University of Newcastle Publication Performance Grants

The Research Grants Sub-Committee introduced the Publication Performance grants in 2007 to encourage researchers to strengthen their publication track record and prepare for the possible introduction of a Research Quality Framework (RQF).

The aims of the Publication Performance Grant Scheme are:

To reward staff for quality publications and publication performance and to encourage staff to improve their trackrecord;

To provide an incentive for staff to work collaboratively in potential RQF research groups.

Eligibility

Academic and general staff with complete and certified data in the Portfolio Manager (PM) are eligible for inclusion in this scheme. In order for the data to be complete the full research history for an individual must be entered in the PM for the preceding three years by the end of March. For example, to be eligible for funding in 2007, complete data for 2004, 2005 and 2006 must be entered into the Portfolio Manager by 30/04/07. Research Services will then check and certify this data in May.

Visiting and conjoint staff members are not eligible to receive Publication Performance Grants.

Award of the Publication Performance Grants

The Publication Performance grants will be awarded in April to recognised existing research groupings within the University such as University of Newcastle Priority Research Centres, Research Centres, Research Groups and Research Institutes. New research groups may be approved by the DVC(R) for inclusion in this scheme only in exceptional circumstances where direct RQF relevance can be demonstrated. It is expected that researchers associated with Priority Research Centres as principal researchers will contribute to the publication performance of the Centre in proportion to their FTE contribution to the Centre.

Publication Performance Grants will be based on the publication output of the individual members of a group. Each member’s allocation will be calculated on the University weighted publication score averaged over the three previous years for which publication data has been collected and audited relative to their Faculty. For example, 2007 allocations will be based on the average publication score for the years 2003, 2004 and 2005. Note, from 2007 the publication score is not divided by the number of authors on the publication. Only audited publications entered into the Portfolio Manager will be considered in this calculation. This score can be obtained from WARP under the heading Researcher Publication Score and is also used for the Conference Travel Grant Scheme. The value of the grant will be the total sum earned by the individual members of the group.

Information on the levels of funding will be available in May 2007 once data has been collected. The total funding for this scheme in 2007 is fixed at $500,000.