DORA • City St George's, University of London

City St George's, University of London: Our Commitment to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA)

The San Francisco Declaration (DORA) aims to reform the way academic research quality is assessed and measured. City St George’s is committed to principles of DORA and working to implement them.

City St George's, University of London is the university of business, practice and the professions. Formed through the merger of City, University of London and St George's, University of London in August 2024, we bring together complementary strengths across health sciences, clinical medicine, business, law, engineering, computer science, and the creative and social sciences. St George’s was already a signatory to DORA. Our Vision and Strategy commit us to undertaking research at the frontier of practice — research that is impactful, engaged, and creates real value for society, the economy and the environment. The DORA principles of ensuring that the quality and contribution of that research is assessed fairly, rigorously, and in a manner that reflects the full breadth of academic endeavour is central to achieving those ambitions.

What is DORA?

The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) is a global initiative that recognises the need to improve the ways in which the outputs of scientific research are evaluated. Originally developed in 2012, DORA calls on institutions, funders, publishers and researchers to move beyond simplistic metrics — in particular the Journal Impact Factor (JIF) — and instead assess research on its own merits, recognising the diversity of research outputs and the varied ways in which research creates impact.

City St George's commitment to DORA

City St George's signed DORA in 2026. In doing so, we affirm that the principles of DORA are integral with our own values and to our research vision and strategy. Our commitment to research at the frontier of practice demands that we recognise and reward research excellence in all its forms — whether expressed through journal articles, datasets, software, policy influence, clinical innovation, or public engagement. An over-reliance on journal-based metrics risks obscuring precisely the kinds of applied, interdisciplinary and socially engaged research that City St George's is known for.

We are committed to the following:

In recruitment, promotion and appraisal: We will evaluate the quality and significance of individual research outputs on their own merits, rather than relying on the prestige of the publication venue or journal-level metrics such as the Impact Factor. We will be explicit and transparent about the criteria used in hiring, tenure and promotion decisions, and we will ensure that early-career researchers in particular are assessed on the substance of their work.
Recognising the full range of outputs: We will give appropriate weight to all forms of research contribution, including datasets, code, research reports, clinical guidelines, policy contributions, and other outputs beyond traditional journal articles, reflecting the diverse disciplines and professional contexts in which our researchers work.
Responsible use of metrics: Where quantitative indicators are used to support research assessment, they will be used thoughtfully and in combination with qualitative evaluation. We will not use journal-level metrics as proxies for the quality of individual research, and we will actively support a culture in which researchers feel empowered to challenge assessment practices that fall short of these principles.
Open research: We will continue to support open access publishing and open research practices, recognising that making research freely available amplifies its impact and aligns with our social responsibility commitments.

Implementation

City St George's is committed to translating these principles into practice across all relevant processes, including academic recruitment, probation, promotion, and performance review. Following the merger, the university is currently in the process of formulating a new joint vision and strategy, recruitment, promotion and appraisal processes and policies. We are committed to embedding DORA principles consistently across these policies and processes, and to implement these across our Schools and Departments. We will provide training and resources to support staff involved in research assessment.

This work is being taken forward with oversight from the Vice-President for Research and the Assistant Vice-President for Research Culture & Environment, the Research & Innovation Committee and the President of City St George’s. We will review our progress regularly and remain open to evolving best practice in this area.

Contact

Enquiries regarding City St George's commitment to DORA and responsible research assessment may be directed to Assistant Vice-President for Research Culture & Environment Katrin.Hohl@citystgeorges.ac.uk

City St George's, University of London is a signatory of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment. For further information about DORA, please visit sfdora.org.