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Measuring Individual Research Activity Procedure

Section 1 - Summary

(1) The Measuring Individual Research Activity Policy establishes Victoria University’s model for the measurement of individual academic research activity (or MORA); a mechanism designed to drive institutional research performance and align individual researcher effort with strategic objectives.

(2) The model includes performance benchmarks for academic levels based on external, discipline-specific data sourced from the most recent Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) and/or equivalent national research evaluation system(s).

(3) This Procedure details the methods and processes involved in calculating each eligible academic staff member’s Measure of Research Activity, or MORA.

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Section 2 - HESF/ASQA/ESOS Alignment

(4) HESF: 4.1 Research; 4.2 Research Training.

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Section 3 - Scope

(5) This Procedure applies to:

  1. Academic staff of Victoria University employed in Teaching & Research (TRA) and Research Only (ROA) positions.

(6) This Procedure does not apply to:

  1. Sessional staff;
  2. Teaching Focused Academics.

(7) Non-TRA and non-ROA staff may choose to opt-in to the MORA process.

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Section 4 - Definitions

(8) Commissioned Research Reports: A written research output commissioned or solicited by an external body (such as a government body or private company) that meets the definition of research. Commissioned reports that are subject to confidentiality clauses will be accepted and contribute to an individual’s MORA calculation.

(9) Creative Works as Research: Research outputs that meet the definition of research and are manifested in either a creative work or curated event.

(10) Excellence in Research for Australia(ERA): Australia’s national research evaluation framework administered by the Australian Research Council (ARC).

(11) Extended Consecutive Leave: Any extended consecutive leave of minimum three-month duration, including Parental Leave, extended Personal (Sick/Carer’s) Leave and Workcover leave, beginning up to half a year prior to and/or during a reference period will be taken into consideration in calculating an individual’s MORA. In the Work Years calculation, the duration of an individual’s extended leave (calculated by months) will be augmented by 25% to allow for a research productivity recovery period.

(12) Fields of Research (FoRs): The Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) code that categorises research and development activity according to the methodology used in the research. The classification is hierarchical and comprises three levels, namely Divisions (2 digits), Groups (4 digits), and Fields (6 digits). Each level is identified by a unique number.

(13) New Staff: Teaching & Research and Research Only academic staff who have not held an academic position of employment at Victoria University for the full three years immediately prior to the year that the MORA calculation is made.

(14) Pre-eminent and Renowned Publisher List: A consolidated list of SENSE (Research School for Socio-Economic and Natural Sciences of the Environment, Netherlands) and City University of Hong Kong academic publisher rankings (for books and book chapters).

(15) Research

(16) Research Income: Income from external sources shown in the University’s financial accounts that is eligible for and has been submitted as part of Victoria University’s Higher Education Research Data Collection (HERDC). The net amount will reflect transfers to and from other institutions.

(17) Research Indicators: Core research indicators for MORA comprise research income, research publications, and Higher Degree by Research (HDR) student completions. 

(18) Research Publications: Research output that meets the definition of research and has been published or made publicly available within the reference period (confidential research reports excepted), and submitted and/or claimed in VU Elements. Research publications include Non-Traditional Research Outputs (NTROs), such as research reports and creative works as research. Revisions of research publications, within or across output types, will be accepted only where the revision contains substantial new research content. This requirement applies to all MORA rounds and across MORA reference periods.

(19) Research Student Completions: The reported completion of a Research Doctorate, or a Masters by Research program at Victoria University. Completions for a given year are those conferred by Council by 31 December of the same year.

(20) SCImago Journal Rank (SJR): A measure of scientific influence of scholarly journals indexed by Scopus that accounts for both the number of citations received by a journal and the importance or prestige of the journal.

(21) Scopus: An abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature, including scientific journals, books, and conference proceedings. The database delivers a comprehensive overview of the world’s research output in the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities.

