Transform businesses through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)

Turn your knowledge and ideas into solutions with a funded collaboration that brings about real change within a business.

Through the Knowledge Transfer Partnership programme, you’ll be able to work with a UK company on a complex strategic project.

What is a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)?

A KTP provides the funding and support for you to join forces with an organisation and a high-calibre associate to solve a significant business challenge. Together you’ll work for one to three years on developing a new product, process, service or efficiency saving.

Examples of our recent KTPs

• UCL Institute of Education is collaborating with Numbermix on the design of a digital education platform for teachers and schoolchildren. 
• UCL Physics & Astronomy and UCL Chemical Engineering are using advanced chemistry simulation techniques to set up a Digital Lab for BP and solve the challenges of oil and gas production. 

How the partnership benefits you

By sharing your expertise with the business you’ll be able to:

• publish your findings
• initiate new student projects 
• develop business-relevant teaching materials
• extend the partnership into new areas

The other partners will benefit too. On average, businesses see an increase in annual profits of around £600,000 and associates are often offered a job at the end of it.

How a KTP works

• The business has an idea about how your existing research could help increase their profits or efficiencies. 
• You and an academic colleague will jointly commit half a day a week to overseeing the introduction of these new ideas.
• UCL employs an associate, usually at master's level or above, who’s based full-time at the business. They will lead the project and make sure its innovations take root. 

What funding is available

KTPs typically cost around £120,000 a year.

Innovate UK, the government funding body, will cover a substantial part of these costs: 

• 67% funding for an SME 
• 50% funding for a larger company

Your organisation will then need to pay the remaining percentage.

Process and timings

It can take at least nine months to get all the pieces of a KTP in place. That includes applying for the funds, creating a detailed workplan and recruiting an associate. You’ll be supported at every stage by our KTP Manager and a Knowledge Transfer Advisor from Innovate UK.

Next steps

If you have a project in mind, find out what you need to do next (you'll need to enter your UCL password).

You can also find out more about the benefits of KTPs to academics on the KTP website.