BGU | Fundraising Handbook

3.1 RESEARCH CAPACITY AND EXPANSION Critical to BGU’s ability to implement its strategic plan and fulfill its goals 3. ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH EXCELLENCE

The Need The need to increase BGU’s research capacity and expand its research capabilities is heavily emphasized in the strategic plan. In the plan’s executive summary, just after noting that the University is justly proud of the growth and impact it has achieved thus far, it notes that a disturbing trend of declining international rankings has taken place over the past decade, with an in-depth analysis showing that BGU’s decline in position stems primarily from its relative decline in research outputs. The plan also points out a correlation between

stagnation in external research funding, publication outputs, and a decline in international reputation. The prominent placement of these findings in the second paragraph of the strategic plan is a testament to their importance and the urgency with which this trend must be reversed if BGU is to achieve its goals of becoming one of the most outstanding universities in the world and the leading university in Israel in terms of research, teaching and contribution to society.

ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH EXCELLENCE

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RESEARCH CAPACITY AND EXPANSION