ResearchAssessmentExercise 2008: the outcomeDecember 2008

Ref RAE 01/2008

RAE 01/2008 1

2008 Research Assessment Exercise: the outcome

Contents

Page

Summary 2

A Introduction 3

B Overview of RAE2008 5

C Description of the RAE results 8

D Other published material from RAE2008 9

E Units of assessment 10

F Results: the quality profiles for each unit of assessment 21

G Annexes

Annex A Quality profile 99

Annex B Core data in submissions 101

Annex C RAE2008 Units of assessment and main panels 103

Annex D National comparative data 105

Index of submissions by institution 111

This document reports the results of the 2008Research Assessment Exercise (RAE2008), thesixth assessment in this current format of thequality of research conducted in UK highereducation institutions. The UK funding bodiesfor England, Northern Ireland, Scotland andWales will use the RAE2008 results to distributefunding for research from 2009-10.

Enquiries about this document should beaddressed to the relevant funding body:

Higher Education Funding Council forEnglandNorthavon HouseColdharbour LaneBRISTOL BS16 1QD

Suzanne Wilson (tel 0117 931 7458, e-mail s.wilson@hefce.ac.uk)

Scottish Funding CouncilDonaldson House97 Haymarket TerraceEDINBURGH EH12 5HD

Pauline Jones (tel 0131 313 6631, e-mail pjones@sfc.ac.uk)

Higher Education Funding Council forWalesLinden CourtThe OrchardsIlex CloseLlanishenCARDIFF CF14 5DZ

Linda Tiller (tel 029 2068 2228, e-mail linda.tiller@hefcw.ac.uk)

Department for Employment andLearningAdelaide House39-49 Adelaide StreetBELFAST BT2 8FD

Linda Bradley (tel 028 90 257607, e-mail linda.bradley@delni.gov.uk)

General enquiries about the conduct of the RAEmay be addressed to info@rae.ac.uk

Summary

2 RAE 01/2008

1. The results of the 2008 Research AssessmentExercise (RAE2008) provide evidence of thecontinuing high quality and internationalstanding of research carried out in highereducation institutions (HEIs) in the UK.

2. The results show that excellent research isconducted in many diverse institutions anddepartments of all sizes: the RAE2008 process hasclearly recognised excellence wherever it exists.The assessment process was able to take accountnot only of the diversity of institutions in the UKhigher education sector, but also the broad rangeof research activity undertaken: across thespectrum of applied and practice-based research,research informing policy, and basic/strategicresearch, wherever it is conducted. Assessmentpanels were able to take full account of the rangeof interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary researchsubmitted.

3. Of the 2,363 submissions1 received, andconsidering the overall quality profiles which arepresented in blocks of 5%:

in aggregate, across the exercise as a whole,17% of submitted research activity was judgedto be of world-leading quality, and 37%internationally excellent

84% of all submissions were judged to containat least 5% world-leading quality research

150 of the 159 HEIs that took part inRAE2008 demonstrated at least 5% world-leading quality research in one or more oftheir submissions

9% of submissions were judged to contain atleast 50% internationally excellent or world-leading quality research activity with the restinternationally recognised quality

49 HEIs have at least 5% world-leadingquality research in all of their submissions.

4. In producing a quality profile for eachsubmission rather than a single-point rating,RAE2008 assessment panels have been able torecognise the breadth of research quality evidentin many departments and groups in UK

universities and colleges, including some world-leading research, in many submissions.

5. The results follow an expert review processconducted throughout 2008. Research in allsubjects was assessed against agreed qualitystandards within a common framework thatrecognised appropriate variations between subjectsin terms of both the research submitted and theassessment criteria. The expert review process wasthorough, comprehensive and effective inproducing robust outcomes, and justified theconsiderable effort that panels made.

Key changes since RAE2001 6. In RAE2001 a single-point rating was awardedfor each submission on a scale from 1 to 5*.RAE2008 results are presented as quality profiles.The introduction of the quality profile haslessened the averaging effect of single-pointratings by allowing panels to exercise a finerdegree of judgment, especially at gradeboundaries. The quality profile was helpful inidentifying pockets of high-quality researchwherever these may be located. Quality profilespresent the breadth of quality in each submissionand will reduce any cliff-edge effects insubsequent funding allocations.

7. Panels operated in a two-tier panel structure,with main panels coordinating and advising on thework of sub-panels within cognate disciplines. Eachof the 15 main panels (A-O) worked with abroadly cognate group of no fewer than three sub-panels. The main panels provided leadership andguidance to the sub-panels in producing criteria forassessment and working methods. They workedclosely with the sub-panels to ensure the consistentapplication of quality standards, commonprocedures and equal opportunities guidanceduring the assessment phase. Internationalmembers of main panels played an important rolein verifying and endorsing sub-panels applicationof the world-leading quality criterion.

8. Changes in equalities legislation since 2001were observed. All panels took account of these indrafting and adopting their criteria and working

A Introduction

RAE 01/2008 3

1 There were 2,344 submissions from 159 HEIs. However, for these analyses joint submissions are treatedas individual submissions and are therefore counted more than once.

methods, and HEIs were required to make theirsubmissions, including decisions about which staffto include, in line with the relevant legislation (seeparagraphs 27-28). Panels reported very favourablyon the evidence in submissions of much high-quality work undertaken by early career researchers,which they judged as a positive indicator of thesustainability of research in the UK.

The main panels role inpromoting consistency9. The main panels provided:

a. Support to sub-panels within their remit toensure that they developed and publishedbroadly consistent criteria and workingmethods, while allowing for appropriatedegrees of subject variation.

b. Rigour in applying international qualitystandards.

c. Advice on the coherent and consistentapplication of the published criteria inassessing all forms of research.

10. In 2006, each main and sub-panel publisheda statement describing its working methods andassessment criteria (RAE 01/2006, Panel criteriaand working methods), following a consultationin summer 2005.

11. All main panels benefited from the expertiseof one or more international panel members. Aspractising researchers with a high level ofknowledge and expertise in research across abroad discipline area internationally, includingsubstantial experience in at least one countryoutside the UK, international members offeredperspectives on the international context for andstandards of research in the subjects covered bythe main panels.

12. All research, whether applied, basic orstrategic, was given equal weight, and all forms ofoutput were treated on an equitable basis. Panelsgave full recognition to the quality of work ofdirect relevance to commerce and industry, as wellas to the health, public and voluntary sectors.Where appropriate, panels included research usersand practitioners from these sectors.

13. Consistency in the application of qualitylevels and standards across all subject areas wasdiscussed in a series of main panel chair meetingsheld throughout the assessment phase.

4 RAE 01/2008

14. RAE2008 was conducted jointly by theHigher Education Funding Council for England(HEFCE), the Scottish Further and HigherEducation Funding Council (SFC), the HigherEducation Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW)and the Department for Employment andLearning, Northern Ireland (DEL). It was managedby the RAE team, based at HEFCE, on behalf ofthe four UK higher education funding bodies.

