University medical research debuts criteria

The Ministry of Universities has published this Wednesday in the Official State Gazette (BOE) the new specific criteria for the evaluation of the research activity of teaching staff, including that linked to biomedical sciences and other branches of Health Sciences.

As stated in the resolution published in the Official State Gazette (BOE)the evaluation of scientific activity constitutes “a regulated process in which the quality criteria that serve as the basis for the evaluation are established in its general lines and as a guideline in the Order of December 2, 1994. “The application of the evaluation criteria, established in the aforementioned provisions, is carried out through advisory committees and specialist expertswho interpret them and adjust them to each case according to their technical discretion”, he points out.

Among the general criteria for all fields, Universities establishes that professors must submit five contributions and two substitutes. These will only be valuable “if they mean real progress in knowledge”, warns the department that directs Joan Subirats, which adds that the works must not be “merely descriptive” or “reiterations of previous work, except in cases where they clearly contribute to the consolidation of knowledge”.

“The indexing of a publication in a certain bibliographic repertoire or database will infer the scientific quality of the works contained in it and will serve as a guiding criteria for its possible positive evaluation, although the mere fact of indexing will not be the only criterion that determines the positive evaluation of a work that appears in said publication, which will depend on the scientific content”, continues the new regulation.

Biomedical patent filing

The resolution published this Wednesday by the Ministry of Universities includes a separate section for certain fields, such as Biomedical sciences. As stated in the text, all the contributions of their teachers “should be classifiable as ordinary”. Applications that present patents may be evaluated, following a report from the committee, by Field 6 (Engineering and Architecture).

“In patents, it will be valued if they are in exploitationdemonstrated by means of a sales contract or a license contract”, continues the regulation.

Regarding patents granted without being exploited, they will only be valued if the concession has been carried out with previous exam (type B2). The extension of the patent protection (national, European, international) will be taken into account, with the most extensive protection being valued more, and in any case by field 6.

The number of signatories must be justified by the topic, its complexity and length. As a general principle, a high number of authors will imply the application of a reduction factor in the evaluation of the work, if its content and methodology requirements do not justify it. It will not apply when the applicant is the first, last or author of correspondence. A contribution in which the applicant is not the signing author of the same, but is included in a working group, consortium of multiple collaborations, which is generally listed in the appendix of the work, will not be considered as a contribution.

Likewise, articles published in journals of recognized worth will be valued, accepting as such those that occupy relevant positions in the list corresponding to their scientific category in the “Journal Citation Reports (JCR), Science Edition”.