Tuesday, January 21, 1997
REGENTS:
UC system’s top-ranked programs at risk due to budget cutsBy
Tiffany Lauter
Daily Bruin Contributor
SAN FRANCISCO — For several years, California has been praised
as being the home to some of the best research universities in the
world.
However, UC Provost C. Judson King warned that University of
California’s research climate may have trouble maintaining its
world-class position due to budget cuts, increased regulations and
poor facilities.
Hoping to find answers to these pressing issues, university
officials established a task force in May 1995 to find ways to keep
its worldwide prestige in an ever-changing financial climate.
The first step taken by UC officials was to conduct a survey of
3,300 professors in order to get a comprehensive overview of the
main problems hindering their research. The findings of this survey
were presented to the UC Board of Regents at last week’s
meeting.
Nearly 72 percent of those asked to respond to the survey
actually returned their questionnaires  a number indicating
that research is at the heart of the university’s staff and
faculty.
"That just doesn’t happen," said King. "This response left no
doubt the research climate is close to the hearts of the
faculty."
Topping the list with 61 percent, respondents said they have
inadequate storage facilities, 50 percent have inadequate
secretarial and assistant support, and 40 percent noted that they
have inadequate research facilities. Many respondents commented
that they have to supply their own resources, such as computers,
faxes, and secretaries.
The task force looked into these problems and found that
research is being hampered by inadequate buildings, internal and
external regulations, and the need to encourage relationships with
private industry.
According to Academic Council Vice Chairman and task force
member Sandra Weiss, the committee is currently working on these
issues, determining which are most urgent and prioritizing the use
of funds.
Even with these challenges, the UC system has received top
billing by The National Research Council (NRC). Its study, which is
conducted every 10 years, is one of the most reliable rankings of
the top doctoral programs in the nation in terms of faculty
quality.
Among the top 12 comprehensive U.S. universities, UCLA and UC
San Diego were the only public universities appearing on the list.
More than one-third of the UC’s 229 graduate programs were ranked
in the top 10. UC Berkeley had 36 of its 37 programs ranked in the
top 10 and overall took the No. 1 position, edging out universities
such as Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Yale and Cornell.
"The study confirms what most of us have long known: that the
quality of UC’s doctoral programs is truly extraordinary, not just
at the mature campuses but across the university system," said UC
President Jack W. Peltason in a press release.
King warned that due to President Clinton’s plan to balance the
budget by the year 2002, funds available for research have been
slashed from $34 billion in 1995 to $26 billion in 1996 Â a 23
percent cut.
He said that even though the UC system ranked third in the
nation as a private charity in 1995, the university should not
expect private funds to make up the difference.
"Civilian expenditures tend to follow federal expenditures
downward or upward," said King.
UC President Richard Atkinson said that the UC system needs to
focus on alumni giving. Currently it ranks the lowest in the
nation, with only 11 percent of its alumni contributing as compared
to 25 percent of Stanford’s and 35 percent of Yale’s.