Glossary and Appendices

Glossary

Applied measures	Applied measures for ERA 2015 include patents granted; registered designs; Plant Breeder’s Rights; NHMRC endorsed guidelines and research commercialisation income.
Apportioned (count)	Institutions could apportion percentages of a research output submitted to ERA 2015 between one and three four-digit codes, to a total of 100 per cent. The minimum that an output could be apportioned to an FoR code was 20 per cent.
Australia Council Grant or Fellowship	Australia Council Grants and Fellowship programmes are an ERA esteem measure. They are characterised by a strong element of peer review, are open to applicants from any State or Territory, require a minimum tenure of two years full-time equivalent and are awarded to an individual.
Cluster	A set of disciplines grouped specifically for the administrative purposes of the ERA 2015 evaluation. Clusters are made up of related two- and four-digit FoR codes. There is one Research Evaluation Committee (REC) for each cluster. The eight ERA 2015 discipline clusters were: Physical, Chemical and Earth Sciences (PCE) Humanities and Creative Arts (HCA) Engineering and Environmental Sciences (EE) Education and Human Society (EHS) Economics and Commerce (EC) Mathematical, Information and Computing Sciences (MIC) Biological and Biotechnological Sciences (BB) Medical and Health Sciences (MHS)
Commercialisation income	See ‘Research commercialisation income’.
Curated or Produced Substantial Public Exhibitions and Events	A type of non-traditional research output that is specifically aimed at research outputs produced by curators rather than artists. See section 5.4.9.6 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Discipline	For the purposes of ERA 2015, disciplines were defined as two- or four-digit Fields of Research (FoR) codes, as identified in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) 2008. List of ANZSRC codes.
Discipline Matrix	The ERA 2015 Discipline Matrix specifies which ERA indicators apply to which disciplines. The ERA 2015 Discipline Matrix.
Eligible institutions	Australian higher education providers eligible to participate in ERA, defined as Table A and B providers listed in the Higher Education Support Act 2003. A list of eligible institutions is provided at Appendix 1 to this report.
Eligible researcher	A researcher who met the criteria specified at section 5.3.1 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines. ERA 2015 key documents.
Employed	For ERA 2015 purposes, the term ‘employed’ is used in the same sense as in the Higher Education Staff Data Collection (HESDC) Specifications. It is used to describe the status of an eligible researcher (as ‘employed’ or ‘employed on a casual basis’).
Employee	For ERA purposes, the term ‘employee’ is used in the same sense as in the Higher Education Staff Data Collection (HESDC) Specifications.
ERA 2015 Submission Journal List	A list of journals eligible for institutions’ ERA 2015 submissions. Each journal is assigned to one or more disciplines defined by FoR code(s).
ERA peer review	Review conducted of a sample of research outputs by Research Evaluation Committees (RECs) and ERA peer reviewers as part of the ERA evaluation process.
ERA peer reviewer	Independent expert who undertakes ERA peer review of a sample of research outputs as part of the ERA evaluation process.
Esteem measures	Esteem measures indicate that a researcher is held in particularly high regard by their peers or other qualified parties. Eligible esteem measures for ERA 2015 included: editor of a prestigious work of reference; membership of a learned academy and membership of AIATSIS; recipient of a nationally competitive research fellowship; membership of a statutory committee; and recipient of an Australia Council Grant or Australia Council Fellowship. See Section 5.7 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details. ERA 2015 key documents.
Fields of Research (FoR)	A hierarchical classification of research disciplines as set out in the Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) 2008. The term ‘Fields of Research’ or ‘FoR’ applies to all three ANZSRC levels (two-digit, four-digit and six-digit). Only two- and four-digit FoR codes are used for the purposes of ERA. List of ANZSRC codes.
Four-digit FoR	The middle level of the three hierarchical levels within the Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) 2008. An example of a four-digit FoR code is ‘0206 Quantum Physics’. List of ANZSRC codes.
Full-time equivalent (FTE)	FTE staffing profile based on academic salary classification, as used in HESDC. Includes Levels A-E and ‘Other’.
Higher Education Research Data Collection (HERDC)	The Higher Education Research Data Collection is an annual data collection exercise undertaken by the Department of Education and Training.
