The Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment was founded in 2022 by over 350 organizations from 40 countries with the aim of reforming the evaluation of scientific careers and achievements. Over 680 institutions worldwide have joined so far, 27 of them in Germany.
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RUB, Marquard
CoARA Network
New Criteria for Evaluating Research Performance
What characterizes good research? So far, numbers have often been the answer to this question. But they are not enough. The criteria should be better tailored to the requirements. Ruhr University is aiming to do this.
Ruhr University Bochum joined the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment, CoARA for short, at the end of 2023. This global association of research institutions aims at reforming the standards by which research performance is assessed. Qualitative rather than quantitative factors are supposed to play a greater role.
Establishing new principles for research evaluation
The institutions that have joined CoARA are committed to evaluate research performance at their own institution in a much more nuanced way in future. This includes, for example, recognizing that there is a diversity of research contributions and scientific careers that depend on the respective research environment. The inappropriate use of publication indicators such as the journal impact factor and the h-index should be avoided. Overall, the changes are aimed at a responsible use of quantitative measures, while a qualitative assessment based on peer review comes into focus.
Like the other signatory institutions, Ruhr University also commits itself to regularly provide evidence of the progress made in the review, development and evaluation of criteria, instruments and processes. This will be done for the first time within five years of joining CoARA.
Further information on the commitment can be found at the CoARA website.
Research at RUB