Library Help: Office For Open Research

What is research impact?

Research impact refers to the tangible contribution that research makes to society and the wider world, beyond core academic benefits derived from advancing knowledge. As a research-intensive institution, and the UK’s first civic university, The University of Manchester is committed to enabling research which is underpinned by recognised, real-world priorities, and to translating research findings into real-world applications which can benefit individuals, the environment, public policy, the economy, culture, and society as a whole. Examples of this include:

• The University’s commitment to achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), for which Manchester is rated top in the UK and Europe, and second in the world, in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2024, as well as being rated top in the UK and Europe, and third in the world independent QS World University Sustainability Rankings. Find out more about UN SDGs

• The University’s research beacons, which drive discovery, create social impact, and tackle global challenges in the priority areas of advanced materials; biotechnology; cancer; energy; and global inequalities. 

Research impact can help to address global challenges like climate change, health inequalities, and economic disparities by fostering innovation and practical solutions to key issues like these.  

With growing recognition of the importance of the connections between academic research and societal needs and priorities, research impact is increasingly used as a metric for university funding and ranking in global and national frameworks, for example, the UK’s Research Excellence Framework (REF). Being able to demonstrate real-world influence can also help universities develop important partnerships with government bodies and business organisations, all of which can contribute to ensuring the university’s relevance to society. 

One of the five key themes for the new University of Manchester 2035 strategy is ‘Accelerating our research impact’, and the development of the strategy will include consideration of a number of potential opportunities to achieve this. More information is available via the Manchester 2035 webpages. 

Evidencing research engagement and impact: beyond citations 

While traditional citation metrics play a crucial role in measuring academic impact (learn more about citation metrics), they do not tell the whole story of research engagement and real-world impact. Here are some alternative methods and metrics which can be used to showcase the broader reach and influence of your research. 

Online Engagement and Social Media Metrics 

Online platforms provide multiple and valuable opportunities for researchers to disseminate their work, and to engage academic and non-academic audiences. Bespoke monitoring platforms, such as Altmetric, can provide simple and effective ways of understanding exactly who is engaging with research online, and what they are saying about it. 

Altmetric Explorer 

Altmetric Explorer is a platform which can track and analyse the online attention that research receives. It offers insights into: 

• Social media mentions (Twitter/X, Facebook, etc.) 

• Shares on academic networks (Mendeley, ResearchGate) 

• References in blogs and news outlets 

• Mentions in policy documents 

• Wikipedia citations 

For illustrative purposes the image below shows the overview of Altmetric data for a 2024 University of Manchester study into Antarctic meteorites . This paper received a significant amount of online attention (in the top 5% of research output scores assigned by Altmetric). 

The platform allows researchers to view details of Twitter / X users who have interacted with the content and country information relating to their geographic location.

News and media coverage 

Media coverage can also be a powerful indicator of research impact and public engagement. The Office for Open Research provides several tools which can assist with the tracking of media mentions: 

SciVal media mention tracking 

SciVal provides data on media coverage of research outputs, offering insights into: 

• Number of media mentions 

• Types of media outlets (newspapers, online news, etc.) 

• Geographic spread of coverage 

Altmetric Explorer for media tracking 

In addition to social media, Altmetric also tracks mentions in media outlets, providing a comprehensive view of media engagement. 

The image below provides an illustrative example (again from Altmetric) which highlights how the platform can provide quick and easy metrics relating to media outlets which have referenced a piece of research. 

Policy impact: citations in policy documents 

Research that influences policy decisions can have far-reaching societal impact. We provide access to data from Overton (via both the Overton platform and SciVal) to track citations of research in policy documents. 

Overton.io database 

Overton.io is a specialised tool that focuses on tracking research mentions in policy documents, offering: 

• Coverage of policy documents from governments, think tanks, and NGOs worldwide 

• The ability to track both direct citations and indirect mentions of research 

• Insights into which policymakers and organisations are engaging with University of Manchester research 

Key Benefits: 

• Demonstrate real-world impact of research on policy decisions 

• Identify potential stakeholders and collaborators in the policy sphere 

• Provide evidence for impact case studies and funding applications 

Overton provides links to policy documents which contain references to publications which contain University of Manchester authors. The example below shows a report from the World Health Organization which built on research co-authored by a University of Manchester researcher. 

Integrating multiple metrics for a comprehensive view 

To get a full picture of engagement and impact, it is best to combine multiple metrics and sources: 

1. Traditional citation metrics for academic impact 

2. Altmetric data for online and social media engagement 

3. Media mention tracking for public reach and influence 

4. Policy document citations for evidence of real-world impact 

Our Research Metrics team can help you gather and interpret this data, creating tailored reports that will showcase the full spectrum of your research's influence and engagement. 

Contact us to discuss how we can help evidence your research impact