Research at Derby

At Derby we are particularly passionate about our research and the benefits of the linkage between our research, teaching, enterprise and innovation. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework we submitted ten active Units of Assessment incorporating 20% of our academic staff, with 74% of our activities graded at least international.

Our researchers have helped bring about more accurate predictions of climate change, a better quality of life for gynaecological cancer patients, impartial career guidance for young people in schools, some spectacular decorative architecture involving 3D printing techniques, and novel joining processes to create the perfect joints in metals.

Towards the next Research Assessment, we have developed an ambitious strategy (RST2020) where we will make significant investments in the research environment. We have developed two new Research Institutes and four new Research Centres, and hope to add a further three new Centres in 2016-17. Our aspiration is to achieve a step change in our overall institutional REF grade point average for research (a full 0.5 increase) and to be a top 50 University in the league tables.