A Program for University-Industry Interaction

A program entitled "Industrial Affiliation Program in Physical Electronics" has been in operation since January 1968 and is designed to widen the technical channels between the technical staff in companies and the research faculty members in the university. The program involves about 20 faculty members of the College of Engineering of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and ten companies. The faculty members represent six laboratories in the Department of Electrical Engineering and four different research groups in the Coordinated Science Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research organization. All are doing independent research related to physical electronics. The participating companies are geographically dispersed and all have research groups in similar technical areas. The program has resulted in the following for the university: 1) funds, 2) research contracts, 3) fellowships, and 4) equipment and material for an undergraduate laboratory. Industry has received 1) consulting, 2) prepublications and reports, 3) continuing education, 4) student recruitment, and 5) exchange of personnel. As a result of the success of this program over a period of less than three years, the research activities of both industry and the university are more compatible and, therefore healthier.