The three universities that make up Michigan’s University Research Corridor (URC) ― Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University ― continue to lead the nation’s university innovation clusters in the number of medicine and biological science degrees awarded annually. Those are just some of the findings in the annual Benchmark Report through which the URC measures its performance against the nation’s top university research clusters, including California’s Silicon Valley, Massachusetts’ Route 128 and North Carolina’s Research Triangle. Michigan’s URC is the only national innovation cluster comprised exclusively of public universities ― and the only one with three medical doctors heading those institutions.

1. OPENING DOORS
TO THE FUTURE
Michigan’s
University
Research
Corridor

2. 02 03
ABOUT MICHIGAN’S URC
Note: While this map reflects the URC's presence in Michigan as of 2016, it is representative of the URC's presence in 2015, the year of
operations we're studying in this report.
Source: AEG map using base data from URC Universities
Michigan’s University Research Corridor
(URC) is one of the nation’s top academic
research clusters and the leading engine for
talent and innovation in Michigan and the
Great Lakes region. An alliance of Michigan
State University, the University of Michigan
and Wayne State University, the URC is
focused on increasing economic prosperity
and connecting Michigan to the world.
As the only national innovation cluster
comprised exclusively of public institutions,
the URC is dedicated to improving the
quality of life for its region while advancing
knowledge at a global level.
Source: Anderson Economic Group (AEG) Benchmarking Report 2019
URC LOCATIONS
AgBioResearch Centers & Field Stations
Campus Locations
MSU Extension District Offices
MSU Extension
Partner Hospitals
CONTENTS
about Michigan’s URC 02
peer university clusters
where we lead 06
producing talent
training doctors to save lives
moving ideas to market
licensing innovations
our impact 14
| URC 2019 | About Michigan’s URC |
Extension offices
IN EVERY COUNTY
72 partner hospitals
Note: While this map reflects the URC's presence in Michigan as of 2016, it is representative of the URC's presence in 2015, the year of
operations we're studying in this report.

3. 04 05
MICHIGAN
MASSACHUSETTS
PENNSYLVANIA
ILLINOIS
NORTH CAROLINA
TEXAS
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
Michigan State University
University of Michigan (all campuses)
Wayne State University
Harvard University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Boston University
Pennsylvania State University (all campuses
except the Penn State World Campus)
University of Pittsburgh (all campuses)
Carnegie Mellon University
University of Chicago
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne
Northwestern University
Duke University
University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill)
North Carolina State University
PEER UNIVERSITY CLUSTERS
University of Texas (Austin)
Texas A&M University (College
Station and Commerce)
Rice University
University of California, San Francisco
University of California, Berkeley
Stanford University
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, San Diego
University of Southern California
The annual benchmarking report measures how well the
URC performs year-over-year in producing talent at all levels
in key areas, conducting research and development, and
transferring technology to the marketplace.
Our nation has eight top research clusters against which the
URC benchmarks itself each year. These clusters are defined by
the presence of multiple leading research universities making
contributions and critical breakthroughs in their region.
65% of children
entering primary
school today will
work in positions
that currently do
not exist, according to
the World Economic Forum.
URC UNIVERSITIES are solving
the problems of the future and
preparing students for careers
that didn't exist 20 years ago.
| About Michigan’s URC | Peer University Clusters |

