Research Excellence Framework (REF)
The 2028 exercise’s measurement of the quality of research environments will account for a quarter of overall marks. But what exactly does quality look like? Can it really be measured? And are there political risks in diluting the REF’s focus on outputs? Jack Grove reports
The new rules are welcome, but change will only truly occur if institutions finally get over their obsession with publications, says the Hidden REF committee
Study finds submitting an individual to UK research assessment cost institutions £6,000 on average
Ethnicity and disability status also significant factors influencing likelihood of researchers being submitted, report finds
The new REF rules allow greater scope to aim for the (four) stars. But who will embrace the risk of crashing to Earth, asks Matthew Flinders
Universities could be marked down on research culture if a handful of researchers dominate submissions, says research assessment officials
Reaction to the new rules has been mixed, but they promise to fix the toxic aspects of research culture, says Cat Davies
Challenges for practice research reflect broader issues around knowledge production and academic hierarchies, say Bill Balaskas and Katia Chornik
Elite universities harbour doubts about shift away from rewarding proven research excellence, says Manchester vice-president, though sector broadly welcomes changes for next assessment exercise
How will proposals to redraw submissions and assessments affect university staff and institutions? THE’s at-a-glance guide to the next Research Excellence Framework explains more
Policies to curb university expenditure on research assessment exercise failed to stop soaring costs, report finds
Universities will be allowed to submit dozens of outputs by an academic – or none at all – to next Research Excellence Framework under proposed new rules
Short time horizons and a focus on cost-efficiency are limiting production of truly groundbreaking research, say Moqi Groen-Xu and Peter Coveney
Immediate review of outputs by a REF reviewer could be more efficient, transparent, informative and, above all, fair, says Martin Lang
Britain’s claims to ‘science superpower’ status look shaky as it is being outperformed by smaller nations on top-rated papers, says study lead
Forcing teaching-focused academics to produce 3* research is like asking a world-class cricket bowler to focus on batting, says a research director
‘Mother of ERA’ now charting its demise, as the ‘law of diminishing returns’ prompts a rethink
More details emerge of how sharp rise in quality outputs and tweak to funding formula are hitting institutions
Sciences gain £145 million that would have gone to humanities and social sciences under old system
New Research England head reflects on her roundabout route into academia and the future of research evaluation
Automation should only be used to support peer review and not usurp it, finds major study
Bibliometric-led evaluation of research outputs unable to replicate ‘richness’ of peer-review model
Research England examining study on how AI might be used to predict quality of research outputs
Retiring Research England executive chair reflects on REF, impact and open access
University breached advertising rules by claiming its arts and humanities research was ‘number one’ in UK, says regulator
Changing world in research means substantial changes to UK assessment needed, says outgoing chair of Research England
Modern institutions get millions more in quality-related grants, in first allocations to use 2021 REF results
Narratives describing research in departments should be replaced by institution-level document, recommends funder-backed study
More innovative screening of grant applications that avoid full peer review could remove red tape burden on researchers, says Adam Tickell
Research England unveils substantial uplifts for both quality-related research funding and knowledge exchange activities
Analysis reveals that UK scholars tend to move to jobs that bring them into closer conformity with disciplinary standards, says Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra
Despite being the second largest REF submitter, business ranks 30th of 34 disciplines on research income per FTE, says Robert MacIntosh
Analysis suggests philosophy professor’s old department may net as much as £333,000 from the activities that saw her targeted by activists
There is always more to a research question than the underpinning science. So work with the people you are studying, says Nicola Ray
The president of the University of Würzburg discusses the differences between the two systems, why he’s joined a European university alliance and the benefits of interdisciplinary working
But overall data on reclassification of staff does not show obvious impact on results
Lengthy statements on the research environment found in university departments are increasingly under scrutiny
The next exercise should clarify its purpose and language, relax its disciplinary focus and refine research culture, says James Wilsdon
Increased use of ‘team science’ may have been a major factor in latest REF scores, say experts, but this may be no bad thing
Experts debate whether erosion of dominance will prompt redrawing of funding criteria
Without practical teaching at their heart, many departments of music technology, drama and dance could face closure, says Ian Pace
James Wilsdon says he is open-minded about including more metrics in future research assessments
Northumbria’s REF 2021 results emphasise that growing research capability can benefit teaching, business and employment, says Andrew Wathey
Review to revisit conclusions of 2015’s The Metric Tide
Long-standing debates about what ‘research quality’ means make it obvious that the REF can be little more than make-believe, says Martyn Hammersley
The extent of research‘s cross-subsidisation by overseas student fees is too rarely understood by policymakers and academics alike, says Ruth Arnold
There is no evidence in art and design that the REF drives a wedge between research and students' interests, says Victoria Kelley
REF supremo David Sweeney and Manchester research lead Colette Fagan hit back at criticisms of measuring societal and economic contributions
University of Oxford leads education subject table based on GPA
The University of Cambridge claims top spot, with the London School of Economics dropping to fourth
London School of Economics tops economics and econometrics subject table based on GPA
University of Reading leads archaeology unit of assessment table based on GPA
Durham and Bristol tied at the top as King’s College London, Loughborough and Northumbria make gains
University of Cambridge leads architecture, built environment and planning unit of assessment table based on GPA
Imperial College London leads engineering subject table based on GPA
Oxford and Cambridge dominance in mathematics continues as Glasgow and Edinburgh improve standings
Imperial College London is in pole position after near-perfect scores while the University of Edinburgh tops research power standings
The University of Sheffield climbs to the top, while Manchester and Cambridge are second and third
University of Cambridge tops earth systems and environmental sciences table based on GPA
The University of Bristol came top for chemistry, with the University of Cambridge coming second
