Fostering research security for universities
Protect discovery. Enable trusted collaboration.
About
Universities advance through openness, international collaboration and the exchange of ideas. Protecting those strengths requires an understanding of how research can be exploited, where institutional vulnerabilities arise and which safeguards support trusted cooperation. This course helps universities make research security part of academic practice. This effort would be critical to stay competitive with the upcoming research security standards that European Union funding will ask for.
Participants examine intellectual property theft, forced technology transfer and foreign interference across the research lifecycle. They explore how legitimate partnerships, funding arrangements, recruitment and access to facilities or data can create exposure, and why sensitive research extends beyond subjects traditionally associated with defence. International policy approaches provide context for identifying responsibilities and asking the right questions within each institution.
The programme then moves from awareness to implementation. Through practical exercises, participants assess prospective collaborators, document findings from public sources and choose proportionate responses. They consider how academic freedom, transparency and research integrity should shape governance, partnership decisions and physical, personnel and cyber security. A dedicated discussion examines foreign influence and interference in university settings, drawing on experiences from the Bulgarian higher education sector.
Working through a researcher and partnership assessment, participants practise distinguishing warning signs from substantiated concerns. They learn to record uncertainty, escalate decisions appropriately and avoid treating nationality alone as evidence of risk. The emphasis is on informed judgement that enables beneficial collaboration.
By the end, participants will have developed an institutional action plan, a structured due diligence record and priorities for strengthening research security. These outputs support practical conversations between researchers, university leadership and the teams responsible for partnerships, technology transfer and security.
Modules and timing
Day 1 / Understand the risks
| Module | Time |
|---|---|
| Research assets and technology transfer risks | 60 min |
| Global research security policy approaches | 60 min |
| Licit and illicit methods of research exploitation | 90 min |
| Traditional and emerging fields at risk | 75 min |
| Foreign influence and interference in academia | 75 min |
Day 2 / Put safeguards into practice
| Module | Time |
|---|---|
| Due diligence across the research lifecycle | 60 min |
| Academic values and institutional governance | 60 min |
| Research partnerships and risk management | 75 min |
| Physical, personnel and cyber security | 75 min |
| Researcher vetting and institutional action workshop | 90 min |
What you will get out of it
Leave with a completed practice due diligence record, an initial research risk register and a prioritised institutional action plan. Reusable checklists help teams document partnership decisions and assign responsibility for follow-up.
Who is it for
University leaders, principal investigators, research managers, international offices, technology transfer teams, and staff responsible for legal affairs, compliance, IT or security. Also relevant to research councils, funding bodies, ministries and corporate research teams managing academic partnerships. No specialist security background is required.