4. 06 07
WHERE WE LEAD
PRODUCING TALENT
The URC continues to be
the nation’s #1 cluster in
medicine and biological
science for awarding
both undergraduate and
advanced degrees.
The URC also leads in
medical graduates.
It is the only cluster
among the peers that
offers a doctorate in
osteopathic medicine
(DO) program, and leads
in MD and nursing
graduates.
Michigan’s URC ranks #1
in student enrollment
(undergraduate and
graduate) and #2 in the
number of degrees
awarded.
| Where We Lead | Producing Talent |
40,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0
TXPANCMAILCA
SOUTH
CA
NORTH
URC
TXPANCMAILCA
SOUTH
CA
NORTH
URC
180,000
160,000
140,000
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
0
155,358
47,235
108,123
131,939
48,606
83,343
27,052
66,578
39,535
41,705
52,554
94,259
50,532
41,353
91,885
33,176
53,574
86,750
29,001
111,209
140,210
38,869
109.767
148,636
36,411
22,519
13,892
37,868
20,758
17,110
27,052
17,713
8,138
11,819
13,263
25,055
14,140
21,228
7,088
12,066
10,507
22,573
22,062
9,631
31,693
24,165
11,697
35,862
GRADUATE
ENROLLMENT
UNDERGRADUATE
ENROLLMENT
BACHELOR
DEGREES
ADVANCED
DEGREES
STUDENT ENROLLMENT FOR THE URC AND PEER CLUSTERS, 2017
COMPLETIONS BY LEVEL OF DEGREE FOR THE URC AND PEER CLUSTERS, 2017
40,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0
TXPANCMAILCA
SOUTH
CA
NORTH
URC
TXPANCMAILCA
SOUTH
CA
NORTH
URC
180,000
160,000
140,000
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
0
155,358
47,235
108,123
131,939
48,606
83,343
27,052
66,578
39,535
41,705
52,554
94,259
50,532
41,353
91,885
33,176
53,574
86,750
29,001
111,209
140,210
38,869
109.767
148,636
36,411
22,519
13,892
37,868
20,758
17,110
27,052
17,713
8,138
11,819
13,263
25,055
14,140
21,228
7,088
12,066
10,507
22,573
22,062
9,631
31,693
24,165
11,697
35,862
GRADUATE
ENROLLMENT
UNDERGRADUATE
ENROLLMENT
BACHELOR
DEGREES
ADVANCED
DEGREES
Source: Anderson Economic Group (AEG) Benchmarking Report 2019
5,117 undergraduate degrees in medicine
3,588
155,358 students enrolled in 2017
36,411 degrees awarded in 2017
advanced degrees in medicine and
biological science
4 out of 10
doctors in Michigan
graduated from a URC
university

5. 08 09
TRAINING DOCTORS TO SAVE LIVES
“Addiction is not a moral failing; addiction is a
disease. But we can combat addiction when we work
together.”
- GRETCHEN WHITMER, Michigan governor
The number of opioid-related deaths in Michigan has
hit an all-time high, requiring the resources of the
state’s three major research universities and one of its
largest health systems to tackle the problem.
Under a two-year, $1.5 million grant, Michigan
State University, the University of Michigan,
Wayne State University and Grand Rapids-based
Spectrum Health will train more physicians as
addiction medicine specialists by streamlining the
certification process.
Currently, fewer than 200 physicians in Michigan are
certified in addiction medicine or addiction psychiatry,
and there’s only one specialist in the entire Upper
Peninsula, which is far from enough to deal with the
opioid epidemic. Most doctors receive fewer than five
hours of addiction training in medical school.
Due to the urgency of Michigan’s problem, the Michigan CARES program will
assist physicians in fulfilling the requirements through online courses, clinical
experiences and leadership opportunities. While the program centers around
opioids, physicians will receive skills to treat other forms of addiction, including
methamphetamines, stimulants and alcohol.
Opioid misuse, which includes prescription painkillers, heroin, fentanyl and other
synthetic drugs, was blamed for 49,000 deaths nationwide in 2017. Michigan
recorded nearly 2,000 opioid-related deaths in 2017, according to the Michigan
Department of Health and Human Services.
| Where We Lead | Training Doctors to Save Lives |

