The second objective of the 2012-2018 Strategic Development Plan is the consolidation of a teaching and research university. This goal is pursued through a research system that begins with the inquiries of the young participants in Children’s University before progressing to the next stages: the incubators and research groups.
The current research budget is around 38.2 billion pesos (roughly US$ 15.5 million), which covers the cost of various projects. The research carried out at EAFIT, in keeping with its mission as an educational institution, is geared toward solving the problems that Colombian society faces. “The guiding principles of its research efforts are, therefore, permanent innovation, an enterprising spirit, and social cooperation.”
A greater ability to manage co-financing schemes for projects and the establishment of links with other institutions have allowed EAFIT to integrate its activities within the context of national and international research circles.
Research Groups
Research groups belonging to the university’s six schools and the Language Center are constantly striving to generate new knowledge. Colciencias currently recognizes 40 EAFIT groups for their quality and the pertinence of the results obtained through their research processes. Of that number, 18 – or 45 percent – have been classified as A or A1 by Colciencias, that agency’s two highest categories.
The university has obtained 13 patents granted by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce: six invention patents and seven utility model patents.
Incubators
EAFIT today boasts 82 research incubators featuring the participation of nearly 960 students.
Children’s University
The first rung in EAFIT’s research system is based on the wonder and curiosity of the nearly 800 children and adolescents who take part annually in Children’s University, a program that comprises three stages: Question-Based Encounters, Knowledge Expeditions, and Science Projects. This initiative promotes curiosity-driven knowledge acquisition.