Welcome to Challenge 6 of WSU\u2019s Research Impact Challenge! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Challenges 1\u20135 focused on managing your scholarly identity online. Starting with Challenge 6, we\u2019ll shift gears to talk about how scholarly work makes a difference, and how those contributions are measured, reported, and valued. There are very specific ways to address different aspects of research impact\u2014measures such as the Journal Impact Factor and the author h-index come to mind\u2014and we\u2019ll talk about some of these in the coming Challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Challenge 6 invites you to think broadly and inclusively about the work you\u2019re doing, why it matters, and how you can effectively communicate that message to someone else, whether a member of the public, a scholar in a different field, or an administrator evaluating your productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rather than jumping right into the metrics and tools used to evaluate research, today\u2019s activity focuses on you and your work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s get started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Locate the guidelines or evaluation criteria for the next major milestone at which you expect to be evaluated (application for a postdoc position, third year review, application for promotion, etc.). Read the requirements with fresh eyes, reflecting on your assessment of your own work. Is there alignment between what\u2019s important to you, what you\u2019re doing, and what\u2019s expected?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Across disciplines, groups of scholars are working together to establish new norms for evaluating scholarly work. Here are a few examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Congratulations! You’ve completed Day 6 of the Research Impact Challenge! Today we’ve reflected the work we do, and what gets counted. Tomorrow we’ll start to dig into how scholarly impact is measured, how to identify useful metrics, and how to apply them appropriately.<\/p>\n\n\n