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What is the REF?
The REF was first carried out in 2014, replacing the previous Research Assessment Exercises. The REF is undertaken by the four UK higher education funding bodies: Research England, the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW), and the Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland (DfE).
What is the REF's purpose?
The purpose of the REF is to inform the selective allocation of funding for research. It also provides accountability for public investment in research and produces evidence of the benefits of this investment. Further, it provides benchmarking information and establishes reputational yardsticks, for use in the higher education sector and for public information.
How is the REF carried out?
The REF is a process of expert review, carried out by expert panels for each of the 34 subject-based units of assessment (UOAs), under the guidance of four main panels. Expert panels are made up of senior academics, international members, and research users.
What is assessed?
Three main elements are assessed:
1) Contribution to Knowledge and Understanding (CKU)
This makes up 55% of the assessment and consists of outputs produced by the University during the assessment period.
2) Engagement and Impact (E&I)
This makes up 25% of the assessment and consists of case studies detailing the benefits from our research.
3) Strategy, People and Research Environment
This makes up the remaining 20% of the assessment and builds on the REF2021 Environment component and will be assessed at both institution and unit level,
How is REF related to QR?
The grades that we receive for each of these elements contributes to an overall grade point average (GPA). We are given a GPA for each UoA and for the University as a whole. These GPAs are then used for calculating the amount of QR funding the University receives and by a number of league tables.
More information can be found by browsing the REF 2029 website.