Recently we welcomed UTS Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Anika Gauja to the Research Office for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about research culture, impact and partnership. Drawing on her experience as both an academic and a national research leader, Anika shared what excites her about UTS and why research management plays a critical role in lifting research ambition and performance.
Introducing Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) Dr Anika Gauja
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Venus Khalessi Rahmani-Afoosi, Tania Bezzobs, Anika Gauja, Annamari Laaksonen, and Ling Siviengphanom
Opening the conversation, Research Office Director Dr Tania Bezzobs invited Anika to discuss their shared cultural background. Anika spoke about her Latvian heritage, with all four grandparents arriving in Australia as displaced persons. Tania's Latvian father had a similar background.
“My grandparents worked on developing Australia's water infrastructure as part of the Warragamba Dam Snowy Hydro schemes,” said Anika, whose grandmother was a dentist in Latvia, graduating in the late 30s from University of Latvia, Riga.
“Her degree was not recognised in Australia, so my grandmother worked as a nurse in Balmain Hospital for many years before re-attaining her dental qualifications. My mother subsequently became a dentist as well. And I was going to become a dentist too!”
After work experience in an orthodontic clinic, Anika changed direction and decided to pursue studies in the social sciences. She went on to have a successful career as a political scientist, working at the University of Sydney for 13 years before her appointment as Executive Director, Social Behavioural and Economic Sciences at the Australian Research Council, where she led major changes to the Discovery Projects scheme.
Creating research with impact
Anika said she was inspired to join UTS because of its genuine commitment to producing research that has impact.
“Whether that’s impact through connections with industry, connections with the community, social impact, economic impact, or even a willingness to address intellectual problems because it's going to further research in an area to build critical knowledge, I could see that UTS researchers and professional staff tend to think differently and more openly,” Anika explained.
It is a priority for me to work to strengthen the research culture at UTS to ensure a high level of respect for research professional staff and utilisation of their skills.
With her background in research as well as public grants administration and leadership, Anika brings to the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) role a deep understanding of the importance and value of quality research management.
“At the Australian Research Council, I was working every day with research management professionals, understanding their skills, their expertise and the extraordinary value that they bring to the research enterprise,” she said.
“It is a priority for me to work to strengthen the research culture at UTS to ensure a high level of respect for research professional staff and utilisation of their skills.”
Valuing research management as partnership
Anika wants to see research management be acknowledged by the academic community as “a valuable partnership in furthering the research enterprise at UTS.”
Among her other priorities in the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) role will be working with the research leadership community across the University to ensure that UTS researchers have the best resources and opportunities available to undertake outstanding research and create impact.
It is a priority for me to work to strengthen the research culture at UTS to ensure a high level of respect for research professional staff and utilisation of their skills.
“When you consider how to maximise research outcomes, it’s not as simple as saying things like: You've got to publish here. You've got to apply for more grants,” Anika warned.
“This is a much more nuanced, complicated conversation that must be attuned to the collective strengths of UTS, the capabilities and ambitions of individual researchers at different stages of their careers and the needs of our industry and community partners. This holistic conversation is how we can continue to build a strong research culture at UTS.”
Another area that Anika wants to focus on is the international aspect of UTS research.
“I want to ensure that research impact and partnerships are core to our international strategy,” she said.
Anika looks forward to working closely with research management colleagues to see what comes next in the broader landscape of grant funding in Australia, particularly considering the Strategic Examination of Research and Development and the Policy Review of the National Competitive Grants Program.
I want to ensure that research impact and partnerships are core to our international strategy.
“The outcomes of these reviews will enable us to understand the national priorities for research, commercialisation and translation, and to identify where there are opportunities for UTS.”
She described the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) role as being like glue.
“It's taking the strategic research priorities of UTS and working across the university with researchers, faculties, schools, the Research Office and research leaders, to ensure that we produce not only ground-breaking research, but that the full potential of that work is realised with our partners outside UTS,” she explained.
“I'm going to be out and about to as many things as I can possibly get to, meeting as many people as I possibly can. UTS researchers and research management professionals are world-class, and my role is to support their work through initiatives such as the UTS Knowledge Exchange Framework, Deep Sector Engagement and the Strategic Research Accelerator to enhance research outcomes and realise our ambitions collectively.”
It's taking the strategic research priorities of UTS and working across the university with researchers, faculties, schools, the Research Office and research leaders, to ensure that we produce not only ground-breaking research, but that the full potential of that work is realised with our partners outside UTS.
Tania thanked Anika for sharing her aspirations with the Research Office teams and wished her well in contributing to the next stage of research development at UTS.
What’s next?
Join Anika as host of the fortnightly Research Café, a regular research networking event that will commence on Wednesday 25 March 2026 from 12-1pm. Email reshub@uts.edu.au to receive the standing Outlook invitation.