University-Industry Cooperation Interfaces in Turkey from Academicians’ Perspective

Competitive economies are characterized by continuous emergence of new products. New products are mainly obtained by production of knowledge at universities and by transformation of this knowledge into new technology. Several interfaces (suitable instruments) have been developed in Turkey in order to transform the knowledge that is produced at universities into technology that can be used by the industry. The most important element of this interface is the academician who is the link between university and industry. While there are several factors encouraging academicians to participate in R&D projects through these interfaces, there are other factors preventing them from doing so. In other words, some interface models facilitate university-industry cooperation, some others have serious disadvantages. This study aims to determine the advantages and disadvantages of various university-industry cooperation interfaces from the perspective of academicians. To evaluate the interfaces, a field survey with academicians was conducted using questionnaires. The perceived positive/negative aspects of the cooperation interfaces have been summarized and assessed based on the responses.