Academic board
August 2006
by Peter Cardwell
Building research capacity and research performance based funding
The Pro Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation), Prof Caroline McMillen, introduced a paper outlining the need to realign internal research funding mechanisms with changes foreshadowed in the external funding environment, and recommending changes to the current internal research funding allocation mechanisms.
Academic Board noted that the University had a track record of significant achievements in research including: a 50 per cent increase in research funding from $19.3 million in 2001 to $30 million in 2005; active participation in 13 Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs); a consistently high success rate in the Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant Scheme; and a highly effective approach to research training, with a more than 25 per cent increase in higher degree completions over the previous five years.
It was noted that given the critical role of divisions in building research capacity, it is proposed that Division Research Performance Based Funding will be allocated on the basis of measures that reflect growth in the research activity of the divisions, including the proportion of staff who are supported researchers, research income earned, and the volume of research outputs.
It is proposed that total research income, including a weighting of 2.5 for all ACG grants will be across two years (50 per cent allocation).
The proportion of staff in the divisions who are supported researchers, may include researchers who have been appointed within the division in the past two years, and who earned the appropriate level of income and Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST) points at their previous place of employment. In addition, weighted research publication scores will be included based on shared authorship, and using a restricted set of publication categories averaged across two years.
Research Centres also play a critical role in building research capacity, and measures such as income earned and research outputs are important indicators of the research activity profile in Centres. It is therefore proposed that total research income, including a weighting of 2.5 for all ACG grants be averaged across 2004 and 2005 (50 per cent of allocation). Weighted research publication scores would be based on shared authorship, and use a restricted set of publication categories averaged across 2004 and 2005 (50 per cent of allocation).
In relation to research institutes, it is proposed that for 2007 a total of $2.5 million will be given to each institute. A base allocation of $150,000 will be given to each supported research institute. Total research income including a weighting of 2.5 for all ACG grants will be averaged across 2004 and 2005 (50 per cent of allocation).
A research institute research output quality score (50 per cent of allocation) will be calculated based on the inclusion of the four best research outputs from up to 20 members of the respective institute selected from a three-year production period for funding allocation in 2007, plus assessment of the research outputs by external discipline based reviewers, and a categor-isation of the quality of the research outputs using an A-E rating and a non-linear scale.
The research output quality score will be based solely on the nominated research outputs, and will be assessed by external assessors, using criteria based on the five point scale outlined by the RQF Expert Advisory Group.
In order to ensure funding stability, no division, centre or institute will be allocated less than 80 per cent of the average of their 2005 and 2006 funding for 2007. A full implementation strategy detailing timelines is being developed by Research and Innovation Services.
Coursework program approval manual
Academic Board noted that at its meeting held on August 11, the Academic Policy and Program Review Committee had endorsed the revised Coursework Program Approval Manual.
It was further noted that the change of name to the Coursework Program Approval Manual reflects the removal of research degrees. The Board agreed that the revised procedures will reduce and simplify the amount of work required in preparation for program approval while retaining the integrity of the process.
Academic Board welcomed the revised Coursework Program Approval Manual as a comprehensive document, which will reduce duplication and unnecessary detail in program approval submissions.
Welfare to Work legislation
The Pro Vice Chancellor (Organisational Strategy and Change), Prof Hilary Winchester, reported on the commonwealth government’s Welfare to Work legislation, which came into effect on July 1, 2006.
Prof Winchester reported that the changes amounted to a significant disincentive for people on a Parenting Payment (Single) or a Disability Support Pension to undertake tertiary study. In total, the move from Disability Support Pension or Parenting Payment (Single) to Austudy could represent a cut of up to $155 per week for students in the two equity groups.
In South Australia, the demography indicates that the number of school leavers available to take up university places will be very much reduced in coming years. The Welfare to Work changes will further discourage mature age students who were single parents, or had a disability, from seeking university study.
The problem is particularly acute for the University of South Australia, which currently has 12,000 students older than 25 years of age. Some 17 per cent of these are from low socio-economic groups, and include a significant proportion of single parents, with around 10 per cent having some form of disability.