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Impact considerations for ECRs
Research impact doesn’t need to be daunting
Everyone’s talking about research impact. But it usually takes some years for research to deliver any impacts. Where does this leave you if you have embarked on a research career only recently?
Key takeaways
Impact is assessed 'relative to opportunity', so your career stage will be taken into account.
It is typical that early career researchers (ECRs) have less impact or only academic impact.
Impact takes time to evolve, but be sure to plan ahead and proactively build your impact.
Read time: 2 min
All ECRs are ‘in the same boat’
Take consolation from the fact that research impact, like any other aspect of track record, is understood relative to opportunity. Your research impact will not be compared to that of a mid-career or senior researcher. So, pressure’s off.
Also, the threshold for what constitutes impact is arguably lower for ECRs than for more experienced researchers. Impact is sometimes construed as ‘demonstrable change or benefits beyond academia’; and while there is an expectation that experienced researchers (in certain disciplines) should be able to provide examples of this, the expectation is not usually extended to ECRs.
Learn more about the impact pathway and how impact can increase over time.
Your impact will change and grow over time
Recognition of your work by researchers in your discipline or field is itself a legitimate form of impact. In other words, if your publications have attracted citations, your research has already had impact. And not only citations: what about views, downloads, tweets, prizes, invitations to speak, and so on? Think broadly and creatively. This type of impact is known as ‘academic impact’ or ‘knowledge impact’. If you’re an early career researcher, this is likely where you’ll be starting.
As time passes, your research may begin to have an influence on the world beyond academia (if you’re in a discipline where that is relevant, of course). As this happens, you can start introducing these examples into your impact story, slowly swapping out ‘weaker’ examples of impact and replacing them with ‘stronger’. Remember, however, that you must always be able to substantiate impact claims, so make sure you gather the necessary evidence.
Refresh your knowledge of the types of impact.