Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has announced a further £816,668 support to the UHI Millennium Institute to assist the organisation's progression towards achieving full university status.

The money will be used to support a number of key activities under three proposed new faculties of Arts and Social Sciences, Business and Leisure Studies, and Science and Engineering.  It will also support future planning, overseas student marketing, and  systems analysis.

It will help support the development of a sound academic plan to include market research, which identifies the potential in terms of student numbers, subjects of study and market origin.  Part of this will be to encourage overseas students to consider UHI as a viable option.

Subject centres will be established to help strengthen the academic subjects that make up the UHI portfolio, helping to integrate subject activity at both degree and HN levels across the UHI partner institutions.

The HIE money will also be used to contribute directly to achieving the research scholarship targets of 60 PhD students with at least 30 PhD graduates, and a sabbatical scheme is also planned to give staff the opportunity of working in a research intensive department in another university.

Announcing the HIE assistance, director of developing skills, Alex Paterson, said:  "The creation of a university in the Highlands and Islands has been confirmed as a key priority for the Scottish Executive and it will also be a huge boost to the area's economy and social structure.  It will undoubtedly help encourage more people to choose to live and work in the Highlands and Islands.  I am delighted the enterprise network is able to work alongside UHI on this initiative, which will accelerate the process of achieving full university status."

UHI will be contributing a further £134,600 to the project, bringing the total cost to £951,268.  UHI principal, Bob Cormack, said:  "This additional support from HIE will assist in key areas of our progress towards university status, namely; developing our courses and our staff, increasing the number of students studying at UHI from outwith the region, and growing our research activity.  It reflects the importance that HIE places on a University of the Highlands and Islands as a driver of the economic and social development of the region.  As ever, we welcome their support and shared commitment to our mission."