Lambton ranked second in research among Canadian colleges

Lambton College maintained its track record as a leader in applied research in a recent national ranking.

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The Sarnia college was ranked Canada’s number two research college with $21 million in research income in 2023, according to a Research Inforsource’s annual listing.

Lambton is the only college to have placed in the ranking’s top five for nine consecutive years, said Mehdi Sheikhzadeh, the college’s vice-president of research and innovation.

“That consistency and longevity is the part we are quite proud of,” he said.

Lambton entered applied research in 2007 and reached the top of the national ranking in 2018. Niagara College tops the latest ranking.

“Being on the top level of offering his service to our students, and partners and community, definitely is something we are quite proud of,” Sheikhzadeh said.

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In the latest ranking, Lambton remained first in medium-sized colleges for paid student researchers with 293. It has held that spot for four consecutive years.

Lambton College says 90 per cent of its research students go on to find jobs in their field.

Lambton was also first for research partnerships among medium-sized colleges with 319.

“A lot of factors are contributing” to Lambton’s longevity at the top of the rankings, Sheikhzadeh said.

They include “providing the support and capacity and resources, which includes expertise as well as the infrastructure, to support the activity,” he said.

Lambton marked the opening of two additional labs earlier this year at its main Sarnia campus where it already had several, along with facilities at the nearby Sarnia-Lambton Western Research Park.

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The college is home to the Bio-industrial Process Research Centre, Center for Industrial Material Development, Lambton Manufacturing Innovation Centre, Lambton Water Center and Center for Community, Health and Social Impact.

Research funding comes from governments and industry partners and the college’s department of research and innovation works to expand partnerships across Canada to attract research projects and add new areas of research, Sheikhzadeh said.

Collaboration with community organizations also aids Lambton’s success and “delivering high-quality service” to research partners helps to build trust in the college, he said.

“The biggest outcome of this is the branding for the college,” and the Sarnia area, Sheikhzadeh said.

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“We are putting our community on the map as a community of research and innovation,” he said.

A decision by college leaders years ago to invest in applied research “really in the long-term, has paid off,” Sheikhzadeh said.

“Our research and innovation efforts focus on creating real-world solutions for our partners, providing transformative opportunities for our students, and delivering lasting impacts in our community and across the country,” college president Rob Kardas said in a statement.

“I remain incredibly proud of what our research team has accomplished, and the quality of the work being done by our staff, faculty and students,” he said.

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