Dr Hugh Brady, President of UCD, John Herlihy, Google and Dr John Hegarty, Provost of TCD.
The educational centre piece of the TCD-UCD Innovation Alliance, the Innovation Academy has been officially opened. The Academy’s mission is to transform the PhD experience by imbuing graduate research and education with creative thinking and innovation. The Academy will develop a new breed of graduate, where a disciplinary and technical expertise is fused with an ambition to create new enterprises, enhance public service and further harness Ireland’s cultural heritage.
Its first intake of 33 PhD students from UCD and TCD are drawn from diverse disciplines. The students are taking ECTS-accredited modules towards the joint Certificate in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. It is expected that two additional cohorts of students will commence the programme this year.
According to the President of UCD, Dr Hugh Brady, and the Provost of TCD, Dr John Hegarty, the Innovation Academy is a practical demonstration of the progressive cooperation between Ireland's leading universities.
"With the Innovation Alliance, we laid out our vision for a meaningful partnership which was built upon the strengths of our institutions. In reaching this important milestone, it is very clear that we are competitors not against one another but in the world arena. Together, through the realisation of the Innovation Academy, we have demonstrated the capacity and drive to deliver this new approach to graduate education in Ireland. The Academy is about people. In partnership with industry expertise, it is a powerful model for equipping the future thought leaders of this country with the capacity to combine cutting edge research with the entrepreneurial and innovative abilities so needed for Ireland’s sustainability and revival,” they said.
Pictured at the launch of the Innovation Academy (L-R): Dr Hugh Brady, President of UCD; Prof Paul Coughlan, Course Co-Director, Innovation Academy & TCD; Dr David Lloyd, Dean of Research, TCD; Prof Desmond Fitzgerald, Vice-President for Research, UCD; Dr John Hegarty, Provost of TCD Front row (L-R): Prof Suzi Jarvis, Course Co-Director, Innovation Academy & UCD; and Prof Veronica Campbell, Dean of Graduate Studies, TCD.
The Academy is a departure from existing programmes at the two universities, which account for 50% of PhD training in Ireland. Professor Suzi Jarvis (UCD) and Professor Paul Coughlan (TCD), Course Co-Directors are leading the development of the Innovation Academy.
Professor Coughlan explained: “We are educating our PhD students to recognise the innovation potential of their research and to exploit their new ideas in multidisciplinary teams in a competitive world. We see innovation in its broadest sense, encompassing the creative arts, social entrepreneurship, science, engineering, technology, humanities and business.”
Professor Jarvis concluded: “I have no doubt that this is the right time to bring this new dimension into our educational programmes. Ireland has created first class research programmes over the past 10 years and built a PhD education that attracts students from all over the world. We are ideally placed in this country to engender innovation in our graduates, given our strong history of invention, culture and entrepreneurship. Just look at the achievements of our diaspora. Let’s bring that ambition home!”
Dr Hugh Brady, President of UCD and Dr John Hegarty, Provost of TCD, with Innovation Academy students (L) Julieann Galloway, UCD and (R) Aisling Miller, TCD
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