(22) Timely Completion: Completion time refers to the time elapsed from a graduate research student’s initial enrolment to the date at which their thesis is submitted for examination. Timely completion is as specified by the Higher Degrees by Research Procedure 3 Pre-Candidature and Candidature.

(23) Traditional Research Outputs: Comprised of books, book chapters, refereed journal articles, and refereed conference papers.

(24) VU Elements: The research information management system that provides a single source for all of the University’s research publication data.

(25) Work Years: The number of years based on the number of months employed within the reference period (minus months of extended leave x 1.25), expressed in half-year intervals: 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 years.

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Section 5 - Policy/Regulation

(26) See Measuring Individual Research Activity Policy.

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Section 6 - Procedures

Part A - Summary of Roles and Responsibilities

Roles
Responsibility
Research Services
Collects all relevant data in order to calculate MORA.

Releases MORA results to the University via the MoRA online portal.
 
Considers requests for recalculation of MORA scores.

Initiates VU Research strategic and accreditation FoR profile development and review.
Researcher
Provides timely submission of all required data and evidence to support MORA calculation through prescribed systems and processes.

Ensures all information already stored in prescribed systems and processes is up-to-date and accurate.

Provides evidence to support requests for MORA recalculations, where required.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact
Considers appeals against Research Services determinations in relation to the MORA.

Part B - The MORA Calculation

Process Milestones and Systems

(27) The results of the preliminary MORA calculation will be released by the 31 August in the calculation year.

(28) The final calculation will be confirmed by 15 October in the calculation year.

(29) A report on MORA annual and trend performance will be provided to the VUREG following completion of the annual MORA process.

(30) Staff may access their MORA score online via the MoRA online portal.

(31) Management personnel, including Executive Deans and Research Institute/Centre Directors, may access for evaluation purposes, aggregate and individual MORA data relevant to their organisational units via the MoRA online portal.

MORA Calculation Method

(32) The MORA calculation method is as follows:

Individual Benchmark =
Sum ([benchmark for FoR] x [percentage assigned to FoR in individual profile]) x [performance ratio for academic level]) 
(refer (34)-(37) below)
Research Income(average annual performance) =
Sum ([HERDC eligible income per project] / [No. VU staff investigators +1] x [international weighting]) / 3
(refer (43)-(45) below)
Research publications (average annual performance
(Traditional outputs) =

(Non-traditional outputs) =
 
Sum (([category points] x [quality weighting]) + ([base point] x [collaboration weighting]) + ([base point] x [open access weighting])) / 3
Sum ([category point] x [scale multiplier] x [quality multiplier]) / 3
(refer (46)-(69) below)
Research student completions (average annual performance) =
Sum (([Degree points] – ([overtime in months]/12)) x [supervisor load] x [thesis quality weighting]) / 3
Note: ‘Overtime’ refers to the number of months post the timely completion date a thesis is submitted – see (51)c below
(refer (71)-(74) below)
Work Years by FTE =
(Months [days employed within the reference period x aggregate FTE over the reference period] – months [days of extended consecutive leave x FTE at point of leave x 1.25]), rounded to the nearest half year
(refer (38)-(40) below)
MORA Score =
(([Research income] / [individual income benchmark] x [strategic weighting for income]) + ([research publications] / [individual publications benchmark] x [strategic weighting for publications]) + ([total completions] x [strategic weighting for completions])) / [work years]
(refer (41) below for strategic weightings)

Reference Period

(33) The reference period is the three most recent years for which audited data is available. For example, the MORA calculation performed in 2019 will use data collected from 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Individual Benchmarks

(34) Individual benchmarks for research income and publications are:

  1. derived from national research performance data, using the most recent ERA or equivalent data (refer to Part C);
  2. specific to the fields of research an academic is active in and relate to their individual Field of Research Profile (refer to Part D).

(35) Academic levels are accounted for in the calculation of individual benchmarks, giving recognition to higher performance expectations associated with experience and seniority. This is accounted for by incorporating a 1.5 performance ratio against the national benchmark per academic level, with the national benchmark assumed at Level C (see Table 1).

