Nocatee, Florida — Gov. Ron DeSantis on July 23 presided over the signing of a new agreement linking the University of Florida with Scotland's University of St. Andrews, a step announced during the state's business-development mission to the United Kingdom. The memorandum of understanding gives the two schools a structure for working together on research, swapping professors and students between campuses, and cooperating academically in fields such as quantum science, ocean research and physics-related disciplines.
While in the U.K., members of the Florida delegation also toured facilities and held meetings touching on port and shipping operations, freight networks, high-tech manufacturing, biomedical industries, farm technology and the space sector, according to the governor's office.
"This new partnership between the University of Florida and the University of St. Andrews opens new doors for technology and life science advancements," said Governor Ron DeSantis.
The agreement builds on a 2023 memorandum between Florida and the U.K. signed by DeSantis and then-U.K. trade secretary Kemi Badenoch. State officials said trade in goods between Florida and the U.K. topped $4.1 billion in 2025, with Florida shipping $1.3 billion in goods to the U.K. and receiving $2.8 billion in return. The governor's office also said the U.K. accounts for roughly one in five jobs in Florida tied to international investment.
