Readiness4REF Project

Dr. Mark Cox - Research and Learning Development Manager

Information Services & Systems

Research Systems at King’s• Existing CRIS system (Research Gateway)

developed in house since 2004; Oracle db with php web interfaces

• Information imported from HR, student, awards and finance systems

• Publication metadata imported from Thomson Reuters’ Web of Knowledge (WoK), now automatically using API

• Used to correlate information for RAE2008 and to import data directly to RAE software

Recent developments

• Research Gateway now integrated with Fedora repository; submission of full text via RG interface

• Building on previous investment, evolution of the Research Gateway into wider “Virtual Research Environment” (VRE)

• Microsoft’s Research Information Centre (RIC) software integral to VRE development; based on the Sharepoint platform

• Desire to remove administrative tasks from academics

What is REF?

• Research Excellence Framework

• Peer assessment of the quality of research, split into specific subject areas

• Judged on a number of factors – research output, research awards, postgraduate student numbers, etc

• Two significant new factors in this exercise – bibliometrics and research “impact”

• Main factor in determining the amount of money received from central government by institutions to fund research

• Successor to RAE 2008 – the Research Assessment Exercise

Readiness4REF (R4R) Project• Our R4R Project with Southampton examines CERIF as a

mechanism for delivering data to HEFCE• produce a REF-specific application profile • implement in repositories (3)• evaluate with Stakeholder Group• feedback to euroCRIS• possibly refine the standard

• Desired outcome is that the CERIF data model will be:• the “glue” that will hold disparate information systems

together• deliver repository and CRIS interoperability for the REF• allowing for interoperability and exchange of data

within and across institutions, including external systems

R4R- Current work packages • Analysis of Current Practice

•Analysis of “Towards the REF” survey, (gathered from attendees at conferences at King’s)

• Current systems• Institutional repositoires• Significant issues (e.g. bibliometrics)

•Early discussions with other institutions regarding data models in repositories and CRISes

R4R- Current work packages • Analysis of CERIF with reference to REF

•Workshops held with euroCRIS CERIF developers•Prior to definition of final REF requirements, initial model developed against data required for RAE2008

•First draft mapping of RAE2008 to CERIF 2009 produced

•euroCRIS developers advice source on unmapped elements from RAE2008 data

•Second draft mapping produced; unmapped elements significantly reduced

R4R Current work packages• Create “CERIF4REF” draft application profile

• Profile likely to be significantly covered by CERIF schema• Number of “r4r” schema elements (RAE 2008 data)

currently <5

• Evaluation of CERIF4REF• RAE2008 data from KCL submission will be used to

evaluate schema mapping• Model and schema will be tested using KCL existing

“CRIS” system • Results may suggest options for incorporating schema

into other existing CRISes

R4R Future work packages• Create CERIF4REF plug-ins for repositoires

• Develop implementations of CERIF4REF profile to work with major repositories; ePrints, Fedora and DSpace

• Map data model to external sources• Work with publishers and research councils to explore the

possibility to import/export data using CERIF4REF model

• Develop data portability between institutions• Having built CERIF4REF functionality into King’s and

Southampton research systems and repositories, demonstrate the ability to exchange research activity data