Table 1: Performance Ratio per Academic Level

Academic Level
Performance Ratio
A
0.44
B
0.67
C
1.00
D
1.50
E
2.25

(36) The national benchmark figures for research income and publications that relate to a staff member’s field of research profile are multiplied by the performance ratio applicable to the staff member’s academic level. 

(37) The resultant figures are the staff member’s individual benchmarks for research publications and income generation per year.

Work Years by FTE

(38) The work years by FTE calculation takes into account a staff member’s term of employment during the MORA reference period, fractional appointment, and any extended consecutive leave. Any conjoint arrangement will, in principle, be treated as a whole; for example, for a VU employee holding an employment arrangement with another institution where research productivity is similarly an expectation, the total FTE of that conjoint arrangement will apply (i.e. VU FTE + alternate institution FTE).

(39) For Aboriginal staff, the calculation also takes into account additional workload expectations for pastoral care, community engagement and cultural load. This approach is consistent with the Universities Australia Indigenous Strategy. Adjustment to the work years by FTE calculation is made according to an average additional workload expectation of 0.2 FTE.

(40) For new staff who are newly graduated PhDs with no prior academic employment, each year of PhD enrolment during the reference period is regarded as 0.33 years of FTE academic employment.

Indicators and Weightings

(41) A staff member’s individual score is calculated based on all their eligible research indicators, irrespective of whether these indicators fit within their FoR profile.

(42) New staff will have a MORA calculated on the basis of research performed over the reference period, including eligible activity prior to their appointment at VU (refer to Part F).

University strategic weightings

(43)  All research indicators will attract additional weightings to reflect the value of the activity to achieve the University’s strategic goals and targets as follows:

  1. External research income will attract a multiplier of 4.0.
  2. Research publications will attract a multiplier of 2.0.
  3. Research student completions will attract a multiplier of 1.0.

Research Income

(44) Only VU Higher Education Research Data Collection (HERDC) reported research income, submitted each year to the Australian Government Department of Education Skills and Employment (or equivalent), will be included. The dollar amount recorded annually will be consistent with the process of revenue recognition defined in the HERDC Specifications documentation for any given year.

(45) The dollar amount will be shared among the VU investigators listed in the funding agreement with the Primary Investigator counted twice and receiving a double share. For example, if the dollar amount is $100,000 and there are four VU investigators, of which one is the Primary Investigator, the $100,000 is divided by (4+1) and distributed as $40,000 to the Primary Investigator and $20,000 to the other three investigators.

(46) Competitive grants with investigators from overseas institutions, as identified on funding coversheets, attract an international collaboration weighting with an additional 1.25 multiplier.

Research Publications

(47) Recognised research publications attract category points:

  1. A1 Research Book: 5 units.
  2. B1 Book Chapter: 1 unit. 

    Where a researcher is responsible for multiple book chapters within a single book, a maximum of 3 units only may be accrued.
  3. C1 Refereed Journal Articles: 1 unit.
  4. E1 Fully-refereed Conference Papers – eligible only for staff with an individual FOR profile aligned with 33 Built Environment & Design, 40 Engineering, or 46 Information & Computing Sciences: 1 unit.
  5. Recognised Creative Works as Research: 1 unit.
  6. Commissioned Reports: 1 unit.

(48) Individual authorships are counted and receive full category points, regardless of the number of authors or creators on the output.

(49) Quality weightings are applied to determine the publication base point. 

Traditional Research Outputs

Quality Weightings and Multipliers for Research Publications

(50) The following is an exhaustive list of the quality multipliers available for research publications. The quality of a publication is measured at the time of the MORA calculation.

(51) In accordance with VU’s Pre-eminent and Renowned Publisher list (available as a Quick Link on the MoRA online portal), Books (A1) and Book Chapters (B1) will attract a multiplier of:

  1. 2.0 if published by an internationally pre-eminent publisher.
  2. 1.5 if published by an internationally renowned publisher.
  3. For Refereed Journal Articles, quality multipliers will be determined against a single VU-maintained journal ranking list that is an amalgam of the most recent:
    1. annual SCImago Journal Rank (SJR);
    2. Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) journal list;
    3. Deakin Law List.

