For the approach to impact part of their impact studies, universities were required to describe the mechanisms they had in place to encourage the translation of research to impacts beyond academia over the three-year reference period. Unlike other aspects of the EI assessment, there was no specific reference period for approach to impact—only the requirement that it was within the context of the research and the impact described in the studies.
The information in the following summary is drawn from impact studies that received a high rating. In total there were 637 impact studies, with 159 receiving a high rating for their approach to impact.
The impact studies covered all disciplines and addressed a wide range of challenges. There was great diversity in the ways that universities supported the translation of research into such impacts. Even with such diversity, several key mechanisms and practices were present in most of the studies that received a high rating for approach to impact, in particular:
- support for ongoing collaboration
- provision of infrastructure
- support mechanisms for knowledge transfer.
This summary outlines some of the key mechanisms and practices that universities included in the approach to impact section of their impact studies. It focuses on the kinds of activities and support systems that are in place in the most established and well advanced cases. It does not cover all types of university outreach and support, but highlights some of the key mechanisms and practices that enabled universities to translate research into real-world social, economic, environmental and cultural impacts.
This summary does not represent the views of the EI assessment panels or institutions.