HERDC Category 1 (income)	The type of research income addressed in HERDC research income Category 1, that is, grants listed on the Australian Competitive Grants Register (ACGR). See section 5.5.3.1 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
HERDC Category 2 (income)	The type of research income addressed in HERDC research income Category 2, that is, public sector research income other than Australian Competitive Grants. See section 5.5.3.3 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
HERDC Category 3 (income)	The type of research income addressed in HERDC research income Category 3, which consists of industry and other research income. For ERA purposes this income is disaggregated into the following three sub-categories: 3 (i) Australian 3 (ii) International A (competitive, peer reviewed) 3 (iii) International B (other international income). See section 5.5.3.5 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
HERDC Category 4 (income)	The type of research income addressed in HERDC research income Category 4. It comprises research income received by Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) in which the relevant institution is a core participant (i.e. a signatory to the CRC’s Commonwealth Agreement). See section 5.5.3.7 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Higher Education Staff Data Collection (HESDC)	The annual staff data collection exercise that was undertaken by the Department of Education and Training.
Indexed journal articles	For ERA purposes, ‘indexed journal articles’ refers to articles published in journals listed in the ERA 2015 Submission Journal List that were indexed by the ERA 2015 citation data supplier, SciVerse Scopus.
Learned Academies	Organisations whose individual or institutional members are devoted to the advancement of learning in one of three broad areas of knowledge: the natural sciences, humanities and social sciences. Eligible ‘membership of learned academies’ for ERA 2015 (esteem measures) included: Australian Academy of Humanities Australian Academy of Science Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
Live Performance of Creative Works	A type of non-traditional research output involving a public performance, including music, plays and dance. See section 5.4.9.4 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Low volume threshold	Each discipline within an institution is only subject to ERA evaluation if a certain volume of research outputs has been submitted. For disciplines where citation analysis was used, the low volume threshold was 50 apportioned indexed journal articles. For disciplines where peer review was used, the low volume threshold was 50 apportioned research outputs. In peer review disciplines, for the purpose of calculating the low volume threshold only, books were given an effective weighting of 5:1 compared with other research outputs. See Section 3.6 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for more information.
Nationally Competitive Research Fellowship	Refers to a fellowship held during the esteem measures reference period, by an eligible researcher under a Category 1 programme listed on the Australian Competitive Grants Register (ACGR). Such fellowships are characterised by: a highly competitive process open to applicants from any Australian State or Territory a strong element of peer review a minimum tenure of two years full-time equivalent. Further details can be obtained from section 5.7.2.5 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines.
NHMRC Endorsed Guidelines	Guidelines endorsed by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) including those on population health, clinical practice and ethics. They may be produced by groups external to the NHMRC, or else developed by the NHMRC with the assistance of expert working groups. See section 5.6.2.9 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Non-traditional research outputs	Research outputs which do not take the form of traditional research books, book chapters, journal articles or conference publications. See section 5.4.9 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Not assessed – low volume (n/a)	The unit of evaluation was not assessed because it did not have a sufficient volume of eligible research outputs to meet the low volume threshold.
Not rated (n/r)	Not rated due to coding issues.
Original Creative Works	A type of non-traditional research output, including visual art work, design/architectural work and textual work. See section 5.4.9.3 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Other International (patents)	Patents that were granted in a country or region other than Australia, the United States, Europe or Japan.
Other Level	Where an eligible researcher cannot be assigned to one of the Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) levels A-E the researcher is classified as ‘Other’ level. This includes general staff and academics occupying management positions.
Patent	As defined in relevant legislation, a patent is a right granted for any device, substance, method or process which is new, inventive and useful. It is legally enforceable and gives the owner the exclusive right to commercially exploit the invention for the life of the patent. ERA 2015 applied measures include Australian standard patents (but not Australian innovation patents) and equivalent patents issued overseas. See section 5.6.2.3 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Peer review	See ‘ERA peer review’.
Plant Breeder’s Rights (PBRs)	As defined in relevant legislation, Plant Breeder’s Rights (PBRs) are proprietary rights held by breeders of certain new varieties of plants and fungi. Such rights are legally enforceable and give exclusive commercial rights to market a new variety or its propagating material for the duration of the PBR. For ERA 2015 purposes, PBRs were those granted under the Plant Breeder’s Rights Act 1994 (Cth) or their international equivalents. See sections 5.6.2.1 and 5.6.2.2 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Portfolio	A collection of individual items that are derived from the same underlying research endeavour but do not in themselves constitute a research output, which together constitute a single non-traditional research output. The portfolio must be able to demonstrate coherent research content. See section 5.4.9 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further information.
