Presently, it is difficult for undergraduate students to find jobs when they graduate.Some students are sort of regretting to receive college education.Therefore, feelings of reflection on university education were emerged.Based on the current situation and characteristics of teachingoriented colleges, we discussed on the catfish effect and seed effect of research, and analyzed the important role of research in promoting subject construction, improving teachers’ quality and enhancing the university competitiveness based on a case study on Zhongyuan University of Technology.