What does specialisation for a university mean in a defence-led economy?

Opportunities and challenges in the wake of Government defence spending announcements and the Post-16 white paper

Platform development and operational deployment image. Two close up boats on the sea.혻

What does specialisation for a university mean in a defence-led economy?

Opportunities and challenges in the wake of Government defence spending announcements and the Post-16 white paper

Professor Richard Davies

Vice-Chancellor

Office of Vice Chancellor

11 November 2025

Every Monday at 11.30am, an air raid siren echoes across 쫄챰뻣펄.

It쫄챰뻣펄셲 the routine test of the nuclear warning system and a haunting sound that reminds us the Devonport dockyard 쫄챰뻣펄� western Europe쫄챰뻣펄셲 largest naval base, and the area쫄챰뻣펄셲 biggest employer 쫄챰뻣펄� dominates the edge of our city.

It쫄챰뻣펄셲 also a timely signal that 쫄챰뻣펄 is entering a new era of defence-driven growth 쫄챰뻣펄� and the 쫄챰뻣펄 is right in the middle of it.

The words specialism and specialist appear frequently in the Government쫄챰뻣펄셲 recent Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper. So, what moves do we make, here in 쫄챰뻣펄, and what does our approach suggest for the higher education sector more broadly?

As I begin my second year as Vice-Chancellor, I쫄챰뻣펄셶e seen 쫄챰뻣펄 shift from a city with potential to one with purpose 쫄챰뻣펄� shaped by maritime defence, marine autonomy, and national security. The city is one of five places allocated a Defence Growth Deal, alongside Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and South Yorkshire. The newly formed Team 쫄챰뻣펄 is bidding for a share of the 짙250 million in funding announced alongside that, and has been also designated as the UK쫄챰뻣펄셲 National Centre for Marine Autonomy. And all of this is within a context where 짙4.4 billion is being invested into Devonport over the next ten years to support the Continuous at Sea Deterrent (CASD), with the promises of further billions in the decades to come.

But this isn쫄챰뻣펄셳 just about submarines. It쫄챰뻣펄셲 about how the city쫄챰뻣펄셲 largest University steps up 쫄챰뻣펄� not only because investment in defence research and development is good news for us, but because there is a national and international imperative to protect our seas. We have a role to play 쫄챰뻣펄� and, I would suggest, a duty 쫄챰뻣펄� in delivering the skills, innovation, and dual-use technologies needed to do this better and faster than others.

Our University is globally recognised for its work in all things marine and maritime 쫄챰뻣펄� notably in sciences and engineering 쫄챰뻣펄� but our offer also spans subject areas from the arts, humanities and a business school, through to providing national resilience of a different kind via our Faculty of Health (including both medicine and dentistry) which holds more than 40 per cent of our students. Civic specialisation doesn쫄챰뻣펄셳 mean that only part of the University needs to step up. This opportunity is not just about engineers; every discipline has its role to play in ensuring we support and deliver a rich array of graduates and researchers.

쫄챰뻣펄 Sound: Arial view of 쫄챰뻣펄 waterfront from the Hoe to the Dockyard and beyond.

The future of defence

Defence has changed significantly since the Russian invasion into Ukraine back in February 2022, and international conflict is the current mother of invention. The need for autonomous devices on and under the sea, and the pace of innovation, demands diverse skill sets: creatives, technologists, business leaders, psychologists, project managers and more. And, as our city grows through the 쫄챰뻣펄쁡efence dividend쫄챰뻣펄�, there will be new jobs, higher aspirations, reduced inequality, improved health, better housing, a more vibrant culture, and stronger communities. Along with this will be a demand for artists, historians, lawyers, doctors, nurses, dentists and more.

But there is some jeopardy, and colleagues are asking reasonable questions. Is this a distraction, just when we need to continue to be extra-focused and vigilant about being a well-run, efficient university offering students the best possible experience?

Compared with strategic shifts universities have made in the past, this one feels like a solid bet. Devonport isn쫄챰뻣펄셳 going anywhere. CASD runs until at least 2070. Defence funding is long-term and strategic 쫄챰뻣펄� unlike some other sources we쫄챰뻣펄셶e all banked on that have since disappeared (remember the Global Challenges Research Fund?). Furthermore, we쫄챰뻣펄셱e not abandoning our legacy of innovation in areas like microplastic pollution, trans-cranial ultrasound, and sustainability. If defence is the bow wave, then behind it can be a flotilla of other opportunities.

The White Paper asks us to specialise; we쫄챰뻣펄셶e done it before (for example marine sciences, offshore renewable energy) and will do it again. But we also serve the South West of England. We have won three Queen쫄챰뻣펄셲 Anniversary Prizes, and colleagues often proudly cite the 1994 award for partnering with further education providers and widening access to education in a scattered rural community. To stop doing that kind of work because we disinvested from some disciplines where there is demand would be a mistake. Specialism must be balanced with serving our communities in Devon, Cornwall and the wider region.

Right place, right time

We쫄챰뻣펄셱e the right University in the right city at the right time. 쫄챰뻣펄 has been leading the way in tackling maritime cybersecurity for years. But now we쫄챰뻣펄셱e at the centre of the UK쫄챰뻣펄셲 marine autonomy agenda, we need to grow. And there are big questions to answer: how many graduates will be needed, in what disciplines, taught in what mode, and at what level? How do we work across HE and FE to build clearer, more exciting pathways for 16 and 17-year-olds into defence jobs, or retraining and upskilling adults who want to progress or change their careers? Getting the views of businesses, the Ministry of Defence and others, then sharing intelligence across the education sector will be vital to helping us make the best decisions.

Some vice-chancellors have had to navigate sensitive situations around the defence industry on campus, with links to defence businesses being scrutinised. I am sure that will happen here, and we will have the discussion 쫄챰뻣펄� we are a university and welcome debate. But maritime defence has been in 쫄챰뻣펄쫄챰뻣펄셲 DNA for generations, as a naval port of vital strategic importance. Also, the technologies we develop have more than one application 쫄챰뻣펄� one person쫄챰뻣펄셲 defence alert system is another쫄챰뻣펄셲 environmental monitoring equipment.

We need to move fast, because others outside the UK will. And we are up for it. If Cranfield is our nation쫄챰뻣펄셲 defence aerospace university, 쫄챰뻣펄 is poised to become its marine autonomy counterpart.

The stakes are high 쫄챰뻣펄� not just because of financial pressures on universities, but because this challenge is about the UK쫄챰뻣펄셲 security, on and under the sea. And it쫄챰뻣펄셲 about how universities like 쫄챰뻣펄 adapt to a new kind of industrial strategy.

This article was on Tuesday 11 November 2025.

Delivering on the UK쫄챰뻣펄셲 defence and security priorities

Discover how the University and our Team 쫄챰뻣펄 partners are enhancing national resilience and making the most of investment in the city's dockyards, with 쫄챰뻣펄 as the National Centre for Marine Autonomy and a recipient of one of the Government's Defence Growth Deals.