As we move closer to the July publication of the REF guidance, panel criteria and working methods, more is becoming clearer as to what HEFCE is expecting in relation to impact.
- HEFCE wants impact to be a serious consideration, and not just an add on. There is even a possibility that both impact and environment will be considered first by panels, ahead of outputs. This raises another issue: it appears that HEFCE want to have a much stronger central control of the process than existed for the RAE;
- HEFCE wants a very broad, comprehensive understanding of impact. However, it has to be quantifiable, and not just a general nod towards good intentions. So, it’s not good enough to say that you’ve disseminated outside of academia in (say) a broadsheet newspaper: you’re going to have to demonstrate what effect, what impact that article had on its readership. Tough call.
- HEFCE wants impact to be based on high quality research, but it’s unclear how far it will go in ‘retro-assessing’ this research. It’s too large a task to undertake an assessment of all the research upon which impact is based; instead, there will probably be some audit of random samples of this research.
- There is unlikely to be any quarter for newly established departments that do not have an institutional history of research. As you know, impact can’t ‘travel’ with individuals, so new departments are just going to have to accept that their impact rating will be lower than that of departments that are longer established.
- The impact element will consist of a narrative and case studies. The narrative element will be 20% of the assessment of impact. Whilst the original intention was to have one case study per 10 members of staff, I believe this has now been revised to one per 15.
We will be holding an event on 8 September to discuss the official, published guidelines. We know from those involved in the Pilot Study that the impact element should not be underestimated, and we will be holding workshops and seminars in the autumn term to explore and develop narratives and case studies.