15. The primary purpose of RAE2008 was toproduce quality profiles (see Annex A) for eachsubmission of research activity made byinstitutions. The four higher education fundingbodies will use the quality profiles to allocate theirgrant for research to the institutions which theyfund with effect from 2009-10. Any HEI in theUK that is eligible to receive research funding fromone of these bodies was eligible to participate.

16. As in previous exercises, eligible HEIs wereinvited to submit their research activity forassessment. Submissions were made to a numberof subject-based units of assessment (UOAs).HEIs were able to choose which of their staff toinclude in submissions, and which UOAs toenter: consequently the results for a particularUOA may represent only a subset of the totalquantum of research being conducted in thatUOA in the UK.

17. The information supplied by HEIs providedthe basis for an expert review assessment ofresearch quality by specialist panels. Panelsassessed the research outputs, researchenvironment, and esteem indicators in eachsubmission. They developed a sub-profile for eachof these three elements of the submission. Thesub-profiles were then weighted according to thepercentages specified in the published panelcriteria and working methods (RAE 01/2006),and combined to create an overall quality profile.

18. Overall quality profiles are presented inblocks of 5%, using cumulative rounding.Therefore, very small proportions (ie, less than5%) of research assessed at particular quality levelsare not shown in the overall quality profile.

Definition of research 19. The definition of research that applied in theexercise, as set out in Guidance on submissions(RAE 03/2005), is as follows:

Research for the purpose of the RAE is to beunderstood as original investigationundertaken in order to gain knowledge andunderstanding. It includes work of directrelevance to the needs of commerce, industry,and to the public and voluntary sectors;scholarship*; the invention and generation ofideas, images, performances, artefactsincluding design, where these lead to new orsubstantially improved insights; and the use ofexisting knowledge in experimentaldevelopment to produce new or substantiallyimproved materials, devices, products andprocesses, including design and construction.It excludes routine testing and routine analysisof materials, components and processes suchas for the maintenance of national standards,as distinct from the development of newanalytical techniques. It also excludes thedevelopment of teaching materials that do notembody original research.

* Scholarship for the RAE is defined as the creation,development and maintenance of the intellectualinfrastructure of subjects and disciplines, in formssuch as dictionaries, scholarly editions, cataloguesand contributions to major research databases.

20. Each panels assessment criteria stated how itwould deal with interdisciplinary research. Sub-panels considered requests from HEIs for parts ofsubmissions to be cross-referred to other panelsfor advice. Sub-panels could also request cross-referral of parts of submissions to other sub-panels. Having received advice following cross-referral, the original sub-panel retainedresponsibility for the quality profile awarded.

21. Panels discussed the assessment of pedagogicresearch outputs in their criteria, and at aworkshop in June 2006 attended by panelmembers from a wide range of disciplines. Basicprinciples to ensure equitable assessment ofpedagogic research were circulated to all panelsand published in the Policies and proceduressection of the RAE2008 web-site.

B Overview of RAE2008

RAE 01/2008 5

Submissions22. Submissions were made in a standard formthat included both quantitative and descriptiveelements. Full details of the contents of, andarrangements for making, submissions werepublished in Guidance on submissions (RAE03/2005).

23. For RAE2008, 2,344 submissions werereceived from 159 HEIs, listing the work of morethan 50,000 researchers.

24. The census date for the exercise was 31 October 2007. Institutions were invited toprovide information on staff in post on that date,and on research outputs that they had producedduring the assessment period. The assessmentperiod was 1 January 2001 to 31 July 2007. Thesubmission deadline was noon on 30 November2007. After this point data were only amended asa result of data verification and audit procedures.

25. Institutions were invited to list up to fourresearch outputs for each individual (Category Aor C) whose research was to be assessed. Researchoutputs could be any form of available assessableoutput. Items eligible for submission had to bepublicly available between 1 January 2001 and 31 December 2007. Confidential outputs werealso eligible if they could be made available forassessment: they had to be lodged with the bodyto whom they were confidential between 1 January 2001 and 31 December 2007.

26. Details of the data collected in submissionsand staff categories are in Annex B.

Code of practice and equalitieslegislation27. Each HEI was required to develop, adopt anddocument an appropriate internal code of practicein preparing its submissions and selecting staff forinclusion that attended to all relevant equalopportunities legislation in force on the submissiondate. In making their submissions, HEIs confirmedthat they had met this requirement.

28. Panels were briefed twice on equalitieslegislation relevant to the exercise, via twoguidance documents published in 2005 and 2007,(RAE 02/2005, Equality briefing for panel chairs,

members and secretaries; RAE 02/2007, Updatedequality briefing for panel chairs, members,advisors and secretaries). All panels consideredindividual staff circumstances presented insubmissions and used these to inform theirassessments accordingly and in line with theirpublished criteria and working methods.

Verification of submitted data 29. The data supplied by HEIs for assessmentwere, on the whole, robust. All informationprovided in submissions underwent a process ofchecking and verification. Submissions werecompared with other available datasets, includingbibliographic resources, returns from the HigherEducation Statistics Agency (HESA), andinformation held by the Research Councils. Sincethe basis of return for each of these datasets isdifferent, an exact match was not expected.However, where there appeared to be majordifferences between the returns, furtherinvestigation was undertaken. In addition, at leastone submission from each HEI was selected atrandom for audit. For HEIs making largernumbers of submissions or with higher volumesof staff, up to four submissions were audited.

30. HEIs were required to supply extracts fromtheir payroll and personnel records, student andgraduation records, finance records and suchother information as was necessary to verify thedata in their RAE submissions. Panel memberswere also asked to draw attention to any areas ofconcern in submissions, and all such concernswere investigated. Where necessary, submissionswere amended and panels were supplied with thecorrected information.

Assessment process31. The assessment process was based on expertreview undertaken by specialist panels comprisingacademics and users of research. Assessmentpanels used their professional judgment to form aview about the overall quality of the researchactivity described in each submission, taking intoaccount all the evidence presented. They formedtheir judgments in accordance with thestatements of criteria and working methods

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published in advance in Panel criteria andworking methods (RAE 01/2006).

32. Panels were concerned only with the qualityof the work submitted for assessment. In reachingtheir judgments, they only consideredinformation available to them in the submissionor provided as a result of data verification queries.In assessing research outputs, panels looked forevidence of quality irrespective of place or modeof dissemination.

33. Sixty-seven sub-panels conducted a detailedassessment of submissions within 67 UOAs. Theyworked under the guidance of 15 main panels.For each submission assessed, each sub-panelprovided a provisional quality profile to the mainpanel for endorsement. Panels assessedsubmissions between January and November2008. Although this expert review process wasresource-intensive it was effective in ensuring athorough and reliable outcome.

34. The UOAs are listed in Annex C. SomeUOAs were reconfigured from the 2001 RAE, asdescribed in RAE 03/2004, Units of assessmentand recruitment of panel members. A descriptionof each UOA was published in Panel criteria andworking methods (RAE 01/2006) and isrepeated, for ease of reference, in Section E.

