Research Excellence Framework
Peer review is the least bad system we have for assessing quality, but metrics can help to determine attention and impact, says Euan Adie
Proposed Research UK would have similar powers to a v-c over university faculties
With no time for proper peer review and with grade inflation inevitable, one academic felt compelled to resign
Analysis of top-ranked groups also finds they have ‘accountable autonomy’ from the university
Green Paper recommends use of metrics, despite July report’s reservations
Much is to be decided on who will distribute research funding, but a metrics-based ‘mini-REF’ may raise eyebrows, says David Matthews
Some of the key points to take away from the government’s consultation on the future of universities
Success rates fall at five out of six councils amid warnings that the process could become ‘more of a lottery’ as reviewers are stretched
Institution’s School of Media, Arts and Design is 25 this year. Its current dean takes Times Higher Education through the reasons behind its success
Campuses are one of the ‘strongest bits of the innovation system’ and will be crucial to its ‘rebuild’, conference hears
John Morgan looks at the latest spending review developments
Studies on urine, pain thresholds and unboiled eggs honoured in annual awards for improbable research. John Elmes takes a look
David Price argues that axeing staff selection would remove the temptation to manipulate data and protect careers
Scholar says departments that did well in the research excellence framework may not have the right to ‘strut around campus’ if their field is not competitive
Financial boost follows better than average performance in the 2014 REF
The merger of seven subpanels into a single one for modern languages and linguistics has skewed results, claim scholars
The rise in ‘kilo-authors’ and ‘gift authorship’ is causing the academy to rethink how it assesses the worth of academic publications
Hefce study finds large differences in submission rates by ethnicity and gender
Bibliometric analysis concludes lower-quality thresholds in 2014 are more likely explanation for doubling of top-rated research
REF case studies used to create a map of knowledge connections between fields
Accountability review finds cost of assessment equates to 2.4 per cent of funding bodies’ expected spend over next six years
Hefce head of research policy suggests the way research is conducted should be measured too
Amid concerns about the growing use – and abuse – of quantitative measures in universities, a major new review examines the role of metrics in the assessment of research, from the REF to performance management
Abandoning peer review could lead to never-ending assessment, micromanagement of staff and übergaming, warns Howard Hotson
Complexity of government initiatives to help commercialise university research under scrutiny
Edinburgh principal Sir Tim O’Shea warns such a system would distract from real mission
An Elsevier analysis explores the viability of a ‘smarter and cheaper’ model
Institution may close one of its engineering schools after a 'disappointing result' in the research excellence framework
Universities, and especially the research elite, faced a choice between aiming for highest quality scores and the greatest number of staff submitted
The director of a partnership of research-intensive universities is upbeat about future outlook
LSE pro-director also calls for metrics to measure impact
Funding gains for smaller universities ‘risks UK research quality’
Findings reveal the total cost to institutions of attempting to articulate impact
Informing government policy was the most common kind of impact submitted to the 2014 research excellence framework, a study has found
REF-based distribution of ?1.6bn research pot results in some big changes
Dominic Dean has a plan to make future assessment exercises easier, quicker and better
Division as scholars analyse Hefce’s system for dividing ?1 billion QR pot
England’s funding council has changed the formula for distributing quality-related research funding following the research excellence framework
The REF’s formal assessment of the impact of academic work was highly controversial in theory: how did it play out in practice?
Sector challenged to share data on REF costs and come up with less ‘disingenuous’ figure than official estimates
The standards of research and teaching would be best protected by department-based reviews, argues Roger Brown
Report finds new measures did make exercise more inclusive but panels differed in numbers of scholars submitted with reduced outputs
Jargon demanded by REF ‘risks isolating universities from rest of society’
Submission patterns reveal how institutions responded to rules
Study finds variations by seniority, subject and institutional mission in scholars’ published opinions on the research excellence framework
REF analysis suggests that new system for allocating funds has ‘no correspondence with excellence in research impact’
The exercise was robust and positive, says Willy Maley, who found work on the English subpanel to be like ‘a well-run exam board’
Uplift in research quality in main panel A raises fears that funding could be concentrated at a handful of universities
How do rankings shift when institutions are compared on research intensity, which takes into account percentage of staff submitted, rather than on standard GPA alone?
The Association of Business Schools has called on the government and funding councils to reverse the decline in funding for management research
Alternative ranking of REF results maps university performance against the proportion of eligible staff submitted.
More academics were employed on teaching-only contracts around the time of the research excellence framework deadline, new figures show
The results of the research excellence framework have triggered claims that London universities are challenging the longstanding dominance of Oxbridge
All the reaction to the research excellence framework as we get it
Rising quality leads to questions about future QR formula
Devolved countries claim proportion of 3* and 4* submissions above average
King’s College London raised its GPA while submitting more staff. Who were the other notable achievers and underachievers?
Problems associated with the system of research assessment would be reduced by a move to annual reviews, Paul Grout argues
Were new research stars born? Who was helped or hurt by impact? Times Higher Education dissects the results by discipline
Some post-92s gain, but traditional research powers dominate 2014 research excellence framework rankings
