35 UK universities join new Defence Universities Alliance to boost skills and research

Homeland July 16, 2026

The Ministry of Defence has launched a new Defence Universities Alliance bringing together 35 UK universities and the Armed Forces, aimed at strengthening defence research, building critical skills and supporting the UK’s future defence workforce.

Launched by Defence Minister Luke Pollard MP at the University of Manchester, the DUA was selected from almost 100 applicant institutions and forms part of a £182 million defence skills package. Founding members will help build a pipeline of skilled graduates into careers spanning cyber security, robotics, AI, aerospace engineering and advanced manufacturing, while strengthening the bridge between academic study and defence employment. The alliance aims to translate cutting-edge university research into both operational advantage and medical advances supporting personnel, veterans and families.

Pollard said working with universities, students and innovators “boosts skills and helps keep our country safe,” describing the DUA as a way to marshal research, skills and defence expertise across the UK. He noted the £182 million package is helping create opportunities for students, apprentices and young people, ensuring the government’s £298 billion defence investment acts as “an engine for growth across the UK,” building on the more than 272,000 industry jobs already supported by MOD spending. The alliance follows an earlier £80 million MOD investment in 2,500 student places across 24 universities and colleges, and sits alongside the recent establishment of five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, backed by £50 million to boost skills in advanced manufacturing, engineering and technology.

Professor Tim Dafforn, Chief Scientific Advisor at the MOD, called the alliance “a genuinely transformative step forward in how Defence partners with the UK’s world-leading academic sector.” Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Manchester, said the DUA would deliver “a more strategic approach” to higher education’s contribution to national security, while Vivienne Stern MBE, Chief Executive of Universities UK, noted that almost 100 universities applied to take part, reflecting a sector-wide commitment to backing national security.

For the UK defence supply chain, this alliance points to a strengthening talent pipeline in the disciplines that matter most to current procurement priorities, cyber, robotics, AI, aerospace and advanced manufacturing, and offers SMEs and primes alike a growing pool of research partnerships and graduate talent to draw on as skills shortages remain a persistent constraint on delivery.

Join our new expanding community at DPRTE.co.uk – our new Defence Community Platform, creating a single, year-round digital hub for the UK’s defence procurement and supply chain sector.