35. Recruitment of the assessment panels, themethod of their selection, and an account of theirrole and operation, are described in RAE03/2004, Units of assessment and recruitment ofpanel members. Panel members were nominatedby appropriate nominating bodies, includinglearned societies and subject groups. Whereappropriate, non-academic users of research including those from industry, the healthcare andvoluntary sectors, the professions andGovernment sat on panels alongside academics.The membership of each panel was published inRAE 03/2007, Membership of RAE2008 panels;an update of the membership is also available atwww.rae.ac.uk under Panels.

36. Sub-panels could request that parts ofsubmissions, including but not limited tointerdisciplinary research, were referred tospecialist advisors if they believed that would

enhance the assessment process. Over 800specialist advisors were appointed to a pool ofadvisors for the RAE2008 but not all of themwere used. All specialist advisors were nominatedby an appropriate nominating body.

37. Each main panel and its associated sub-panels were supported by a regular secretariat thatadvised the panels on applying their workingmethods and criteria and ensured consistency ofapproach. During the assessment phase, thesecretariat for each main panel consisted of:

a. A full-time panel secretary.

b. A part-time panel advisor.

Where possible, the secretariat members wereseconded from HEIs. A small number wereappointed by the funding bodies.

38. Panels considered the material submitted insufficient detail to be able to agree an overallquality profile presented in blocks of 5%, whichrepresented their assessment of the quality ofresearch in the department described in thesubmission. In developing the sub-profiles forresearch outputs, research environment andindicators of esteem, panels considered theinformation submitted at a level of detailnecessary to fulfil their published criteria andworking methods.

39. Each sub-panel indicated in its criteria andworking methods the proportion of researchoutputs included in submissions that would beassessed in detail. The process of recordingjudgements required that in all cases panelsassessed in detail at least the minimum specifiedin their published panel criteria and workingmethods (RAE 01/2006). Similarly, where a sub-panels criteria were explicit that it would attributea proportion of its assessment of researchenvironment or indicators of esteem to particularfeatures of the submission, this was built into itsassessment methodology.

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40. The RAE quality profiles present in blocks of5% the proportion of each submission judged bythe panels to have met each of the quality levelsdefined in Table 1. Work that fell below nationalquality or was not recognised as research wasunclassified.

Table 1 Definitions of quality levels

4* Quality that is world-leading in terms

of originality, significance and rigour.

3* Quality that is internationally

excellent in terms of originality,

significance and rigour but which

nonetheless falls short of the highest

standards of excellence.

2* Quality that is recognised

internationally in terms of originality,

significance and rigour.

1* Quality that is recognised nationally

in terms of originality, significance

and rigour.

Unclassified Quality that falls below the standard

of nationally recognised work. Or

work which does not meet the

published definition of research for

the purposes of this assessment.

41. The international criterion equates to a levelof excellence that it was reasonable to expect forthe UOA, even though there may be no currentexamples of such a level in the UK or elsewhere.It should be noted that national andinternational refer to standards, not to the natureor geographical scope of particular subjects.

42. The results are published as a series of tables,one for each UOA. Each table contains thequality profile awarded to each HEI that made a

submission to the UOA concerned. Alongsideeach submissions quality profile is the full-timeequivalent (FTE) number2 of Category A3 staffincluded in that submission. We have alsopresented results ordered by institution on theRAE web-site at www.rae.ac.uk.

43. Where the quality profile awarded is to ajoint submission made by two or more HEIs, thisis noted in the relevant UOA table.

44. National comparative data are included inAnnex D. For each UOA, this gives the averagequality profile of all submissions to the UOA(mean average, weighted for staff volume); andthe minimum, lower quartile, median, upperquartile and maximum percentage for eachquality level from 4* to unclassified.

C Description of the RAE results

8 RAE 01/2008

2 The FTE numbers of staff included in these tables is a snapshot taken at the end of the assessment phase(November 2008).

3 Annex B defines Category A staff. Submissions from the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford couldinclude college-employed research-active staff as Category A staff.

45. In addition to the results published in thisdocument, the following material will be providedin confidence to HEIs:

a. On 5 January 2009, each sub-profile(research outputs, research environment,esteem indicators) for each submission madeby that HEI.

b. On 5 January 2009, written feedback giving areasoned case for the profile awarded to eachsubmission.

46. In addition to the results published in thisdocument, the following data relating to theresults will be published on the RAE2008 web-site, www.rae.ac.uk:

a. On 18 December 2008, a database of theresults.

b. On 5 January 2009, a short report by eachsub-panel. These subject overview reports willmake general observations about the subjectbased on the submissions made to that panelsUOA, including on perceived strengths,weakness and trends in the field(s) of workassessed. These may be accompanied by astatement from the main panel.

c. In spring 2009, those parts of submissions thatcontain factual data and textual informationabout the research activity. This will includethe names of selected staff and the listings oftheir research output. Personal and contractualdetails, and where relevant, items marked asconfidential, will not be published.Institutions have been given an opportunity toindicate any details that should be omittedfrom the published list for reasons ofconfidentiality. The submissions will bepublished in the spring of 2009.

d. In spring 2009, sub-profiles (research outputs,research environment, esteem indicators) forall submissions other than those with less thanthree members of staff.

e. In spring 2009, the procedural minutes for eachpanel meeting held during the assessment phase.

47. A full publications schedule for the RAE2008is available on the RAE web-site underPublications.

D Other published material from RAE2008

RAE 01/2008 9

48. Each UOA is described below. Thisinformation is derived from the panel criteria andworking methods statement of the relevant panel;any deviations from the criteria published in2006 are to denote the exercise is complete. Fulldetails of the coverage of each UOA may befound in RAE 01/2006, Panel criteria andworking methods.

UOA 1 Cardiovascular MedicineThe UOA includes research into all aspects ofcardiovascular science.

The UOA includes work where the primary focusof the research is in cardiovascular science,including basic science, epidemiology and clinicalresearch. The UOA includes research where thefocus is vascular aspects of stroke, and metabolicresearch where the focus is cardiovascular disease.

UOA 2 Cancer StudiesThe UOA includes research into all aspects ofcancer, including laboratory and clinical studies.

The UOA covers the full range of research in thisarea, for example: basic cancer research, includingcell and molecular biology, molecular genetics,immunology, physical sciences, cancer pathology;translational research including the full range oftherapeutic strategies, eg, cancer pharmacologyand drug development, radiation oncology,immunological, surgical and gene therapies;prevention strategies; epidemiology; palliativecare in cancer and related fields; and clinical trialsthat relate to any aspect of the study of cancer asa disease.

UOA 3 Infection and ImmunologyThe UOA includes research into all aspects ofinfection and immunology, and their cognatesub-disciplines.

The UOA includes research into infection andimmunology, including basic and applied researchon infectious disease and causative organismsincluding discovery, epidemiology, developmentand assessment of interventions; basic and clinicalimmunology including innate and adaptive

immunology and pathogenesis, allergy, auto-immunity, immunotherapy and immunesuppression.

