Innovation and discovery in STEM move at a fast pace within industry, whereas university curricula often only slowly incorporate the knowledge that researchers generate. How can universities ensure that their graduates get the best exposure to the skills that they need to be competitive in the job market and thrive in the workplace?
Partnerships between university and industry seek to bridge the gap between the learning that happens in the classroom and the skills needed by an entry-level workforce. Bringing real-world knowledge into the higher education experience through university-industry partnerships can produce a robust talent pipeline.
Models of Partnerships That Benefit Undergraduates
Current university-industry partnerships take various forms. Some become embedded in the curriculum (e.g., through co-ops or capstone projects), while others exist outside the curriculum (e.g., through internships). Additional ones emerge when industry representatives serve on advisory boards to help develop curricula or when businesses provide funding for physical spaces, such as specialized centers within universities.
Examples of university-industry partnerships embedded in the undergraduate curriculum include Northeastern University’s Co-op program and Suffolk University’s Biotech Ready Program, the latter offered through a partnership with LabCentral. Northeastern University’s Co-op program in Boston provides experiential learning that alternates with academic study. Undergraduates can gain up to 18 months of full-time, paid-work experience. Across disciplines, 96% of Northeastern students gain employment or enroll in graduate school within 9 months of obtaining their degree, and 58% accept a job from a previous Co-op employer.
The partnership between Suffolk University and LabCentral has support through a City of Boston grant to harness the rich biotech ecosystem in the Boston/Cambridge area and to support a continuous talent pipeline in biomedical research. Biotech Ready provides the opportunity for Suffolk University students to receive coaching for three weeks at LabCentral, a Cambridge biotech startup community, through a combination of training modules, networking opportunities, and assistance in presentation skills.
As is typical of many schools, Suffolk University also provides opportunities for undergraduates to access industry experience through outside internships. Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), an independent, quasi-governmental organization, pays for many of these internships. MLSC was established in 2006 to stimulate economic development in the life sciences. In 2008, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts committed to investing $1 billion in the life science industry over a 10-year period.
Another way in which industry partners with universities to enhance STEM education is through industry advisory boards. For example, the engineering program at Arizona State University’s Polytechnic campus has an Industry Advisory Board (IAB), which comprises volunteer consultants from the engineering industry. The IAB assesses the existing and proposed curricula of the engineering program and evaluates graduates’ industry readiness. These consultants also ensure that the education provided by the engineering program effectively prepares ASU graduates for productive careers. IABs have become a common entity at many universities, providing counsel to engineering or bioengineering programs across the nation.
Companies have also forged direct partnerships with universities by investing in centers and multipronged initiatives. For example, the Golden LEAF Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC) at North Carolina State University offers instruction by simulating a biomanufacturing plant facility, providing students with hands-on experience in handling large-scale equipment that they will later use in bioprocessing and biomanufacturing jobs. The Golden LEAF Foundation, a nonprofit organization that seeks to increase economic opportunities in North Carolina’s rural and tobacco-dependent communities, provided a $68 million initiative grant that funded BTEC and other ventures. Each year, BTEC trains as many as 2,000 students and prospective employees.
Eli Lilly and Purdue University in Indiana also have a longstanding collaboration that they recently expanded in 2025 with a $250-million investment over eight years under the Lilly-Purdue 360 initiative. Lilly-Purdue 360 aims to accelerate innovation at every stage of the drug development pipeline, from discovery to manufacturing. The initiative consists of joint work between Purdue and Lilly researchers to apply AI-powered tools to drug discovery; to employ technology-enabled approaches that accelerate regulatory approval and manufacturing of potential treatments; to incorporate robotics, AI, and data sciences into manufacturing; and to enhance workforce development. For students, the Lilly-Purdue partnership has provided academic and professional training resources in the form of scholarships, paid internships at Eli Lilly, and career-readiness tools through the Lilly Scholars at Purdue program that began in 2023. Lilly Scholars at Purdue includes over 150 students enrolled across engineering, science and pharmacy.
Fine-Tuning Graduate Students’ Potential
Only 15-40% of doctorate recipients in STEM fields pursue academic positions after graduation; the majority will take on nonacademic careers, and many will decide to work in industry. However, academic research does not fully prepare scientists, mathematicians, and engineers for careers in industry. In fact, academic researchers pay little attention to such industry-relevant skills as project management, intellectual property and technology commercialization, and soft professional skills. Some programs, however, aim to f ill the gap between academic training and industry careers by providing experiential learning and industry-relevant skills during doctoral work. For example, Harvard Medical School’s PhD program in Biological and Biomedical Sciences allows graduate students to accept internships during their PhD training.