(52) Executive Deans or Research Program Leaders may present a case to and for approval by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact, for the adoption of an additional journal outlet ranking list in the VU-maintained list. Any ranking list the subject of such a request must have the following minimum characteristics:

  1. developed through a rigorous and transparent process;
  2. periodically maintained to ensure currency;
  3. publicly available;

(53) Requests are to be submitted as follows:

  1. Proceed to the VU Support Hub (login may be required);
  2. Scroll down and click the “Research” tile;
  3. Click “SUBMIT A NEW TICKET”;
  4. Scroll down and click the “MORA” tile;
  5. Beneath heading “REQUEST DETAILS”, select applicable “Category” and enter “Details of Request”;
  6. Click the “Review & Submit” button and confirm on the next screen;
  7. A member of the MORA team will respond as soon as is practicable.

(54) The following quality multipliers will be applied:

  1. A Top Decile (D1; equivalent to A*) journal will receive a multiplier of 2.0.
  2. a Quartile 1 (Q1; equivalent to A) journal will receive a multiplier of 1.5.
  3. a Quartile 2 (Q2; equivalent to B) journal will receive a multiplier of 1.0.
  4. a Quartile 3 or 4(Q3 or Q4; equivalent to C and D) journal will receive a multiplier of 0.5.
  5. a non-ranked journal, a multiplier of 0.2.

(55) Fully Refereed Conference Papers, eligible only for staff predominantly aligned with any of the two-digit FoRs 33 Built Environment & Design, 40 Engineering, and 46 Information & Computing Sciences, will reference the latest CORE Conference ranking lists and the following quality multipliers applied:

  1. A* ranked conferences, a multiplier of 2.0.
  2. A ranked conferences, a multiplier of 1.5.
  3. B ranked conferences, a multiplier of 1.0.
  4. C ranked conferences, a multiplier of 0.5.

(56) Any outputs published via predatory publishing will not be recognised in MORA calculations. The process by which predatory publishing outlets will be identified and made available to researching academics will be determined in collaboration with the Library. Further guidance is available in the Measuring Individual Research Activity - Predatory & Vanity Publishers Guideline.

Bonuses for Traditional Research Publications

(57) Bonus points are determined by multiplying the publication base point by the bonus multiplier and adding this to the base point. The following bonus multipliers will apply:

(58) A collaboration bonus for outputs with national and international co-authors will be applied:

  1. Publications with international co-authors, as identified in publication bylines, will attract a multiplier of 0.1.
  2. Publications with Australian (and non-VU) co-authors will attract a multiplier of 0.05.

(59) Outputs published in Open Access outlets will attract a bonus multiplier of 0.05. For the purposes of MORA Open Access is defined as:

  1. Green Open Access: Accessible via an institutional or subject repository. The version submitted to a repository is generally the Authors Accepted Manuscript (AAM), i.e. post-print. This has been peer-reviewed but doesn’t have publishers’ typesetting and logos.
  2. Gold Open Access: Published in a fully Open Access journal. A reader can access the published version, online, at no cost. However, the author is often required to pay an article process charge (APC) to the publisher.
  3. Hybrid Open Access: Published in a subscription-based journal, but the article is made immediately Open Access because the author has paid an APC.
  4. Any eligible outputs with an embargo in the VU Research Repository will also be counted as Open Access.
  5. Preprints will not be accepted for MORA as peer-review is an essential requirement for publications.

Non-Traditional Research Outputs

(60) Creative Works as Research, consistent with ERA, are eligible for staff aligned with any of the following FoRs: 33 Built Environment & Design; 35 Commerce, Management, Tourism & Services; 36 Creative Arts & Writing; 38 Economics; 39 Education; 43 History, Heritage & Archaeology; 44 Human Society; 45 Indigenous Studies; 47 Language, Communication & Culture; 48 Law & Legal Studies; and 50 Philosophy & Religious Studies.

