Dr Emily Brown
Head of Research Planning (REF Manager)
I connect with all aspects of the University on this incredibly huge and important exercise, and I just really love that sense of connection and working together towards this common goal.
I’m Head of Research Planning (REF Manager), and those brackets are important.
We support researchers in their departments and faculties with their Research Planning, which includes preparations for REF 2029.
Preparing for REF 2029 is a complex exercise and strategically important to the University.
This next exercise has seen several key policy changes, particularly around outputs and aims to shift the focus of REF from individuals to institutional-level research assessment.
Submissions are made by Units of Assessment across three criteria:
1. Contribution to knowledge and understanding
2. Engagement and impact
3. People, culture and environment.
"Warwick had the perfect opportunity for me"
Before coming to Warwick, I was a faculty research manager at Oxford Brookes University, where I worked for around 15 years. I was looking to take the next step, and Warwick offered the perfect opportunity for me, as working on previous REFs has been one of the aspects I have loved most about research management and administration.
I like that in this role, you collaborate across the whole University - with both academics and professional services - on this important and large-scale exercise. My colleagues in the impact team have been supporting the impact deep dives, meeting with departments to identify potential impact case studies.
It has been fantastic to see the depth and breadth of the research that the University is undertaking and how it benefits the wider world.
Life outside of the University
I have two small boys who take up quite a lot of time as you can imagine!
When I do get some time to myself, I like to do a bit of dressmaking.
I'm also trying to get back into running - not very successfully - and have started doing my local Parkrun again.
I’m getting quicker every week but it’s proving very difficult to get back to where I was ten years ago! I’ll keep trying...