14th February 2019, Dublin – Science Foundation Ireland has become a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration of Research Assessment (DORA), making a formal commitment to assessing the quality and impact of research through means other than journal impact factors.

DORA comprises a set of recommendations that respond to the pressing need to improve the ways in which the output of scientific research is evaluated by funding agencies, academic institutions, and other parties. 

Science Foundation Ireland has been supporting DORA principles for a number of years by asking applicants to describe the wider impact of their research. The recently launched SFI Frontiers for the Future Programme values diverse types of research outputs in both the application and review process and, in particular, places importance on the content of publications rather than the publication venue. Science Foundation Ireland will continue to implement these, and other changes to align its review and evaluation processes with DORA principles.

By supporting the statement as a signatory, Science Foundation Ireland is supporting the efforts to shift the culture of research assessment away from journal-based metrics and recognising the need to improve the ways in which the outputs of scientific research are evaluated.

Read more about the DORA initiative here.