The national research policy climate: current issue and future directions

1. The national research policy climate:current issue and future directions Paul Hubbard Head of Research Policy, HEFCE SRHE 12 July 2012

2. Policy issues and future directions • Context – policy and funding • Some recent developments • Issues for discussion

3. National policy • A strong and innovative national research base is essential to support national prosperity in a globalised knowledge based economy • Need to strengthen links between undertaking research and developing new products and services • Our strategic aim is to develop and sustain a dynamic and internationally competitive research sector that makes a major contribution to economic prosperity, national wellbeing and the expansion and dissemination of knowledge.

4. National policy-and funding • Recurrent funding for research ring-fenced and cash value maintained for four years • Recent policy statements propose no change to the structure, regulation, funding or delivery of HE research • Continued commitment to dual support and excellence • Increasing policy emphasis on research outcomes contributing to economic growth and job creation

5. A successful UK research base • 11 UK universities in the World Universities Ranking Top 100 (second only to US) • UK attracts 15% of all international doctoral students (second only to US) • 3rd in G8 (behind US and Germany) for production of PhD qualifiers • UK produces more publications and citations per pound spent on research than other G8 nations • With 1% world population we produce 6.9% of world publications, receive 10.9% of citations and 13.8% of citations with highest impact.

6. HEFCE policy and funding • Policy principles: • Supporting an excellent, responsive and sustainable national research base across the discipline spectrum • Dual support: working with plural funding streams • Institutional autonomy: giving HEIs the freedom to pursue new and innovative fields and lines of enquiry • Maintaining an excellent workforce and supplying VHQM to meet broader national needs • Stability and challenge

7. HEFCE’s objectives for research • maintain strength and dynamism of the research base through selective institutional grant funding • implement the Research Excellence Framework in 2014 • support institutions in training and developing the next generation of excellent researchers • encourage and enable institutions to undertake excellent research funded from a variety of sources

8. How we use our funding • funding selectively to reward evidence of performance, impact, and the best environments for conducting world-leading research • encouraging collaborations that improve efficiency and effectiveness • understanding and influencing the drivers for research that contribute to societal and economic development • encouraging universities and researchers to engage with business and the broader public, to inform research directions and disseminate the direction and outcomes of research • ensuring our input complements that of other research funders, notably the Research Councils but also charities and businesses, to ensure maximum return on investments

9. Allocating our funding • From 2012-13 we are: • Continuing to allocate our funding as a block grant • Allocating two thirds of research funding based on QxV • But now only counting activity at 3* or 4* level • Nonetheless funding all departments where any activity at this level was found in 2008 • Providing additional funding for new regime PGT students - £1,100 per FTE in price groups A to C above the new formula • Increasing our funding for PGR supervision from £205m to £240m and making a link to quality • Continuing to fund in support of charity funded and business research

10. Allocating our funding (2) • Our call for proposals under the Research Partnership Investment Fund produced a strong response and we are now inviting fuller bids in the second stage. We hope to announce the outcome in October.

11. The Research Excellence Framework • Why are we doing this? • To allocate funding • To encourage and reward excellent research – including a tool for institutional research managers • Benchmarking and public information • To identify, encourage and reward effective application of research outcomes.

12. REF: the state of play • In summary • All the key elements of “rules” and procedure directly affecting researchers are in place • The panels are up and running and have produced their criteria for assessment • We have explained fully and clearly what we are doing and why

13. Postgraduate provision • What we are doing: • Looking for evidence of the possible impact of the new UG fee regime on demand for PG education (taught and research) - including by discipline, mode of study, student background • Benchmarking the current pattern of provision and student demand - in order to monitor change • Considering how students progress into, through and beyond PG study • Considering the information needs of prospective students, especially PGT

14. Disseminating research findings • The HEFCE view: • Research is a process of investigation leading to new insights effectively shared • All outputs from publicly funded research should be widely and freely available including to other researchers, interested bodies and the general public • The research community has only started to grasp and exploit the potential of ICT and the internet to support improved and innovative modes of communication and dissemination • Key areas for early action include OA publishing and repositories; data sharing is moving up the agenda too (see recent White Paper) • Progress may be slow but will be inexorable

15. Looking forward: the bigger picture • supporting economic recovery and growth • building education and research partnerships in the faster growing economies • focusing research efforts • maintaining our international reach • preparing graduates with a ‘global’ outlook • maintaining a rich diversity of higher education institutions • Continuing pressure on funding leading to sustained interest in the efficiency of the research system and in the outcomes that the funding is buying

16. Looking forward: some challenges • How can we sustain national excellence in research, in depth and breadth, in a period of restricted funding? Is hefce’s research grant allocation approach fit for purpose in a changing environment? • In particular, are we making the case strongly for supporting blue skies research ? Is its capacity to contribute to growth well understood? • How shall we meet new demands and challenges to the research base? Do we require less competition and more collaboration, and if so how soon? How might this be achieved?

17. Looking forward: some challenges (2) • Do public funding streams work optimally together (dual support) and with other funding sources? • Do we understand well enough the conditions and structures required for research to support innovation and growth? Can we quantify or value the impact that HE research is already having?

18. Looking forward: some challenges (3) • What are the issues in relation to PGR provision and research training? Are we producing enough PhDs with the right skills and expertise for a range of careers within and beyond research and academe? Are we attracting enough of the very best students internationally? Are there issues around disciplines we should respond to? • What is the evidence that supporting PGR study benefits the economy? • Do we need to do more to make research careers attractive to the best students and to support early career researchers?

19. Thank you for listening p.hubbard@hefce.ac.uk