6. RESEARCH &
DEVELOPMENT
PUBLIC USE &
ECONOMIC GROWTH
INVENTION
PRODUCT
DEVELOPMENT
EVALUATION
LICENSING
IP PROTECTION
MARKETING
10 11
MOVING IDEAS TO MARKET
The URC is a key driver in Michigan’s status as a Top 10 State in academic R&D.
The URC ranks third
on the Innovation
Power Index,
trailing only the two
California clusters.
This index shows how
research universities
are performing in
talent development,
R&D and technology
commercialization.
The URC makes a big
difference in Michigan
and around the
world by licensing its
technologies.
23startups
produced in 2017
172technologies
licensed & optioned by
companies headquartered
in Michigan in 2017
92%of Michigan’s
academic R&D is
conducted by the URC
94%of Michigan’s
federally funded R&D is
conducted by the URC
| Where We Lead | Moving Ideas to Market |
993new research-
created innovation
licenses were in use by
companies in 2017
TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER
LIFE CYCLE
249
Startups Formed since 2002,
86 formed in past 5 years
$178.5MILLION
in Licensing Revenue
883
Licenses
& Options
Signed
3,160
Invention
Disclosures -
more than
12 per week!
$10.83BILLION
Research Expenditures
1,212
New U.S. Patent
Applications Filed
Note: Life cycle data from 2013-2017; Source for life cycle model: Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM);
Content: URC analysis of institutional technology transfer data
University technology transfer manages the
complex process of moving ideas to market.
This includes evaluating and protecting
discoveries as well as commercializing
inventions via startups or existing companies.

7. 12 13
LICENSING INNOVATIONS
“Innovation at the university level and the subsequent transfer
from our university’s laboratories to the marketplace is critically
important for the American economy and the improvement of
the human condition around the world. University tech transfer
is credited with the creation of thousands of new companies and
billions of dollars of direct benefits to the U.S. economy.”
- ANDREI IANCU, Under Secretary of Commerce
for Intellectual Property & Director of the US
Patent and Trademark Office
In the past five years, URC researchers disclosed more than 3,000 technologies
and inventions, which were then licensed to companies to help them make safer
cars, stop identity theft, develop life-saving new drugs and medical devices, repair our
roads, fight invasive species, feed families around the world and more.
Research efforts at Wayne State University led to the development of a medical
instrument that assists physicians in the identification of bacterial, parasitic,
and other pathogen infections in near real-time. This innovation is licensed to
Seraph Biosciences, Inc. (seraspec.com), a biomedical device company headquartered
in Detroit. There, it created a product called Seraspec®, which ensures better
treatment decisions by eliminating the wait for traditional lab results.
Michigan blueberry growers produce about 100 million pounds
of blueberries every year, making the state a leader in blueberry
production. And for more than half a century, Michigan State
University has been a key player in bringing new blueberry varieties
to market. Three of the world’s most widely-planted Northern
Highbush blueberry varieties – Aurora, Draper and Liberty –
were developed and perfected there, resulting in the successful
lengthening of Michigan’s harvest season.
University of Michigan startup May Mobility (maymobility.com) already
has tested its bright green-and-white driverless shuttles on public
streets in downtown Detroit and Columbus, Ohio, and has ambitious
plans for growth. The company licensed five autonomous driving-
related technologies from U-M that will help build out a fleet
of autonomous public transit vehicles planned for business
districts, corporate and college campuses, medical facilities and
other communities across the country.
| Where We Lead | Licensing Innovations |

8. 14 15
OUR IMPACT
| Our Impact |
ECONOMIC IMPACT BY REGION, 2018
Upper Peninsula Region
$56 million
Northeast Region
$53 million
East Central Region
$160 million
East Michigan Region
$701 million
Metro Detroit Region
$6.9 billion
Southeast Michigan Region
$5.87 billion
Southwest Michigan Region
$220 million
South Central Region
$3.93 billion
West Michigan Region
$612 million
Northwest Region
$166 million
$18.7 BILLION
78,845jobs filled in 2017
1.2 MILLION+
669,274graduates living in MI
1 out of 10
URC graduates
worldwide
added to state
economy in
2017
Michigan residents over the
age of 24 is a URC graduate

9. urcmich.org
august 2019