Manchester joins Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment
08 May 2025
University signs agreement on reforming research assessment to recognise the diverse outputs, practices and activities that maximise the quality and impact of research.
Our University has signed the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment and joined the associated Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA).
CoARA is a group of organisations committed to reforming the methods and processes by which research, researchers, and research organisations are evaluated.
Current research assessment methods sometimes rely on publication-based metrics such as citation counts, and neglect other indicators of research contribution and quality. CoARA aims to recognise the diverse range of outputs, practices, and activities that maximise the quality and impact of research through qualitative judgement and peer review supported by the responsible use of quantitative indicators.
The Agreement – signed by 832 organisations worldwide, including 17 UK universities as well as UKRI and the Wellcome Trust – was published in July 2022 as part of a broader European Commission initiative. It sets out a shared direction for changes in assessment practices and includes four core commitments and six supporting commitments that signatories agree to work towards.
Vice-President for Research, Professor Colette Fagan said: “By signing this Agreement, the University is further demonstrating its commitment to responsible and effective research assessment. We were an early signatory of The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), a forerunner of some of the commitments made in CoARA.
"At Manchester we are committed to embedding the responsible use of research metrics and the development of Open Research Practices. Training and advice for both are led through our University’s sector-leading Office for Open Research. Our Statement of Research Contribution Expectations and promotions criteria recognise the diverse range of outputs, collaborative and ethical practices and activities that yield research quality and impact. Open and Impactful Research is one of the priority areas in our Research Culture and Environment Framework and with our signature of CoARA we commit to action to make further progress.”
Further information
Within one year of signing, the University will be required to publish an action plan demonstrating our progress towards meeting the commitments of the Agreement. There is a further self-reporting stage after five years.
For more details, please visit:
Please visit our Research culture and environment hub for further guidance and support, including the theme of Enabling open and impactful research.