Am I REF eligible?

Eligibility for the REF is determined by your employment status at the College on 31 October 2013 - the REF census date. The eligibility criteria are set by HEFCE in their document Assessment framework and guidance on submissions| (pdf opens in a new window)

To be eligible you must:

• have a "research" or "research and teaching" employment contract;
• the contract must be 0.2FTE or greater;
• and you must be on the College payroll on 31 October 2013.

Your job title may be a quick guide to your eligibility but it does not determine it. Nor is eligibility determined by what you actually do EXCEPT for those employed as Research Assistants - see below.

Eligibility and Pure

Staff meeting the first two criteria have already been "flagged" as REF eligible in the HR system and are then automatically entered in the Pure REF module|, the system being used to prepare the College's REF submission. You can quickly check if you are listed as REF eligible in Pure. Log on onto your Pure| account. If you can see a tab Propose outputs for REF 2014 you are currently listed as REF eligible.

If you cannot see the Propose outputs for REF 2014 tab and you believe you meet the eligibility criteria or you believe your employment contract has or may change before 31 October 2013, please contact the REF Lead| for you department.

Advice on using Pure to propose outputs for consideration for submission can be found here|.

The chart above outlines the REF eligibility decision flow (a pdf of the chart| is available - the link opens a new window).     

Research Assistants - the REF definition

For the purposes of the REF, HEFCE defines a Research Assistant in the Assessment framework| (paragraph 80)  as:

"Research assistants are individuals who are on the payroll of and hold a contract of employment with the institution. They are academic staff whose primary employment function is defined as ‘research only’. They are employed to carry out another individual’s research programme rather than as independent researchers in their own right... They are usually funded from research grants or contracts from Research Councils, charities, the European Union (EU) or other overseas sources, industry, or other commercial enterprises, but they may also be funded from the institution’s own funds. Individuals who meet this definition may be described in HEIs’ grading structures as something other than research assistant (for example research associate, assistant researcher)." 

Research Assistants are NOT eligible for the REF.

The Research Assistant REF "independent researcher" tests

However, exceptionally Research Assistants may be REF eligible if they meet one of two "independent researcher" tests;

• Are you named as the PI on an awarded grant? or
• Are you leading a significant piece of non-funded research?

The chart above (a pdf of the chart| is available - link opens in a new window) outlines the REF eligibility decision flow. If you believe you meet the main REF eligibility criteria and the independent researcher tests and you cannot see the Propose outputs for REF 2014 tab when you log on to Pure (see above), please contact your departmental REF Lead|