(61) Creative works as research will be considered for MORA where a complete record exists in VU Elements, including:

  1. A research statement, limited to 2000 characters (about 250 words) identifying the research component of the creative work as research output and making a succinct case for the work’s:
    1. research contribution;
    2. scale;
    3. quality.
  2. Evidence to support the output, preferably as a single file, uploaded to the VU Research Repository field. Evidence should include copies of documentation to verify publication through an acceptable outlet and to verify any claims for quality (international importance and/or esteem).

(62) Creative works as research may be collected into a portfolio where a series of works result from the same underlying research endeavour. A single work within the portfolio, on its own, may not meet the definition of research, but when collected together with other works, presents coherent research content.

(63) Creative works as research, and associated claims made around scale and quality in the formal VU Elements record, will be subject to validation by a Creative Works as Research Evaluation Committee.

Multipliers for Creative Works as Research Outputs

(64) Scale: Each recognised creative work as research is awarded points according to its categorisation in one of three classification scales:

  1. Major work: 2.5 units;
  2. Substantial work: 1 unit;
  3. Minor work: 0.2 units.

(65) These base points for creative works as research will attract quality multipliers as follows:

  1. Works of international importance, a multiplier of 2.0;
  2. Works of high esteem, a multiplier of 2.0.

(66) Commissioned Research Reports will be considered for MORA where a complete record exists in VU Elements, including:

  1. A research statement, limited to 2000 characters (about 250 words), addressing:
    1. Research background – field, context and research aim;
    2. Research contribution – innovation and new knowledge;
    3. Research significance – evidence of excellence;
  2. Identification of confidentiality of the report, if relevant;
  3. Evidence of the output uploaded to the VU Research Repository field.

(67) Commissioned research reports may be collected into a portfolio where a series of reports result from the same underlying research endeavour. A single report within the portfolio, on its own, may not meet the definition of research, but when collected together with other reports, presents coherent research content.

(68) Commissioned research reports translated into a traditional output form may not be claimed for MORA. In this instance, the traditional output is preferentially considered and will be subject to the quality and bonus measures identified in (50)–(56)above.

(69) Commissioned research reports will be subject to validation by an internal Commissioned Research Reports Evaluation Committee, including those marked as confidential.

(70) Guidelines will be developed to support the treatment of commissioned research reports in calculating MORA. Any weightings identified in these guidelines will be picked up in this Procedure.

Research Student Completions

(71) Only VU research student completions will be included. For new staff, completions of students while employed at another university may be considered where appropriate evidence is provided; refer to clause(86).

(72) Full points will be awarded for timely completions only, in the year the student is conferred by Council. Points for a timely completion will be divided among the formally listed supervisors at the time of submission, with the distribution of points reflective of the supervision load of each supervisor. Points accruing per research degree type are:

  1. Professional Doctorates & PhDs: 2 units per student, if timely completion is achieved, as specified by the Higher Degrees by Research Procedure 3 Pre-Candidature and Candidature.
  2. Masters by Research: 1 unit per student, if timely completion is achieved, as specified by the Higher Degrees by Research Procedure 3 Pre-Candidature and Candidature.

(73) Research student completion units will be reduced incrementally on a pro-rata basis up to and including 12 months for Professional Doctorates & PhDs, and 6 months for Research Masters after the timely completion period.
For example:

  1. A Research Doctorate (PhD) is submitted 5 EFT months past the timely due date. A VU supervisor with 60% supervisory load will receive points according to the following calculation:

    [supervisory load: 0.6] x [Doctorate: 2 units] x [points pro-rata’d: 5/12] = 0.5 points.
  2. A Masters by Research is submitted 3 EFT months past the timely due date. A VU supervisor with 40% supervisory load will receive points according to the following calculation:

    [supervisory load: 0.4] x [Masters: 1 unit] x [points pro-rata’d: 3/6] = 0.2 points.

