Research Productivity Assessment

Research Productivity Assessments (RPAs) are conducted to obtain information about the research productivity of HSE University’s staff, including for using it to hold university-wide competitions and carry out other procedures that rely on the research productivity index for decision-making processes. All HSE University faculty members have to take part in the RPA process. Research Productivity Assessments may be of one of two types - competitive or routine:  

• Competitive Research Productivity Assessments are conducted as a part of any university-wide competitions and other procedures in which research productivity is a criterion for making a decision. The specific aspects of such competitive research productivity assessments are set out in the relevant HSE University’s bylaws;  
• Routine Research Productivity Assessments, in turn, are conducted at the end of every year.

Who is assessed?

• Teaching staff and professors (professor, research professor, associate professor, senior lecturer, lecturer/instructor, teaching assistant);
• Researchers (leading/chief researcher, senior researcher, researcher, junior researcher, research assistant);
• Heads and deputy heads of HSE University’s research subdivisions;
• Heads and deputy heads of HSE University’s International Laboratories.

How is it working?

Research Productivity Assessments are conducted using the automated electronic system “Isaac the Robot” and are based on information about publications inputted by HSE University’s staff members to the database of publications on the HSE University’s corporate website (portal) and reviewed by the Publication Verification Unit, Office of Public Relations and Online Media

How to submit my publications for RPA?

Publications should be added to the publications database through your personal profile, which is hosted on the University’s website. Further details on this process are available on the Publication Verification Unit’s (PVU) website at https://www.hse.ru/en/web/publication/. If you have any technical questions in regards to adding new publications, please contact our colleagues at the PVU via e-mail at publications@hse.ru. They speak English.

To avoid the detection of gaps and failures in uploaded information please kindly check whether all the relevant data regarding your publications is added to your personal profiles. When adding a new publication (Publications > Add or edit publications > Adding/editing publications), do not forget to tick the box “Yes” in response to “Are you planning to use this publication for HSE’s academic campaigns (applying for academic bonuses, research productivity assessment, etc)?”.

For what period do I have to submit my publications?

Two full years prior to the current assessment period and a part of the current year before the date of the competitive assessment, as stated in the relevant regulations governing the ongoing competitive procedure.

What are the important dates?

November 1 — the deadline for adding information about publications to the database of research publications, which can be accessed through HSE’s corporate website (portal). Publications submitted after November 1 may not be taken into account.  

November 20 — the deadline to exercise the right of exemption from RPA process.

December 1 — the start of automatic evaluation process. As a result, the number of points scored by the employee is recorded. 

December 5 — preliminary results of the RPA process are displayed in the personal account. 

December 11 — deadline for appealing with a request to check the results for any technical errors. 

December 31 — notification of the final results of the RPA.

What criteria are used during the assessment?

Types of publications considered under the RPA process and the points awarded for each publication are specified in Annex 2 to the RPA Regulations.

Will all my publications be reviewed during the RPA process?

Only publishers and journals included on the list of eligible journals will be considered during the RPA process. If you have any questions concerning publishers, lists of journals and conferences, please contact out colleagues from Sceintometrics Centre at scientometrics@hse.ru.

Where to find more information?

1. RPA Regulations at HSE University
2. RPA webpage
3. Frequently Asked Questions about RPA on International Faculty Support website.