UOA 4 Other Hospital BasedClinical Subjects The UOA includes research into all aspects ofhospital based clinical subjects and their cognatesub-disciplines excluding bodies of research moreexplicitly linked to UOA 1 (CardiovascularMedicine), UOA 2 (Cancer Studies), UOA 3(Infection and Immunology), UOA 5 (OtherLaboratory Based Clinical Subjects), UOA 9(Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Clinical Psychology),UOA 14 (Biological Sciences) and UOA 15 (Pre-clinical and Human Biological Sciences).

UOA 5 Other Laboratory BasedClinical SubjectsThe UOA includes research into all aspects oflaboratory-based science associated with the studyof human health and disease.

The UOA includes aetiology, pathogenesis,detection, intervention and monitoring of disease,and work where the primary focus is laboratoryresearch that is not more readily related to theboundaries of UOAs within Main Panel A, orUOA 14, Biological Sciences.

UOA 6 Epidemiology and PublicHealthThe UOA includes: public health research;epidemiology (including clinical epidemiology);medical statistics and biostatistics; and aspects of anumber of other disciplines which have publichealth relevance, including medical sociology,population genetics, clinical trials, healtheconomics, demography, modelling, healthprotection and international public health.

UOA 7 Health Services ResearchThe UOA includes: research that can be applied,theoretical and methodological. It focuses onhealthcare, healthcare systems, services and policy.Health services research informs decision making

E Units of assessment

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in healthcare, health services and policy, and mayinclude research from any healthcare disciplineincluding: medical sociology, medical statisticsand biostatistics, health psychology, clinicalpsychology, health economics, modelling, clinicaltrial methodology and organisation, community-based clinical trials, medical anthropology,medical geography, medical ethics, medicaleducation, healthcare policy evaluation, healthservice organisation and management, healthtechnology assessment, patient experience, clinicalepidemiology and decision analysis,methodologies for complex interventions andhealth informatics.

UOA 8 Primary Care and OtherCommunity Based ClinicalSubjectsThe UOA covers research that is focused on, in,or for primary care. The research may be applied,theoretical or methodological. It may include:anthropology, clinical trials, demography,epidemiology, ethics, healthcare organisation andmanagement research, health economics, healthservices research, operational research andmodelling (in the health context), psychology,sociology, statistics and multidisciplinary and/ormulti-professional research where the main focusof work is primary care.

UOA 9 Psychiatry, Neuroscienceand Clinical PsychologyThe UOA includes: psychiatry and its sub-specialities, neuroscience and its clinical sub-specialities, clinical psychology and its sub-specialities, and any aspects of science that areapplicable or clinically relevant to these subjects.

UOA 10 DentistryThe UOA includes: research in basic and applieddental and craniofacial sciences includingrestorative dentistry (comprising prosthodontics,conservative (operative) dentistry, endodontologyand periodontology), oral and maxillofacialsurgery, orthodontics, paediatric dentistry, oralmedicine, oral pathology, oral microbiology,

dental diagnostic sciences, dental special needs,dental public health, primary dental care, healthservices research (to include methodological workon quantitative and/or qualitative methods),dental education, biomaterials sciences and othersuch sciences relevant to dentistry.

UOA 11 Nursing and MidwiferyThe UOA includes research activity relevant to:the disciplines of nursing and midwifery;specialist community public health nursing; andall the contexts within which they operate,including policy, practice, education andmanagement.

UOA 12 Allied Health Professionsand StudiesThe UOA includes (but is not limited to):biomedical sciences; nutrition and dietetics;optometry and orthoptics; radiography; podiatry;occupational therapy; physiotherapy; speech andlanguage therapy; arts therapies; healthpromotion; psychosocial and ethical aspects ofhealth and healthcare; associated health servicesresearch (to include methodological work onquantitative or qualitative procedures).

UOA 13 PharmacyThe UOA includes research in pharmaceuticalsciences, clinical pharmacy and pharmacypractice, including but not limited topharmaceutics, drug delivery, medicinal chemistryand drug design, natural product chemistry,pharmaceutical biochemistry, xenobioticmetabolism and toxicology, pharmaceuticalmicrobiology, receptor biology and modes of drugaction, pharmacogenomics, radiopharmacy,pharmacokinetics, pharmacoepidemiology,pharmaceutical analysis, pharmacoeconomics,pharmaceutical technology, pharmaceuticalmaterials science (as it relates to medical devicesand medicinal products), sciences underpinningthe discovery and development of medicines,health services and policy research (includinghealth economics) applied to pharmacy andmedicines, pharmaceutical public health, andpharmaceutical workforce and education.

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UOA 14 Biological SciencesThe UOA includes research that encompasses thefull spectrum of the basic and applied biology ofmicro-organisms, plants and animals from themolecular to the ecosystem level.

UOA 15 Pre-clinical and HumanBiological SciencesThe UOA covers all biomedical sciences includingbiochemistry, physiology, pharmacology andanatomy at the genetic, molecular, cell, organsystem and whole organism level. It includes workrelevant to all organ systems, including thenervous and cardiovascular systems, that isultimately directed towards understanding humanhealth.

UOA 16 Agriculture, Veterinaryand Food ScienceThe UOA includes all aspects of agricultural,veterinary and food science, including basicthrough to applied research, and interdisciplinaryresearch with a significant content in any of theseareas of science.

UOA 17 Earth Systems andEnvironmental Sciences The UOA encompasses earth, environmental andplanetary sciences, including: geophysics;geochemistry; palaeontology; geology; mineralphysics; planetology; cosmochemistry; earthsurface processes; the physics, chemistry andbiology of the environment including ecology;atmospheric, oceanic and freshwater sciences;global change; natural resources; and scientificaspects of environmental management, includingpollution and conservation.

UOA 18 Chemistry The UOA includes all aspects of experimental andtheoretical chemistry.

UOA 19 Physics The UOA includes theoretical, computationaland experimental studies of: quantum physics;atomic, molecular and optical physics; plasma

physics; particle physics and nuclear physics;surface and interface physics; condensed matterand soft matter physics; biophysics;semiconductors, nanoscale physics, lasers,optoelectronics and photonics; magnetism,superconductivity and quantum fluids; fluiddynamics; statistical mechanics, chaotic andnonlinear systems; astronomy and astrophysics,planetary and atmospheric physics; cosmologyand relativity; medical physics; applied physics;chemical physics; instrumentation; pedagogicresearch in physics.

UOA 20 Pure Mathematics The UOA includes, but is not restricted to,algebra, analysis, category theory, combinatorics,computational complexity, dynamical systems,geometry, mathematical logic, number theory,ordinary differential equations, operator theoryand operator algebras, partial differentialequations, probability, stochastic analysis andtopology.

UOA 21 Applied Mathematics The UOA includes the development of, theanalysis of, and the solution or approximatesolution of problems arising from mathematicalmodels of phenomena in physical and biologicalsciences, engineering, industry and finance, or anyother area outside mathematics, and thedevelopment and application of mathematicaltheories and techniques that further theseobjectives. Associated experimental andcomputational studies are included.

UOA 22 Statistics and OperationalResearchThe UOA includes methodological, applied andtheoretical research in statistics, probability andthe more mathematical aspects of operationalresearch.