(74) Where a thesis is given a high rating; i.e., an average score from the examiners of 2 or less, a quality rating of 1.5 will be applied to the completion points.

Part C - Determining Research Performance Benchmarks for the Field of Research (FoR)

(75) MORA calculates nationally-referenced research performance benchmarks tailored to specific fields of research. These benchmarks are created using the most recent ERA or equivalent data. The underlying formulae will include calibrations, identified below as a ‘concession’, to account for skewness in the data; namely, the higher-than-average performance of large, research-intensive institutions.

(76) Any calibrations made against the national dataset for MORA calculations will be made transparent via the MoRA online portal.

National Benchmarks for Output and Income

(77) ERA collates national data by Field of Research code (FoR) for:

  1. Number of Research Outputs by Type and by Year;
  2. HERDC Income by Category and by Year; and
  3. Staffing Profile (FTE by Academic Level).

(78) No benchmark data is presently available for research supervision.

(79) The national benchmark for each 4-digit FoR code will be calculated as follows:

  1. For research publications: (Total research publication output nationally / Total weighted FTE for academic staff nationally) / 6 years * concession rate. This calculation provides an average annual output productivity benchmark per researcher that is assumed as the performance benchmark for Level C academics. 

    Note: the six-year denominator in this calculation is the ERA reference period for publications.
  2. For research income: (Total research income nationally / Total weighted FTE for academic staff nationally) / 3 years * concession rate. This calculation provides an average annual income productivity benchmark per researcher that is assumed as the performance benchmark for Level C academics.

    Note: the three-year denominator in this calculation is the ERA reference period for research income.

Part D - Individual Academic Field of Research (FoR) Profiles

(80) Every three years, academic staff will have the opportunity to create or adjust their FoR profile using the following process:

  1. Academic staff will select and assign percentage values for up to three 4-digit FoRs, creating a proposed FoR profile that is a true reflection of their individual research focus; selection of individual FOR profiles is limited to University-defined priority or accreditation FORs.
  2. The academic staff member will submit their new/revised individual FOR profile for validation and approval. In the case of Teaching and Research Academics, approval of individual profiles will be the responsibility of the Executive Dean, via the relevant Program Head if appropriate. In the case of Research-Only Academics, approval of individual profiles will be the responsibility of the Research Institute/Centre Director, via the relevant Program/Discipline Head if appropriate.
  3. The Executive Dean or Research Institute/Centre Director will decide to either confirm or reject the proposed individual FoR profile.
  4. Rejected proposals must be accompanied with reasons for the rejection and provide the opportunity for an individual to appeal the decision at a College or Institute/Centre level.
  5. Staff will have a further avenue of appeal through the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact. The appeal must clearly identify errors or unreasonableness in the Executive Dean or Institute/Centre Director’s reason for rejection. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact will decide whether to accept or reject the appeal.
  6. Once confirmed, the individual research profile will remain in use for a period of at least three years.
  7. The confirmed individual FoR profile will be compared to ERA data to determine the benchmark levels of research output and income generation expected within that field/composite field of research nationally (refer Individual Benchmarks, (34)-(37)).

Part E - Collecting Data

HERDC Report Research Income Data

(81) HERDC data includes External Research Income. Collection of this data will be as follows:

  1. Data will be obtained from the University finance system and reconciled with Research Services records of grants and contracts. Data is included as part of the University’s submission under the annual Commonwealth Government’s Higher Education Research Data Collection (HERDC).
  2. Research Services will make an annual call (usually between April and June) requesting relevant business unit leads to confirm external research income. Only external research income included in the University’s HERDC submission is eligible for inclusion in MORA.

Research Publications Data

(82) As part of the annual MORA process, Research Services will invite academic staff to update their publication record in VU Elements. Only publications recorded in VU Elements that satisfy all data capture requirements will be eligible for inclusion.

