VISION
“To create an outstanding climate of support for the researchers at AWKUM, broadly enabling research advances; creativity and innovation, while promoting the research enterprise through national and international partnerships”.

MISSION
The Office of Research, Innovation and Commercialization at AWKUM is strive to deliver world-class solutions to streamline research administration and support high-impact and responsible research, compliance, collaboration, transparency and efficiency, innovation and commercialization. To enable the achievement of excellence by the research community, The ORIC: provide services and resources to faculty, students and staff that stimulate research and other creative endeavors. Facilitate and enhance partnerships and collaborations between faculty, industry, government, foundations and global research enterprises. Develop infrastructure and policy that promote creativity and an entrepreneurial culture. Communicate the value and impacts of AWKUM research to the world.

Objectives and Function of ORIC

Functions of ORIC

• To work under the directions of HEC.
• Conduct two meetings a year with HEC.
• Identifying and informing the faculty about the research grants opportunities for them to apply and then assist them in acquiring funds from international and national funding agencies.
• To keep track of all the researches carried out in the university by faculty and staff and then commercialize the relevant research to reap maximum benefit for industry and thereby translating the research into the public benefit.
• To deal with plagiarism cases and to advance an anti-plagiarism culture via powerful software for detecting plagiarism i.e. turnitin.
• Arranging seminars and workshops for the university’s students and faculty.

INTENDED OBJECTIVES
ORIC has self-adopted its mandate to seek to enhance the environment for all research activities and scholarship schemes by:-

• Developing the university’s strategic research directions and policies.
• Increasing and diversifying external research funding.
• Improving integration of research and education at all levels of the university.
• Improving translation of research into the public benefit.
• Strengthening university-industry relationships.
• Promoting entrepreneurship, technology-transfer and commercialization activities that energize and support the local and national economy.
• Promoting and enhancing cross-cutting and multi-disciplinary research initiatives while working out incentives and awards’ schemes for world class research and publications.
• To critically enhance research activities in AWKUM’s Institutes / Colleges / Departments and also protect intellectual property generated as a consequence of research activities

Goals of ORIC

The ORIC seeks to enhance the environment for all research and scholarship by:

1. Supporting the university’s strategic research directions and policies
2. Increasing and diversifying external research funding
3. Improving recruitment and retention of top faculty
4. Improving integration of research and education at all levels of the university
5. Improving translation of research into the public benefit
6. Strengthening university-industry relationships
7. Promoting entrepreneurship, technology-transfer and commercialization activities that energize and support the local and national economy
8. Promoting and enhancing cross-cutting and multi-disciplinary research initiatives
9. To complement and supplement the national objectives of Pakistan for advancement of science and technology, management and social sciences.
10. To improve translation of research into public benefit.
11. To establish a strong relationship with regional industrial companies.
12. To enhance research capabilities of faculty members and students.
13. To promote the image of AWKUM in the world of learning as a research based university.
14. To help and facilitate faculty members and students in acquiring funds from different national and international funding agencies.
15. To produce high quality research papers for international conferences and journals.
16. To Support the university’s strategic research directions and policies.
17. To organize seminars and workshops on regular basis.

MANAGEMENT & ADMINISTRATION

The Office of Research Innovation & Commercialization is operational in a permanent separate state of the art building with all required human resources at garden campus of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan. The Office of Research Innovation & Commercialization is headed by a Director supported by a Manager Research Development/Manager Research Operation ,Manager University Industry linkages and technology transfer ,an Assistant Director and one research Associate and sufforting staff . It is housed in the Garden Campus at AWKUM.
In view of the significant increase in number of post graduate students involved in research, enhancement in research projects, increase in publications and enhanced possibility of commercialization of research; it is equally important to build-up the capacity of the academic institutions of AWKUM to manage all research related activities. ORIC will positively set the pace to match up to the challenges in the field of Research and Innovation.

ORIC will develop programs and activities that will:-

• Increase funding for research from all public and private sources.
• Establish and maintain excellent relationships with donors and stakeholders.
• Oversee proposal development and submission.
• Support commercialization, licensing, etc, of university research products.

University – Industrial Linkages & Technology Transfer

ORIC will promote the development of public-private partnerships:-

• In support of university research initiatives.
• Link the university’s research community with the needs and priorities of the corporate sector.
• Develop opportunities for applied research and explore opportunities for technology transfer.
• Commercialization of university research.
• To follow-up of commercialization process of research products.

RESEARCH OPERATIONS
ORIC will promote the development of public-private partnerships:-

• Identify research grant opportunities for faculty to apply.
• Facilitate faculty to apply for research grants.
• Research administration, budgeting and auditing.
• Accounting and human resources management.
• Maintenance of facilities and equipment.
• Implementation of research contracts and human resources.
• Legal, administrative and financial management support of research grants.

AWKUM Research Policy                          
In order to ensure that research activities are carried out effectively, a holistic research policy has been developed. The policy basically is used as the guidelines for researchers to help them undergoing research work accordingly. The guidelines are given as follows:

• Academic staff is encouraged to actively partake in research activities through any relevant center of excellence as part of the main responsibility in the university.
• Research activities conducted by researchers should fall under research clusters developed by the university.
• Researchers shall comply the rules, regulations as well as university’s code of ethics imposed by the university.
• Researchers are encouraged to do collaborative research works with other research institutions or organizations to establish a global research network locally and internationally.
• Research outcomes shall be fully governed by the Intellectual Property Policy of the University.

Introduction (From the Past to the Present)

In line with the policy of HEC and in pursuance of Vice Chancellor’s directives for streamlining the management of research initiatives and programs, there was a need to reinforce the existing research for not only sustaining but also improving the trends of the research activities having an impact for the improvement of areas concerning economic, industrial, social and academic development and their accelerated advancements for achieving the national objectives.

Core Values

• Academic freedom
• Professional integrity
• Ethical conduct
• Full compliance with all policies, legal requirements and operational standards of the university