Advice for Collaborative Research


Find out more about how to identify and approach the right partner organisation to drive collaborative research

Reaching out to non-academic organisations

If you intend to reach out to a non-academic organisation from the private, public or third sector through your research and realize a collaborative project, identifying the right partner will be crucial for the success of the project. You will need to find a partner with an interest in your research expertise and a genuine commitment to academic collaboration. The stronger the alignment between your research and the host organisation’s agenda, the more fruitful the collaboration will be. In approaching a non-academic partner, think of how you can add value to their organisation with your research expertise. A project based on a two-way exchange which benefits both researcher and host organisation is more likely to generate interest and a positive response.

While existing experience outside academia and contacts will be good starting points to foster collaborative relationships, these are not a necessary pre-condition for research collaboration with non-academic partners. Inquire within your Department about existing engagements with private, public or third sector organisations, use LinkedIn to search and connect with LSE alumni and stakeholders in your area of interest, and make the most of LSE resources.

Pathways to collaborative research

PhD researchers across the LSE have followed different strategies for conducting collaborative research. Below are their most commonly adopted pathways to research-business-collaboration:

  • Researcher pro-actively reaches out and initiates collaboration or learning partnership with an organisation/business as part of a research project: partnerships were formed to gain access to data, test out ideas, or apply expertise and research skills to business environments.
  • Researcher works part-time for a company while conducting PhD research within the company: researcher uses the company as a case study, or brings in research expertise by analysing company data, contributing to the development of a product, or applying expertise to a company problem.
  • PhD student is “recruited” as a research student on a collaborative project jointly set up and supervised by an academic (often the PhD supervisor) and a business partner; in some cases, such collaborative projects may be funded as part of the ESRC Postgraduate Collaboration scheme.

Discover more about other PhD researchers’ individual collaboration pathways and get inspired by reading these collaboration stories.