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Education and training (E&T) and research and innovation (R&I) are core pillars of tertiary education. This blog post explores the intrinsic interconnection between E&T and R&I, the fragmentation in tertiary policymaking, and ways to strengthen synergies. It draws on the ongoing project , which engages with key stakeholders in the field at national and regional levels.

Interdependence and synergies

Emerging findings from our project highlight the intrinsic interconnection and interdependence of E&T and R&I, which can mutually reinforce knowledge creation, skills development and innovation. At the core of R&I and E&T are people, whose knowledge and skills drive innovation and educational progress.

When such synergy works well, virtuous cycles can be created: R&I generate knowledge and technology to improve education for learners and provide practical skills for workers. Skilled R&D professionals utilise their expertise to conduct research, lead innovation and achieve technological advancements. New businesses and industries stem from R&I, necessitating talent with up-to-date skills acquired through education and training.

Such synergy already exists in the UK. It in publication counts and fifth in the 2024 , maintaining a top-five innovation position since 2012. This is enabled by a with 58 per cent holding doctorates compared to two per cent of the general UK workforce, and 76 per cent holding postgraduate qualifications.

Emerging fields like generative artificial intelligence (AI) further highlight this synergy. The UK’s stresses the need for ‘strong fundamental AI research’, ‘high-quality research and engineering talent from universities’, and ‘an increasingly skilled and experienced entrepreneurial workforce’. It also calls for diverse pathways into AI careers, including through further education (FE), apprenticeships, employers and self-led upskilling.

Fragmentation and policy silos

When it comes to tertiary education policies in England, however, R&I and E&T often operate in policy silos. Tertiary education institutions must balance multiple, sometimes competing, agendas – enhancing educational quality, maintaining research excellence, and addressing skills gaps. Meanwhile, they must navigate policy churn and diverse governance structures, respond to differing funding requirements and incentives, address national, regional and local needs, survive economic shifts, and compete in the (quasi-)market.

Disparities in recognition and resources further exacerbate fragmentation across institutions, sectors and regions. Learners and researchers face challenges such as disparities across educational pathways, and would benefit from more opportunities for cross-sector mobility, lifelong learning and upskilling (see for example James Relly, 2021; NCUB, 2023).

Consequently, the UK R&I sector exhibits weaker performance in knowledge transfer and adoption, ranking 11th in innovation linkages, 12th in knowledge diffusion and 31st in knowledge absorption in the Global Innovation Index.

Moreover, fragmentation leads to skills mismatch (see for example Lewis, 2023). For instance, are oversupplied while others are undersupplied, reflected in a shortage of technicians and an excess of biological science graduates. In the , 65 per cent of hard-to-fill vacancies were attributable to skills shortages, compared with 41 per cent across all sectors.

Although presents strategic co-ordination opportunities to ensure skills are central to joined-up decision-making across government and that higher education (HE) and FE systems are brought closer together, its integration with R&I is still uncertain.

Reconnecting R&I and E&T

To strengthen synergies across R&I and E&T, identifying and rethinking shared objectives beyond a purely competition-driven, zero-sum market logic would be beneficial. Furthermore, although the tertiary education ecosystem spans multiple ecosystems (Hazelkorn & Locke, 2023) – , , , , HE, and – it is crucial to remember that key stakeholders overlap. These include, for instance, E&T providers, government bodies, local and regional authorities, regulatory bodies, funders, businesses and industry, students, educators, researchers, employers and civic communities. Strengthening dialogue and co-operation across the stakeholders, without enforced uniformity, is therefore essential for sustainable success.

‘To strengthen synergies across R&I and E&T, identifying and rethinking shared objectives beyond a purely competition-driven, zero-sum market logic would be beneficial.’

Importantly, regional hubs of knowledge, skills and innovation can enhance R&I and E&T co-operation. When partnerships across universities, FE colleges (FECs), employers and all stakeholders are enhanced, regional hubs can diversify educational pathways, strengthen skills pipelines, increase employment opportunities, and create innovation clusters that leverage regional strengths, address regional needs and support regional growth (see for example Corradini et al., 2023; Nelles et al., 2023). While acknowledging challenges of co-ordination and regional disparities, initiatives such as Innovate UK’s , as well as efforts by combined authorities and regional authorities (such as the for the North East), demonstrate such potential.

References

Corradini, C., Morris, D., & Vanino, E. (2023). Towards a regional approach for skills policy. Regional Studies,Ìý57(6), 1043–1054.

Hazelkorn, E., & Locke, W. (2023). Researching tertiary education ecosystems. Policy Reviews in Higher Education,Ìý7(2), 123–126.

James Relly, S. (2021). The political rhetoric of parity of esteem. Oxford Review of Education, 47(4), 513–528.

Lewis, P. (2023). Innovation, technician skills, and vocational education and training: connecting innovation systems and vocational education and training. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 77(2), 364–391.

National Centre for Universities and Business [NCUB]. (2023). Pathways to success.

Nelles, J., Verinder, B., Walsh, K., & Vorley T. (2023). Skills innovation and productivity: The role of further education colleges in local and regional ecosystems. The Productivity Institute and Innovation Caucus.

Acknowledgements

This project is funded by the John Fell Fund at the University of Oxford. Sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to our workshops and interviews.