Olds College has been ranked as one of the top 50 research colleges in Canada by a Toronto-based research firm.
The college was ranked 23rd out of 50 research colleges in Canada by Research Infosource, a firm that also ranks the top 100 corporate research and development spenders, the top 50 research universities in Canada and the country's top 40 research hospitals. Infosource looks at each college's main research facilities, which in Olds College's case is the Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI).
“When we are named 23rd in the country, I think it's an honour,” said Abimbola Abiola, the chair of the OCCI. “When you look at the size of Olds College, when you look at the size of our budget, when you look at the amount of work we are doing I think working at that level is something that's commendable.”
One of the projects the centre is currently working on is a collaboration with Livestock Recycling Inc. to separate the nutrients and water from manure and use the nutrients in crop growing.
The college ranks third in Alberta, next to only the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) and the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), which ranked first and second nationally respectively in the firm's ranking in terms of the amount of income generated per researcher. SAIT brought in $184,000 per researcher, while NAIT brought in $105,600 per researcher. OCCI brought in $130,400.
The Western Innovation Program recently announced by the federal government will give Olds College even more opportunities to work with industry partners to bring ideas to market, Abiola said. The Alberta government has also announced a new program that will help companies connect with researchers as well.
“There are now more (programs) at the federal level as well as at the provincial level for innovation. We are really looking forward to working with the government and our industry partners to enhance private sector innovation,” Abiola said.
Attracting more research allows the college to expand name recognition as a place that companies can go to for answers to industry problems. It also allows college staff to expand their expertise.
“We compete favourably with institutions that have tens of thousands of students in terms of our research abilities. We are very creative. We have the Alberta attitude to solving problems. The college's mission is to be the premier institution of learning and applied research in our areas of specialization,” Abiola said.
Infosource looked at the amount of sponsored research income that institutions brought in from industry partners. The information was provided by the colleges. Ron Freedman, chief executive officer of Infosource, said in order to balance the gross amount of money larger colleges might attract for research, the total amount is divided to get a figure per researcher.
“Within any college not all the faculty are engaged in research. So we normalize the research activity by looking at income per full-time researcher, and on that measure, Olds College does very well. It says that things are on the move at Olds College,” he said.