UOA 23 Computer Science andInformaticsThe UOA includes the study of methods foracquiring, storing, processing, communicatingand reasoning about information, and the role of

12 RAE 01/2008

interactivity in natural and artificial systems,through the implementation, organisation and useof computer hardware, software and otherresources. The subjects are characterised by therigorous application of analysis, experimentationand design.

UOA 24 Electrical and ElectronicEngineeringThe UOA includes research carried out in allareas of electrical and electronic engineering.

The UOA includes all areas of electrical andelectronic engineering, including but not limitedto: communications; electronic materials anddevices; microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)and nanoelectronics; bioelectronics; electronicsystems and circuits; optoelectronics and opticalcommunications systems; communications andnetworks; multimedia; video and audio processingand coding; signal and image processing,modelling and estimation; radio frequency (RF)techniques up to terahertz; antennae and radar;measurement, instrumentation, sensors; control,robotics and systems engineering; electrical powersystems, machines and drives; power electronics;computer and software engineering. The UOAalso includes pedagogic research in electrical andelectronic engineering.

UOA 25 General Engineering andMineral & Mining EngineeringThe UOA includes: any multidisciplinary andinterdisciplinary engineering research; mineraland mining engineering; and submissions fromdepartments or centres which include two ormore of the main branches of engineering, ie,chemical, civil, electrical and electronic,metallurgy and materials, mechanical, aero andmanufacturing engineering. The UOA includesmultidisciplinary areas such as offshoretechnology, renewable energy/energy conversion,industrial studies, medical engineering,bioengineering and environmental engineering. Italso includes pedagogic research in engineering.

UOA 26 Chemical EngineeringChemical engineering includes product andprocess engineering, biochemical and biomedicalengineering, fuel technology and energyengineering, environmental and systemsengineering, food process engineering, andpedagogic research in chemical engineering.

UOA 27 Civil EngineeringThe UOA includes (but not exclusively):construction; design; infrastructure management;fluid mechanics; hydraulics and hydrology;computational mechanics and informatics;structures and materials; surveying;transportation; geotechnical andgeoenvironmental engineering; environmentalmanagement (including water, waste andcontamination); offshore and coastal engineering;including extreme events, impact of andadaptability to global change, sustainability, safetyand risk assessment aspects of the above. It alsoincludes pedagogic research in civil engineering.

UOA 28 Mechanical, Aeronauticaland Manufacturing EngineeringThe UOA includes engineering research in:acoustics; aeronautical engineering; automotiveengineering; bio-medical engineering;computational methods; control; dynamics;design; failure analysis; fluid power; fluidmechanics; fluidics; heat transfer; manufacturing(technology, processes and systems); engineeringmanagement; physical ergonomics; materials;material processing; maritime engineering;mechatronics; optical engineering; processengineering; solid mechanics; systems engineering;thermodynamics; turbomachinery andpropulsion; and vibration. It also includespedagogic research in mechanical, manufacturingand aeronautical engineering.

UOA 29 Metallurgy and MaterialsThe Metallurgy and Materials UOA includesresearch into both fundamental and applied

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aspects of the study of the structure, properties,manufacture, processing and applications (andtheir interrelationships) of all categories and formsof materials. It also includes pedagogic research inmetallurgy and materials.

UOA 30 Architecture and the BuiltEnvironmentThe UOA covers all forms of research that arerelevant to the built environment, includingresearch in architecture, building science andbuilding engineering, construction, landscape,surveying, urbanism, and other research in whichthe built environment (including its operationand use) forms a major field for application orprovides the context for research.

UOA 31 Town and CountryPlanningThe UOA includes: the theory, analysis, policy,practice and governance of spatial planning,environment, communities, property markets,housing and transport; and their substantiveknowledge fields.

UOA 32 Geography andEnvironmental Studies The UOA includes all aspects of research conceptual, substantive and applied conductedwithin the disciplines of geography andenvironmental studies, as broadly defined. Thisresearch embraces a wide range of enquiries intonatural, environmental and human phenomena,and their interrelationships in particular systems,contexts and locations. It includes the fields ofphysical and human geography (eg,geomorphology, biogeography, Quaternaryscience; and economic, social, cultural andhistorical geography), as well as those ofenvironmental geography and environmentalstudies (eg, environmental governance,management and economics). It includes work onthe history of geographical and environmentalenquiry, as well as on technologies that are centralto some research in geography and environmentalstudies, such as remote sensing and geospatial

analyses. The UOA is therefore broadly based inits intellectual scope and substantive content, andis inherently interdisciplinary.

UOA 33 ArchaeologyThe UOA covers archaeological theory andhistoriography, archaeology of human origins, andprehistoric and historic societies worldwide. Thisincludes early civilisations, Egyptology, classicalarchaeology and related historical studies,medieval and post-medieval archaeology, colonialand industrial archaeology, landscape andenvironmental archaeology, archaeological science,public archaeology, archaeological aspects ofheritage management and museum studies,pedagogic research in archaeology, andarchaeological conservation.

UOA 34 Economics andEconometricsThe UOA includes all aspects of economics andeconometrics (including, where appropriate,economic history).

UOA 35 Accounting and FinanceThe UOA includes accounting and finance in allits forms. The research areas and sub-areascovered include, but are not confined to:accounting education, accounting history,accounting theory, auditing, accounting andcomputing; accounting and government, publicsector and not-for-profit organisations;behavioural finance, computational finance,corporate finance, corporate governance; critical,social and environmental accounting; financetheory, financial accounting and reporting,financial econometrics, financial institutions,financial management, financial markets,financial mathematics, international accounting,international finance, management accounting,managerial finance, market-based accountingresearch, methodology and methods, studies ofthe accounting profession, taxation, treasurymanagement; and other aspects of accountingand finance.

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UOA 36 Business andManagement StudiesThe Business and Management Studies UOAconsists of the areas of: accounting and finance,business history, business and industrialeconomics, employment relations,entrepreneurship and small firms, human resourcemanagement, information management,innovation and technology management,international business, management educationand development, management science,marketing, operations management,organisational psychology, organisational studies,public sector management, service management,strategic management; and any other field or sub-field aligned to business and management.

UOA 37 Library and InformationManagementThe UOA includes disciplines concerned with themanagement of information and knowledge in allformats, namely librarianship and informationscience, archives and records management, andinformation systems. This may include: research onthe generation, dissemination and publication,exploitation and evaluation of information andknowledge; information policy; the informationsociety; information media; information literacy;systems thinking; systems development; knowledgemanagement systems; information retrieval;preservation and conservation; impact assessment;and historical and cultural aspects of thedisciplines. The UOA includes research into thelearning and teaching process in the disciplines.

UOA 38 LawThe UOA includes all doctrinal, theoretical,empirical, comparative or other studies of law andlegal phenomena including criminology.

UOA 39 Politics and InternationalStudiesThe UOA includes (but is not restricted to):comparative, area, national and sub-nationalpolitics; public administration and policy studies,including science and technology policy; political

behaviour and political sociology, includinggender; political theory and philosophy, includinghistory of political thought; internationalrelations, including strategic, war and peacestudies, international history, internationalpolitical economy and foreign policy analysis;methods in political studies; and HE pedagogicresearch in politics and international studies.