(83) Creative Works as Research and Commissioned Research Reports, both Non-Traditional Research Outputs (NTROs), will form part of the research publications data collection process but will be subject to Committee review and evaluation as outlined in (59)-(64) and (65)-(69) respectively.

Research Student Completions Data

(84) Data associated with research student completions in any given calendar year will be recorded by the Graduate Research School (GRS) at the point of conferral by Council.

Part F - New Staff

(85) New staff will have a MORA calculated on the basis of research performed during the reference period, regardless of employing institution.
(62)    New staff will be required to update all their publication details in VU Elements. The following rules apply to staff new to VU:

  1. Research publications written since assuming an appointment at Victoria University will normally be required to have Victoria University outlined in the affiliation to qualify for inclusion in the MORA calculation.
  2. Research funding transferred, earned or won since assuming a Victoria University appointment must be in a Victoria University account.
  3. Research students transferred and completed at Victoria University in a timely fashion will be counted in full.

(86) New staff who are prohibited from transferring funding or students to Victoria University may apply to Research Services to have these research indicators formally recognised in the MORA calculation. Only authenticated research funding and research student completions for the relevant period will be recognised.

Part G - Raising an Issue with a Preliminary MORA Calculation

(87) Where a researcher believes an incorrect calculation of their MORA has occurred in the release of preliminary scores, they may seek a recalculation. The process is as follows:

  1. The researcher must indicate an issue via the ‘Issues’ tab in the MORA online application within five weeks of the release of the preliminary MORA calculation and provide evidence to support the claim.
  2. Research Services, who is responsible for administering MORA and managing the MORA application, will then either:
    1. Agree to the request for recalculation.
    2. Reject the request for recalculation.
    3. Ask for further information. In this case, the researcher will be required to provide Research Services with additional information in the requested timeframe. Research Services will then consider the request and new information and either approve or reject the request for recalculation of MORA
  3. When a request has been rejected, the researcher may appeal to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact, who will either:
    1. Agree to the appeal for recalculation.
    2. Reject the appeal for recalculation.
    3. Ask for further information. In this case, the researcher will be required to provide the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact with additional information in the requested timeframe. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research & Impact will then consider the appeal and the new information and either approve or reject the request for a recalculation.

(88) The provisions in this Part apply only to the preliminary calculation of MORA in any calculation year. Appeals will not be accepted post finalisation of MORA scores.

Part H - Changes to Collection Method and/or Values and Implication for MORA Calculation

(89) Where a change is made to:

  1. the indicators to be included in the MORA;
  2. the value associated with a MORA indicator;
  3. the value is given for weightings associated with a MORA research indicator; or
  4. the time or dates associated with the collection of data associated with MORA indicators,
those changes will apply to all years within immediate and future MORA calculation reference periods, but will not be applied retrospectively to previous year calculations.
For example, a change to the Quality Weighting for research income in the 2014 MORA calculation year will apply to all reference year data for that (and future) calculation year; that is, to 2011-2013 income data.
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Section 7 - Supporting Documents and Information

(90) Measuring Individual Research Activity – Creative Works as Research Guideline

(91) Measuring Individual Research Activity - Predatory & Vanity Publishers Guideline

MORA Supporting Documents:

(92) The following resources are available via Quick links on the MoRA online portal ‘Welcome’ page:

  1. Measuring Individual Research Activity Policy
  2. Income and Output Benchmarks List per 2- and 4-Digit FoR
  3. CORE Conference List
  4. VU Journal Ranking List
    1. Journal List (SCIMAGO)
    2. Journal List (ABDC)
    3. Deakin Law List
  5. Pre-eminent and Renowned Publishers List.

(93) MORA online application user guides are available for Researchers and Managers via a dedicated Sharepoint site:

  1. MORA Online Application User Guide for Researchers
  2. MORA Online Application User Guide for Managers

MORA Supporting other University Processes:

(94) Research Academic Career Structure – Research Only Staff Performance Expectations Framework