Research evaluation: Gambling on success

Could a tool based on betting markets help universities improve their REF scores?

The deadline for submissions to the 2021 iteration of the Research Excellence Framework has only just passed. But many in the sector are already looking to improve how they deal with the next cycle of the crucial assessment.

While the government has proposed a wide-ranging REF review and an even wider review of bureaucracy in research, some universities are thinking now about how to increase their chances of success in whatever system is put in place, while cutting the costs involved.