Evaluation of individual research units - Norges forskningsråd

Evaluation of biology, medicine and health research in Norway (2011)
how family-friendly policies can be implemented. Accommodation for spouses or
partners is always an issue for hiring professionals, and although there is no simple
solution, this will need to be confronted by the institutions.
It was not apparent to us that institutions or the Research Council responded to efforts of
the units with regard to gender equity. If the gender composition of the recruitment pool
does not differ whether a position advertisement notes that women are strongly
encouraged to apply, are institutional or national protocols in place to address this issue?
Again, institutions may lack tools to effect change, such as realistic goals, incentives, and
means to accomplish the goals. If tools are not provided, then despite the best of
intentions, it seems likely that the proportional representation of women in Norwegian
science will be unchanged in another ten years time.
Small grants
Opportunities to receive funding from the Research Council are restricted, but in
particular we noted the paucity of opportunities to apply for small grants, up to about
US$30,000. Such grants can be extremely useful for initiating a comprehensive project
and for small projects. Furthermore, junior researchers that successfully compete for
funds can build their confidence and motivation to apply for more substantial funding,
both nationally and internationally. The administrative burden associated with a smallgrants
programme can be low. For example, a review committee can be appointed and
short applications, say two pages long, can be evaluated by email. Several of us have
experience in reviewing and receiving such grants and believe they provide a high return
on investment from both the Research Council’s and the recipients’ perspectives.
Professor II
We felt the judicious appointment of Professor II positions was quite effective when
particular research areas needed strengthening. Such visiting professors are committed to
play a larger and more intensive role in a unit than, say, members of a scientific advisory
board who make occasional very short visits to a unit.
Four-year positions
Many of the institutions and departments we met with indicated that the requirement to
offer a permanent contract or terminate a postdoctoral contract after four years was a
challenge to productivity and morale. Although we appreciate there is a trade-off
between continuity and turnover, we suggest that this particular situation be reviewed.
Alternatives that might be considered are offering a four-year contract with an optional
two-year renewal or offering a five-year contract with an optional three-year renewal
before a final decision is made to offer a permanent position or terminate the contract.
The renewal process is likely to require an evaluation of progress by both the employer
and employee. If a contract is renewed for two or three years, either targets for
permanent employment can be set or the employee can have some job security while
searching for a new position.
High cost of research in Norway
Several institutions and departments indicated that research costs are high, particularly in
the institute sector. We were told these costs sometimes prevent application for and
acceptance of grants provided by the European Union and other international funding
agencies, some of which presumably are financially supported in part by Norway. As a
result, research on some topics that might best be conducted in Norway is performed
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