It is recognised that the use and usefulness of metrics vary widely across subject areas. This policy applies to the use of metrics for University staff and research students for internal evaluation purposes and in support of their aims and development.
In our Strategy 2031, we have affirmed our aim of generating sustained excellence to break into the top 100 ranked universities worldwide. The University recognises that the responsible and ethical use of metrics has the potential to help improve the visibility and the impact of its research and adherence to this Policy ensure both fair assessment of researchers and that efforts to position the University as a top 100 institution do not have adverse, unintended consequences. This Policy outlines how the University uses metrics related to research outputs and complements the Code of Practice for the Evaluation and Selection of Research Outputs for REF 2029.
The University of Liverpool is a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) which outlines a number of recommendations around the use of metrics. This means that as an institution we have committed to avoiding the use of journal-based metrics as surrogate measures of the quality of research in decision-making for funding, appointing and promoting staff, and to assess contributions of individual researchers, and instead assess research based on its own merits.
The Policy for the Responsible use of Metrics in Research Assessment can be viewed here.
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