UOA 40 Social Work and SocialPolicy & AdministrationThe UOA covers all forms of social work andsocial policy and administration, includinggovernmental, voluntary and community, andprivate for profit and not for profit. Research inthis area covers:

a. Theory, methodology, ethics and values andpedagogy as they apply to social work, socialcare, social policy, criminology and criminaljustice policy, and substantive issues in theseareas of study.

b. Comparative research and research intointernational institutions, policy and practice.

c. Relevant links with other disciplines mostimportantly demography, development studies,economics, education, health studies, history,law, politics, psychology and sociology andwith other stakeholders, professionals, serviceusers and carers.

d. Policy-making processes, practice, governanceand management, service design, delivery anduse, and inter-professional relationships.

UOA 41 SociologyThe UOA includes quantitative and qualitative,empirical and theoretical study of the socialstructures, cultures and everyday practices ofsocieties, including styles and material standardsof living, opinions, values, and institutions. Itcovers all areas of social theory, historical andcomparative studies, and social researchmethodology, philosophy of social science, andresearch on pedagogy in sociology.

The UOA includes womens studies.

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UOA 42 AnthropologyAnthropology is understood to include the broadfields of biological anthropology, and social andcultural anthropology (including material culturestudies, anthropology of development, visualanthropology, performance studies, area studiesand medical anthropology).

UOA 43 Development StudiesThe UOA covers issue-driven research concerningthe analysis of global and local processes ofcultural, demographic, economic, environmental,political, technological and social change in lowand middle income parts of the world, withparticular reference to structures and institutions;the changing relationships between developed anddeveloping countries; and the criticalinterrogation of theories of these processes andrelationships, and of development policy.

UOA 44 PsychologyThe UOA includes: all branches of appliedpsychology (including clinical, counselling,educational, ergonomics, forensic, health, humanfactors and occupational psychology); all areas ofbiological psychology (including animal learning,behavioural and cognitive neuroscience,comparative and evolutionary psychology,psychopharmacology, and psychophysiology);critical psychology; developmental psychology; allareas of human experimental psychology(including cognition, perception, andpsycholinguistics); individual differences;mathematical and statistical psychology;neuropsychology; qualitative psychology; socialpsychology. It includes psychologically relevantareas of neuroscience and cognitive science.

UOA 45 EducationResearch in education is multidisciplinary andclosely related to a range of other disciplines withwhich it shares blurred boundaries. TheEducation UOA and its associated communitiesof users may be broadly described as concerned

with research in the areas identified in thefollowing illustrative and non-exhaustive lists:

a. Research which focuses on education systemsincluding: pre-school, primary, secondary,further, higher, teacher or other professional,adult, continuing, vocational and communityeducation or training; informal learning; work-based learning, lifelong learning.

b. Research which addresses substantive areassuch as: assessment, curriculum, teaching,pedagogy, learning, inter-professionaleducation, information and communicationtechnology in education, special educationalneeds; curricular areas; comparative,international and development education;education and industry; education policy;organisation, governance and management;social exclusion/inclusion and equity issues.

c. Research which employs qualitative andquantitative methodologies drawn from avariety of disciplinary traditions (including butnot limited to applied linguistics, economics,geography, history, humanities, linguistics,mathematics, philosophy, psychology, science,sociology and other disciplines of education)as well as other interdisciplinarymethodologies, such as: action research, casestudy, ethnography, evaluation, literaturereview, critical theory, documentary analysis,analytic work.

UOA 46 Sports-Related StudiesResearch within the unit of assessment is diverse,multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary. It fallswithin a variety of disciplines within the mainsubject areas of physical activity, exercise, sportand leisure. These disciplines may includebiochemistry, biomechanics, business andmanagement, economics and finance,engineering, geography, health, history, law,medicine, motor learning and control, nutrition,outdoor education, philosophy, physicaleducation, physiology, policy studies, politics,psychology, sociology and tourism studies.

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UOA 47 American Studies andAnglophone Area StudiesThe UOA includes research into the cultures andsocieties of the Americas: Canada, the UnitedStates, Latin America and the Caribbean,including their relations with the wider world.The UOA includes work from any disciplinary,cross-disciplinary or theoretical perspective.

UOA 48 Middle Eastern andAfrican StudiesThe UOA includes the languages, literatures,history, religions, philosophies, politics andinternational studies, economics and developmentstudies, cultural studies, sociology, anthropology,geography and art history of the Middle East andAfrica and their diasporas.

UOA 49 Asian StudiesThe UOA includes: South Asia, Mainland andMaritime South-East Asia, Mainland China,Taiwan, Hong Kong and Inner Asia, North andSouth Korea, and Japan. In each area thedisciplines and subjects included are: ancient,medieval, and modern languages, literature, arts,cinema, archaeology, religions, history andphilosophy, economics, politics, law, internationalrelations, development, geography, sociology andanthropology, social and economic history, andlinguistics of each area, diaspora studies, media,cultural, gender and other interdisciplinarystudies, and inter-regional and globalisationstudies with reference to Asia.

UOA 50 European StudiesThe UOA includes elements of all disciplines inthe humanities and social sciences. It includesinterdisciplinary research into all aspects ofEuropean languages, cultures and societies. Itcovers all of Europe (broadly defined) includingEuropean diasporas and Europes relations withthe wider world.

UOA 51 Russian, Slavonic andEast European LanguagesThe UOA includes the following areas of Russianand other Slavonic and East European studies:languages, linguistics, translation studies,literature, culture, society, history and thought.

UOA 52 FrenchThe UOA includes the study of French andfrancophone literature and thought for all periodsfrom the medieval to the present day; medievaland modern Occitan; cultural studies; theatrestudies; film and media studies; language studies;translation studies; pedagogic research; political,social and historical studies; post-colonial studies;gender studies; philosophy and critical theory;comparative literature; and literature in relation tothe other arts.

UOA 53 German, Dutch andScandinavian LanguagesThe UOA includes the languages, literature,cultures and societies of the German-speakingcountries, the Low Countries, Scandinavia andIceland, and relevant communities elsewhere,from the earliest times to the present day; Yiddishlanguage and literature; and translation studies.

UOA 54 ItalianThe UOA includes: medieval literature, includingDante; Renaissance literature; early modernliterature; modern and contemporary literature;theatre studies; linguistics, philology and historyof the language; cultural studies and culturalhistory; film studies; media studies; genderstudies; history of Italy; social and economichistory; modern social and political studies;history of ideas; translation studies; teachingmethodologies and teaching materials embodyingresearch.

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UOA 55 Iberian and LatinAmerican LanguagesThe UOA covers Iberian and Latin Americanlanguages, literatures, cultures and social andcultural histories, political, social and historicalstudies, from medieval times to the present day.This might include: lusophone studies; Hispaniclinguistics; translation and translation studies;film, media and theatre studies; gender studies;literary and cultural theory; comparativeliterature; cultural studies; thought andphilosophy; pedagogic research.

