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Understanding Impact

Understanding Impact. Stephanie Seavers , Impact Manager. What is impact? Impact in research grants Impact in the REF Developing your impact strategy. Introduction. Academic Impact:

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Understanding Impact

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  1. Understanding Impact Stephanie Seavers, Impact Manager

  2. What is impact? • Impact in research grants • Impact in the REF • Developing your impact strategy • Introduction

  3. Academic Impact: • the demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to academic advances, across and within disciplines, including significant advances in understanding, methods, theory, application and academic practice. Wider Impact: • an effect on, change to or benefit to the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment, or quality of life, beyond academia. • What is impact?

  4. Raise individual profile and subject profile • Benefit research design through stakeholder engagement and feedback • Establish long-lasting research contacts • Generate new research or funding opportunities • What are the benefits?

  5. Grant applications (esp. RCUK). Pathways to impact – outline the potential non-academic users of the research, howthey could benefit, and what you will do to engage them in the research. • Career progression. Increasing focus on impact as part of career development. • REF. Impact accounts for 25% of overall REF score. • Why is impact important?

  6. Impact Summary: 4000 characters to describe who will benefit from your research and how they will benefit. • Pathways to impact: 2 pages describing the engagement, collaboration and knowledge exchange activities that will enable your research to achieve impact in a non-academic sphere. • Impact is an important part of grant applications. Strong research proposals will not be granted if the pathways to impact is unsatisfactory. • Impact in Grant Applications (RCUK)

  7. Impact a REF requirement since REF2014 • Weighted at 25% of a department’s submission (60% for outputs and 15% for environment) • Assessed by case studies: 4 page documents which describe the underpinning research, the method through which impact was achieved and the ultimate impact of the research. • Evidence to corroborate impact must be submitted with each case study. • Impact assessed according to reach and significance and given a star rating. • Impact and the REF

  8. Summary of the Impact Short description of the impact that has been achieved. • Underpinning Research Description of the research and the key findings that led to impact. • Research References • Details of the Impact Description of the impact and how it occurred. Indication of evidence to support the claim for reach and significance. • Evidence to corroborate the impact No more than 10 sources. • What’s in a REF case study template?

  9. Underpinning research + Engagement with non-academics + Change to ideas or practices of non-academics(with evidence to prove this) = IMPACT! • Making the case for impact

  10. Developing an impact strategy Identify potential audiences/beneficiaries of your research Why will they benefit from your research? Identify how you can engage with them and at which stages • Events • Policy engagement • Media • Web/digital media • Collaboration with external organisation Demonstrate flexibility to be both proactive (organising engagement activities) as well as reactive (e.g. responding to select committee calls/contributing to media discussion) What resources will you need?

  11. Examples of impact

  12. Pathways to impact

  13. Engagement vs impact Engagement is the method with which you communicate your research to your chosen audience Impact is the demonstrable change leading from that communication

  14. Demonstrating a change- examples of impact evidence Citation in policy document Citation in charity campaign or think tank recommendation Qualitative feedback from stakeholder explaining how your findings have influenced their work – worth identifying in advance who could provide testimonials Feedback from event participants or online comments showing change in understanding Quantitative data, e.g. improved financial gains/productivity

  15. Activity: what would your impact strategy look like? Describe your research briefly Who are your non-academic beneficiaries? Why would they benefit from your research? How would you communicate with them? What potential challenges might you face? What might your impact look like?

  16. Impact resources Impact Manager • RCUK pathways to impact • IAA/ WIF applications • Faculty training and online resources (Impact Resource Bank) • Guidance on REF and impact case studies Contact details • Claire Gerard (C.Gerard@warwick.ac.uk) Social Sciences (interim WMG) • Stephanie Seavers (S.Seavers@warwick.ac.uk) Social Sciences (interim Engineering and Computer Science) • Katie Irgin (K.Irgin@warwick.ac.uk) WMS, SLS, Psychology, Maths and Stats (interim Chemistry) • Katie Klaassen (K.Klaassen@warwick.ac.uk) Arts and Humanities (interim Physics)

  17. Impact resources Faculty of Social Sciences: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/staffresources/impactresourcebank/ Faculties of Science and Medicine: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/staffresources/impactresourcebank/ Faculty of Arts: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/staffresources/impactresourcebank/

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