We aim to be ranked among the top 50 universities in Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2029; to sustain or improve our Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF) position and our Postgraduate Research Experience Survey (PRES) results; to increase our research and enterprise income by at least 25%; increase our postgraduate research student numbers by at least 10%; and to increase the proportion of staff classified as having significant responsibility for research.
To achieve these targets, we will…
- deliver excellent research that contributes to society, the environment, and the economy, by building on our core strengths
- strengthen collaborations that address regional, national and global challenges
- expand our partnerships with business and industry to deliver research informed solutions
- increase the visibility of the excellent research and enterprise activity at Herts by focusing on key priority areas, to clearly articulate what we want to be known for
- take action to ensure our infrastructure and partnerships are aligned to our objectives and to showcase the excellent staff and students, who are pivotal to our success
- foster a vibrant, diverse, and inclusive culture and environment that enables our research and innovation community to be exceptional.
What we are already doing well…
In the last five years, we have successfully increased our research and enterprise income and the number of postgraduate research students. Our performance in the REF 2021, the KEF 2024, and PRES 2023 has matched or surpassed our peer institutions.
Herts has been awarded £13.5million – its biggest ever research grant – to expand and progress its sector-leading, research-led development of biodetection technologies against harmful, airborne pathogens.
Professor Daniel McCluskey, Dean of the School of Physics, Engineering and Computer Science, who co-leads on biodetection research, explains why our research is so important for the nation's health and safety.