UOA 56 Celtic StudiesThe UOA covers the Celtic languages, includingcontinental Celtic, and from the earliest timesto the present Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh,Breton, Manx and Cornish, together with theliteratures, civilisation and primarily non-materialculture of the speakers of these languages. TheUOA also covers new and emerging fields ofstudy, such as the application of informationtechnology to Celtic studies, and various otherforms of applied research.

UOA 57 English Language andLiteratureThe UOA includes: English and Scots language(historical and modern); English and Scotslinguistic studies, including applied linguistics;Old Norse/Icelandic (language, literature andlinguistic studies); English literature from the 9thto the 21st centuries; American literature;comparative literature; colonial and post-colonialliteratures and language; womens writing; creativewriting; life writing; childrens literature; criticaland cultural theory and cultural history; genderand gay studies; editorial scholarship,bibliography, textual criticism and theory, andhistory of the book; Irish literature in English;Scottish literature in English and Scots; Welshliterature in English; and applied, practice-based,and pedagogical research in English.

UOA 58 LinguisticsThe UOA covers all areas of theoretical,descriptive and applied linguistics. This includes,but is not limited to: clinical linguistics,computational linguistics, conversation anddiscourse analysis, educational linguistics, first andsecond language acquisition, forensic linguistics,historical linguistics, the history of linguistics,language evolution, morphology, neurolinguistics,philology, phonetics, phonology, pragmatics,psycholinguistics, semantics, sociolinguistics,speech and language technology, stylistics, syntax,text linguistics, and typology.

UOA 59 Classics, Ancient History,Byzantine and Modern GreekStudiesThe UOA includes the language, literature,history, culture, art, archaeology and thought(including ancient science and philosophy) ofGreece and Rome from the earliest times to lateantiquity; Latin language and literature of theMiddle Ages and subsequent periods; Byzantinestudies; modern Greek language, literature,history and culture; the classical tradition; and thereception of these periods and subjects.

UOA 60 PhilosophyThe UOA includes all areas and styles of, andapproaches to, philosophy.

The UOA covers all areas of philosophy,including but not limited to (listedalphabetically):

19th and 20th century European philosophyincluding phenomenology, existentialism,critical theory, hermeneutics, anddeconstruction

aesthetics

applied philosophy

epistemology

ethics including applied ethics

feminist philosophy

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history of philosophy including ancient,medieval, modern and recent

logic

metaphysics

non-Western philosophy

philosophy of language

philosophy of mathematics

philosophy of mind

philosophy of religion

philosophy of science

political and social philosophy

teaching philosophy.

This list is illustrative rather than exhaustive: itdoes not reflect any judgements about the relativesignificance of the subject areas, nor does itspecify fields.

UOA 61 Theology, Divinity andReligious StudiesThe UOA includes the study of the worldsreligions, specific or comparative, including theirscriptures, thought, history, ethical teaching, socialand cultural impact, practices and related areas.

The UOA includes technological, textual,philosophical, social scientific and appliedapproaches. It is not intended to exclude any of theareas normally studied under the rubric of theology,divinity, religious studies or biblical studies.

UOA 62 HistoryThe UOA includes all aspects of the study of thepast except those specifically falling within theremit of other UOAs.

The UOA covers all areas of history, includingbut not limited to (listed alphabetically):

business history

cultural history

economic history

environmental history

historiography

history of Britain, Ireland and ContinentalEurope (late Roman to the present)

history of ideas

history of North America, South America,Africa, Asia and Australasia

history of science, technology and medicine

imperial/colonial history

international history

local and regional history

media history

military history

oral history

political history

public history

religious history

social history

womens and gender history.

This list is illustrative rather than exhaustive: itdoes not reflect any judgements about the relativesignificance of the subject areas, nor does itspecify fields.

UOA 63 Art and DesignUOA 63 encompasses all disciplines within artand design, in which methods of making,representation, interrogation and interpretationare integral to their productions. The UOA coversall areas of art and design, including but notlimited to:

fine arts

applied arts and crafts

design

spatial, two- and three-dimensional art anddesign

photography, time-based and digital media

critical, historical and cultural studies, wherethese relate to or inform art, media, design,production and practice

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contributions to policy, management andentrepreneurship in the creative industries, artsand design

contributions to the construction of ascholarly infrastructure for arts and designthrough, for example, collections, archives,curation and pedagogy

curatorship

appropriate pedagogic research in any of theareas identified above.

UOA 64 History of Art,Architecture and DesignThe UOA encompasses the history, criticism,theory, historiography, pedagogy and aesthetics ofart, design and architecture in their widestchronological and geographical framework. TheUOA covers all areas of the history of art,architecture and design, including but notlimited to:

visual and material culture

applied and decorative arts, and craft

dress and fashion

photography, time-based and digital media

landscape and garden design

museology and curatorship

conservation and technical art history

work in cognate fields such as cultural,social and gender studies, and archaeologyand anthropology, where these relate to thevisual arts.

UOA 65 Drama, Dance andPerforming ArtsThe UOA includes all areas of drama, theatre,dance, performance, film, TV and video. TheUOA encompasses the theories, histories,ethnographies, practices, analyses, technologiesand pedagogies in the widest domains of drama,theatre, dance, performance, film, TV and video;and the broadest understanding of the subjectdisciplines and their relationship to the widestgeographical, historical and cultural contexts.

UOA 66 Communication, Culturaland Media StudiesThe UOA includes research addressing ordeploying theory, history, institutional, policy,textual, critical and/or empirical analysis, orpractice within communication, culture, media,journalism and film studies. The UOA includes(but is not confined to):

policy for regulation of culture and the media

the organisation, institutions, politicaleconomy and practice of cultural production

media and cultural texts, forms and practices

media and cultural audiences, consumptionand reception, including questions of power,identity and difference.

UOA 67 MusicThe UOA encompasses the history, theory,analysis, creation, performance and production ofmusic, in any genre or medium, and the broadestunderstanding of the subject discipline and itsrelationship to current practices and cultures. TheUOA covers all areas of music, including but notlimited to:

composition and creative practice

performance

musicology (including historical, critical,empirical, ethnographic, theoretical, analyticaland organological approaches)

scientific approaches to the study of music

new technology and music

musical acoustics and audio engineering(where the subject matter is music-related)

appropriate pedagogic research.

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F Results: the quality profiles for each unit of assessment

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1. Panels were required to consider all thecomponents of the submission when reaching anoverall quality profile (see Figure 1). Thecomponents equated to the different datacollected in the RAE, namely submitted staffinformation (RA1), research outputs (RA2),research student data (RA3), research income(RA4), supporting statement on researchenvironment and esteem indicators (RA5a).

2. These different components were assessedunder three overarching elements: researchoutputs, research environment, and esteemindicators. Research outputs (RA2) were alwaysassessed as one of these three elements.