The University of California, Davis (UC Davis), which acknowledges the gap between doctoral training and industry skills, has long pioneered programs to address this challenge. The UC Davis-NIH Biomolecular Training Program (BTP) ran from 1990–2017 as an innovative model for biotechnology graduate education; it integrated industry sponsors and provided fellowship support, guest lectures, and student internships to train PhD students for career paths in both academia and biotech. The training goals to enhance PhD students’ understanding of industry jobs included coursework on platform technologies used in biotech-related research, as well as knowledge about the “business of biotech,” including intellectual property, regulatory affairs, entrepreneurship, project management, and science communication for nonspecialist audiences. UC Davis has also fostered the biotech training pipeline through the Designated Emphasis in Biotechnology (DEB) program offered by the Biotechnology Program, established in 1997 and currently enrolling 228 UC Davis doctoral students across 29 disciplines. DEB offers seminars focused on biotechrelated topics and presented by industry experts, as well as internship placements.
Case Western Reserve University’s STEM PhDs also receive direct industry support. A new grant from UL Research Institutes (ULRI) will support three cohorts of six PhD students in chemistry, chemical engineering, and physics at this Ohio-based university. Students in the f irst cohort started in the 2025–2026 academic year. The goal of the ULRI Graduate Fellowship Program consists in preparing STEM PhD students for careers beyond academia by providing immersive experiences with ULRI, including professional development support and industry engagement.
In addition, doctoral students in computer science and related fields can apply for Google PhD Fellowships, which provide direct stipend support for one to four years to doctoral students worldwide who enroll in accredited research institutions and conduct exceptional and innovative research. A key component of the fellowship is access to a Google Research Mentor.
Inspiring the Next Generation of Scientists
A key to supporting future STEM scientists lies in enhancing high school science education through real-world exposure to scientific research, especially in underserved communities that would otherwise not have first-hand access to scientists or laboratories at the forefront of biomedical research. In fact, a recent study reported that students from underrepresented backgrounds who participate in STEM summer programs are more likely to complete high school, attend four-year colleges, and earn a degree in a STEM field.
In Boston, the biotech company Vertex has partnered with Boston Public Schools since 2012 to provide 6-week paid internships for students in the summer. The program has hosted more than 300 BPS students. Vertex’s nearly $1.5-million investment to support education for these students also includes a dedicated learning laboratory, Advanced Placement support, a teacher-researcher fellowship program, and university scholarships.
Likewise, the Novartis Community Exploration and Learning Lab (CELL) offers biomedical laboratory experiences to middle-school and high-school students through partnerships with public schools in the greater Cambridge/ Boston region. CELL’s program includes student site visits to Novartis, either as part of their science curriculum—to connect their STEM education with real-life biomedical research—or through afterschool activities.
A Win-Win for All
As recently as the 2021–2022 school year, a total of 435,506 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in STEM degree. University-industry partnerships bolster the education of many of these students by aligning and enhancing academic curricula with real-world applications.
This alignment, in turn, leads to the development of a better-prepared talent pipeline ready to tackle the challenges of a scientific career. No one can completely measure the direct impact of these forged partnerships on STEM innovation since multiple factors come into play at each stage of the discovery process. The immediate consequences for students, however, seem clear-cut: They land internships, they build networks, and they receive good job offers after they graduate.
Universities also benefit from these partnerships. They enhance their curricula by infusing it with real-world applications and relevant skills for STEM jobs, and they improve employment rates for their alumni. For industry, the advantages lie in a stronger talent pipeline and involvement in skill development at the university level to align with evolving workforce demands. On a broader level, the partnerships drive STEM workforce development that will yield economic benefits and enhance innovation. The ultimate win is for the students by supporting their interest in STEM and providing them with the tools to successfully navigate STEM careers in the rapidly evolving biopharmaceutical and technology industries.
Isabel Lam, PhD, is a Program Administrator at Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center involved in training and career development of postdoctoral and clinical fellows. She holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.
This article was originally published in AWIS Magazine. Join AWIS to access the full issue of AWIS Magazine and more member benefits.