New Delhi: Lady Shri Ram College (LSR) is strengthening higher education-industry linkages by bringing companies and institutions into its research ecosystem, a move aimed at benefiting students.The college has surveyed nearly 200 stakeholders across sectors to identify research problems that students in the fourth-year research programme can work on. The majority expressed willingness to collaborate, with around 20 organisations agreeing in principle to co-supervise student research voluntarily.The exercise is expected to give students exposure to applied research while helping organisations find academic solutions to real-world challenges. Artificial intelligence, sustainability, workplace mental health and healthcare emerged as key research priorities. Overseas institutions have also shown interest.The initiative follows a steady rise in internships by LSR students, both during the summer and the academic semester, several of them in lieu of Skill Enhancement Course (SEC) credits. According to the college, this has encouraged it to move beyond placements, towards building structured industry partnerships that feed directly into student research.The survey drew responses from organisations in the sectors of education, financial services, information technology, public policy, publishing, healthcare, banking, legal services, mental health consultancy and the NGO sector. The University of Queensland, Australia, has shown keenness too.Beyond identifying research themes, the exercise also highlighted the skills industry expects from student researchers. Academic writing, literature review, survey design, logical reasoning and problem-solving featured prominently, while proficiency in Excel was considered essential.Some organisations also sought familiarity with Python, R and qualitative research software, alongside communication and cross-cultural collaboration skills.Principal Kanika K Ahuja said the initiative is aimed at making research more relevant to both students and society. “We want our students to engage with real-world challenges while they are still on the campus. By working with industry and other organisations, they will gain hands-on research experience, develop skills that employers value and understand how academic knowledge can be applied to solve practical problems. At the same time, organisations benefit from rigorous academic inquiry and fresh perspectives from our students,” she said.