3. Main panels decided whether the componentsof submissions other than research outputs (RA3,4 and 5) would be assessed under the Researchenvironment or Esteem indicators element. Forexample, a panel may have considered thatresearch income contributes to researchenvironment, or that it is a measure of esteem in

its subject area. Similarly research studentnumbers, research student completions andresearch studentships may either be part of theresearch environment or an indicator of esteem.Main panels explained in their statements ofcriteria and working methods their reasoning forassigning components of the submission to aparticular element.

4. Main panels allocated a percentage weightingto each of three elements research outputs,research environment and esteem indicators which indicates the extent to which the differentelements contributed to the overall quality profileof a submission. Given the primacy of expertreview in the process, the weighting allocated toresearch outputs had to be at least 50 per cent ofthe overall quality profile: some main panelsreasonably decided that research outputs shouldbe weighted more highly. Main panels had toallocate a significant weighting to each of theother aspects, environment and esteem, as they

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Annex AQuality profile

G Annexes

Overall quality profile

Quality level 4* 3* 2* 1* u/c

% of research 15 25 30 20 10activity

eg 20% (Minimum 5%) eg 10% (Minimum 5%)eg 70% (Minimum 50%)

Figure 1 Building a quality profile

The overall quality profilecomprises the aggregateof the weighted profilesproduced for researchoutputs, researchenvironment and esteemindicators

The percentage weightings to the three elements are illustrative. Panels allocated these. The minimum weighting for

the research outputs profile is 50%. In this example the overall quality profile shows 15% of research activity is at 4*

level. This example is made up of 70% x 10 (research outputs), 20% x 20 (research environment) and 10% x 30

(esteem indicators), rounded as described in paragraph 8 below.

Research outputs

4* 3* 2* 1* u/c

10 25 40 15 10

Research environment

4* 3* 2* 1* u/c

20 30 15 20 15

Esteem indicators

4* 3* 2* 1* u/c

30 25 10 20 15

saw fit, but since the quality profile will bedefined in multiples of 5%, the minimumweighting in either case was 5%. Main panelsdefined their reasoning in every case in theircriteria statements.

5. Sub-panels assessed research outputs anddeveloped a quality profile for this element. Sub-panels also assessed the evidence within thecomponents of the submission assigned to theresearch environment and esteem indicatorselements and drew up a quality profile for each.

6. Sub-panels summed the three weighted qualityprofiles to develop an overall quality profile forthe submission. Overall quality profiles arepublished in steps of 5%.

7. Sub-panels confirmed that, in their expertjudgement, the overall profile is a fair reflection ofthe research activity in that submission, and thattheir assessment took account of all the differentcomponents of the submission.

Rounding

8. All sub-panels adopted a cumulative roundingmethodology for the overall quality profile, toensure that for any submission it always rounds to100% and to avoid the unfair consequences thatsimple rounding can produce. They first summedthe weighted quality profiles for outputs,environment and esteem and then adopted acumulative rounding methodology. Cumulativerounding is described in detail in Annex A ofRAE 03/2005, Guidance on submissions.

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1. The following core data were collected fromHEIs for each UOA to which they made asubmission. The RA prefix refers to the researchassessment form in which the data were collected:

a. Overall staff summary (RA0): summaryinformation on research-active staff selected(FTE and headcount) and related academicsupport staff (FTE) in the UOA.

b. Research-active individuals (RA1): detailedinformation on individuals selected by theinstitution for inclusion as research active.

c. Research output (RA2): up to four items ofresearch output produced during thepublication period (1 January 2001 to 31 December 2007) by each individual namedas research active and in post on the censusdate (31 October 2007).

d. Research students (RA3a): numbers of full-time and part-time postgraduate researchstudents and degrees awarded.

e. Research studentships (RA3b): numbers ofpostgraduate research studentships and sourceof funding.

f. External research income (RA4): amounts andsources of external funding.

g. Textual description (RA5a): includinginformation about the research environmentand indicators of esteem.

h. Individual staff circumstances (RA5b).

i. Category C staff circumstances (RA5c).

2. Institutions were invited to list research-activeindividuals in the following categories:

a. Category A: academic staff in post and on thepayroll of the submitting institution on thecensus date. Eligible Category A academic staffmust be employed under a contract ofemployment with the HEI on the census date.Their contract must list research and/orteaching as their primary function.

b. Category B: academic staff who held acontract with the institution after 1 Januarywho left the institution (or transferred into adepartment returned to a different UOA) afterthat date and before the census date, and whootherwise would have been eligible forinclusion as Category A.

c. Category C: independent investigators activein research who do not meet the definition forCategory A staff but whose research on thecensus date is clearly and demonstrablyfocused in the department that returns them.

d. Category D: independent investigators whomet the definition for Category C staff duringthe period 1 January 2001 to 31 October2007 but not on the census date.

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Annex BCore data in submissions

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Main panel UOA UOA name

A 1 Cardiovascular Medicine

2 Cancer Studies

3 Infection and Immunology

4 Other Hospital Based Clinical Subjects

5 Other Laboratory Based Clinical Subjects

B 6 Epidemiology and Public Health

7 Health Services Research

8 Primary Care and Other Community Based Clinical Subjects

9 Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Clinical Psychology

C 10 Dentistry

11 Nursing and Midwifery

12 Allied Health Professions and Studies

13 Pharmacy

D 14 Biological Sciences

15 Pre-clinical and Human Biological Sciences

16 Agriculture, Veterinary and Food Science

E 17 Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences

18 Chemistry

19 Physics

F 20 Pure Mathematics

21 Applied Mathematics

22 Statistics and Operational Research

23 Computer Science and Informatics

G 24 Electrical and Electronic Engineering

25 General Engineering and Mineral & Mining Engineering

26 Chemical Engineering

27 Civil Engineering

28 Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering

29 Metallurgy and Materials

H 30 Architecture and the Built Environment

31 Town and Country Planning

32 Geography and Environmental Studies

33 Archaeology

Annex CRAE2008 Units of assessment and main panels

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Main panel UOA UOA name

I 34 Economics and Econometrics

35 Accounting and Finance

36 Business and Management Studies

37 Library and Information Management

J 38 Law

39 Politics and International Studies

40 Social Work and Social Policy & Administration

41 Sociology

42 Anthropology

43 Development Studies

K 44 Psychology

45 Education

46 Sports-Related Studies

L 47 American Studies and Anglophone Area Studies

48 Middle Eastern and African Studies

49 Asian Studies

50 European Studies

M 51 Russian, Slavonic and East European Languages

52 French

53 German, Dutch and Scandinavian Languages

54 Italian

55 Iberian and Latin American Languages

56 Celtic Studies

57 English Language and Literature

58 Linguistics

N 59 Classics, Ancient History, Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies

60 Philosophy

61 Theology, Divinity and Religious Studies

62 History

O 63 Art and Design

64 History of Art, Architecture and Design

65 Drama, Dance and Performing Arts

66 Communication, Cultural and Media Studies

67 Music

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1. For each UOA, this gives the average quality profile of all submissions to the UOA (mean average,weighted for staff volume); and the minimum, lower quartile, median, upper quartile and maximumpercentage for each quality level from 4* to unclassified.

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Annex DNational comparative data

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Index of submissions by institution

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