Prestigious work of reference	A work of reference which is recognised as one of the best in its field or sub-field, and characterised by a rigorous refereeing process and high scholarly standards. Editor of a prestigious work of reference is an esteem measure for ERA 2015. See section 5.7.2.1 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Reassignment Exception	Where a journal article has significant content (66% or greater) that could best be described by a particular four-digit FoR code, institutions could assign that code to the article, even if the ERA 2015 Submission Journal List does not assign that code to the journal in which the article was published. This is known as the ‘reassignment exception’. See Section 5.4.3.1 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Recorded/ Rendered Creative Works	The research component of this output is contained within the recording/rendering and includes research outputs such as audio/visual recording, performance, digital creative work, website, etc. See Section 5.4.9.5 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for more information about this non-traditional research output type.
Reference periods	The set time period during which research outputs were required to have been published, research income reported under HERDC etc., in order to be eligible for inclusion in ERA submissions. ERA 2015 reference periods vary according to the type of data being collected. ERA 2015 reference periods are listed in the introduction to this report.
Registered design	A registered design is an applied measure for ERA 2015. A registered design is a design registered under the Designs Act 2003 (where ‘design’ refers to the overall appearance of the product including the shape, configuration, pattern and ornamentation, which, when applied to a product, give it a unique visual appearance). See section 5.6.2.5 and 5.6.2.6 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Research	For the purposes of ERA, research is defined as the creation of new knowledge and/or the use of existing knowledge in a new and creative way so as to generate new concepts, methodologies, inventions and understandings. This could include synthesis and analysis of previous research to the extent that it is new and creative. For more information, see section 3.1 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines.
Research Commercialisation Income	Institutions may provide information on research commercialisation income, which includes income resulting from licences, options and assignments (LOAs), including running royalties, cashed in equity and other types of income. Under ERA 2015, research commercialisation income is treated as an ‘applied measure’ rather than ‘research income’. See section 5.6.2.7 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Research Evaluation Committees (RECs)	The cluster-specific committees which undertook the ERA 2015 evaluations. Each committee included internationally-recognised members with expertise in research evaluation and broad discipline expertise. List of ERA 2015 REC members.
Research output	Research outputs include books, journal articles, book chapters, conference papers and non-traditional research outputs.
Research Reports for an External Body	A research report for an external body is a written research output commissioned or solicited by an external body such as a government department or private company. See section 5.4.9.7 the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Staff census date	For a researcher to be eligible for ERA, the researcher must have been employed by an eligible institution at the staff census date. The staff census date for ERA 2015 was 31 March 2014.
Status	This term describes the basis on which a researcher is considered affiliated with an institution for ERA purposes, and may by ‘Employed’, ‘Employed on a Casual Basis’, or ‘Other Status’. See section 5.3.2.7 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for more information.
Statutory committee	Membership of recognised statutory committees is an ERA esteem measure for certain disciplines. Statutory committees are recognised by Commonwealth Government agencies, including the National Health and Medical Research Council, and The United Nations, including the World Health Organization. See section 5.7.2.7 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
Traditional research outputs	Research outputs in the form of published research books, book chapters, journal articles or conference papers.
Triadic patents	Triadic patents are patents that are a series of corresponding patents filed at the European Patent Office (EPO), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Japan Patent Office (JPO), for the same invention by the same applicant or inventor.
Two-digit FoR	The highest of the three hierarchical levels as identified in the Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) 2008. An example is ’02 Physical Sciences’. List of ANZSRC codes.
Unit of Evaluation (UoE)	A discipline, as defined by a two- or four-digit FoR code, for a specific eligible institution. In some contexts, the term refers to the package of associated ERA information (including submission data, indicators and evaluation outcomes). See section 3.3 of the ERA 2015 Submission Guidelines for further details.
UoEs assessed	Units of Evaluation (UoEs) that have met the low volume threshold and have been assessed by Research Evaluation Committees (RECs).
Weighted research outputs	For the purposes of determining the low volume threshold for peer review disciplines, books were given an effective weighting of 5:1 compared with other research outputs (such as journal articles).
Whole (count)	The ERA methodology provided both apportioned and whole counts of research outputs, i.e. an output apportioned 20 per cent to an FoR code would have an apportioned count of 0.2 and a whole count of 1 in that FoR code.