management system. At the end of the month, NOKUT will carry out an audit of the study programmes at UiO. As part of this process, MED’s PhD programme will be examined, and we look forward to this opportunity to learn and improve the programme further.
I’ll be cheering on you all!
When I took up my post as Pro-Dean for Research, I was fully aware that I would spend no more than four years in this position. It has been very exciting and educational to be part of the faculty’s apparatus, the aim of which is to help our researchers succeed. I’m proud of the attitude of my colleagues and the work that they do, especially in the research section, with which I have collaborated the most. These are impressions and experiences that I will bring back with me when I return to my position as Professor of Clinical Biochemistry - and I will continue to cheer on all of you as you keep pushing research forward and putting new knowledge to use.
Thank you for your collaboration!
Kind regards
Jens Petter