The Portuguese government has approved the renewal of the three partnerships with US universities – including the University of Texas at Austin – for another six years, from 2025 to 2030. The decision comes after a positive opinion resulting from an independent audit process, which also culminated in a recommendation to renew the partnerships. This new phase will see an alignment of the areas defined as priorities by the European Union, to strengthen the country’s position and participation in the EU agenda.
The conclusions of the independent audit requested by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) outline the positive outcomes of the work done over the last 17 years. The document states that the collaborations, which also include Carnegie Mellon University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, “have strengthened the country’s position in international research networks, enabling fruitful cooperation between academia and industry, and boosting the development of cutting-edge research and innovation”.
The programs’ contributions to education and the Portuguese scientific and entrepreneurial contexts are covered in detail in the report.
The first aspect was the promotion of educational programs, including doctoral and master programs, which contributed to “deepening academic collaboration, facilitated the adoption of international best practices and exposed researchers and entrepreneurs to a culture of innovation”. As the report states, “these programs have […] contributed to the development of human capital, equipping students, researchers and professionals with skills that continue to influence their careers and the Portuguese scientific scene.”
A clear example of this influence is the consequent investment in advanced research infrastructures to best serve Portugal’s research and business communities — for instance, the work carried out under the UT Austin Portugal program led to the transfer of a portion of TACC’s Stampede 2 Supercomputer, then renamed as BOB, and the creation of the Minho Advanced Computing Center.
The report points out that the adoption of best practices and a culture of innovation has been fostered by the research projects funded under the partnerships, allowing close collaboration between researchers and their immersion in different scientific contexts. It should be noted that, in phases 2 and 3, from the three Partnerships, the UT Austin Portugal Program recorded the highest number of applications submitted to project calls.
The transfer of knowledge and technology is also one of the report’s highlights. The “added value” of the partnership is also addressed in this area, boosting the creation of start-ups or spin-offs. According to the data collected throughout the evaluation, 188 processes culminated in entrepreuneurial and commercialization outcomes, with the UT Austin Program representing, in phases 1 and 2, 63.7% of the total of 121 start-ups and spin-offs created. Indeed, the Program’s performance at this level, mainly through UTEN, The University – Technology – Enterprise Network, stands out among FCT’s partnerships with the U.S.
The report concludes with several recommendations, clearly supportive of the Partnerships’ renewal, stressing that the level of funding currently allocated by FCT to the Programs – which represents 3% of FCT’s total budget – should be at least maintained, if not increased.
