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Crawford School strategic plan

Strategic Initiatives: Research

The Australian National University is Australia's leading research university, and among the best in the world. The College of Asia and the Pacific has both disciplinary and geographical research strengths that contribute to this reputation. The research strengths of the Crawford School mirror this diversity, with one distinctive aspect: most scholars in the Crawford School focus their attention on public policy, broadly speaking, in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. The creation of high quality research is central to the achievement of the School's mission - it drives our ability to have an impact on important policy debates in Australia and the Asia- Pacific region and it underpins research-led teaching.

Specific strategic initiatives for research include:

  1. Further develop and enhance the role of the Crawford School Research Committee. The Research Committee meets monthly, plans all research-related activities and designs and implements relevant policies. The committee works closely with other committees, in particular, the Education and Policy Impact Committees.
  2. Encourage Crawford researchers to publish their research in leading academic journals and international publications, and recognise and reward their achievements through public acknowledgement (e.g., announcing publication of an article published in a top journal through emails, websites, and flat panel screens in public spaces within the School), academic promotion and with financial incentives. To encourage high quality publications, the Research Committee and the Director of Research will also organise research workshops (see Item 4); organise an annual Research Retreat (see Item 5); and encourages Crawford researchers to pursue research grants (see Item 6).
  3. Actively pursue the linkage between high-quality, policy-oriented research and actual policy making and implementation. This will involve engagement in policy debates with policy makers in Australia and in the Asia-Pacific region through a range of activities (e.g., conferences, seminars, policy dialogues, informal meetings and forums).
  4. Facilitate the exchange of emerging research ideas through expanded 'in-house' Crawford School Research Workshops. These workshops will enable Crawford researchers to present work-in-progress and new research ideas, and to receive feedback from colleagues before sending their papers to leading journals, submitting book proposals to publishers, and/ or applying for research grants. Early feedback will enhance the quality of research in the School, improve acceptance and success rates, facilitate more collaborative research and help create a culture of scholarly collegiality in the School.
  5. Organise an annual Crawford School 'Research Retreat' to facilitate mutual understanding of on-going and planned research projects within the School (e.g., through shortpresentations and round-table discussions); to share experiences of publishing articles in top journals or books from international publishers, and strategies for obtaining competitive research grants; and to encourage colleagues to seek possible research collaboration within the School, College, ANU, and with prominent universities in the Asia- Pacific region.
  6. Actively encourage Crawford School researchers to participate in competitive grants schemes, domestic and international, and research consultancies which will add to the School's reputation in Australia and in the Asia-Pacific region.
  7. Organise PhD seminars weekly and conduct a Crawford School PhD Conference annually.The more than 100 PhD students within the School are an important part of our research community. The current PhD seminars series: PhD seminars in Environment and Resource Management on Mondays, PhD seminars in Public Policy and Political Science/International Relations on Mondays, and PhD seminars in Economics on Fridays, will be maintained and enhanced. In addition, an annual conference for PhD students will be initiated. This event is aimed to enhance research quality and nurture cooperative relationships and deepen mutual understanding between PhD students in the Crawford School.
  8. Organise a range of events and activities to support PhD students and cultivate a more integrated scholarly community. Key parts of this imitative, overseen by the PhD Academic Research Skills Advisor, include twice yearly induction programs, a PhD Research Day, a thesis proposal boot-camp, an intensive academic writing course, and regular consultation hours for thesis management, publication strategies, presentation skills, preparation for job interviews and facilitation of copy editing. The Crawford PhD Manual and PhD Wattle site are new online developments to help build the Crawford PhD community.
  9. Enhance the training of PhD students in the School through the formalization of coursework for non-economics students. This involves the formalization of an existing program jointly offered by social scientists in CAP and CASS, known as the Postgraduate Training in Politics and Policy (PTPP) Program. PTPP will provide students with a strong foundation in social science and social science methodology, better enabling them to undertake thesis research and assisting them to finish their degree on time.
  10. Encourage eminent and emerging scholars to visit the Crawford School. This will involve the development of a Visiting Fellows policy to ensure that we attract important scholars and that they provide a valuable contribution to the Crawford School (e.g. presenting seminars, participating in workshops, co-supervising of PhD students, delivering guest lectures, and working on research projects with Crawford researchers). A specific focus on attracting scholars from the Asia-Pacific will help build relationships in the region.
  11. Manage and develop Organised Research Units (ORUs) in the Crawford School. ORUs provide an opportunity to create important research synergies for scholars and act as a critical interface between the School and external parties. The Crawford Research Committee will devise a new governance framework for ORUs in the School, including start-up principles and reporting requirements.
  12. Review the existing working paper series and launch a new Crawford Working Paper series, which will be linked to important working paper databases.

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Updated:  22 June 2011/Responsible Officer:  Crawford School Marketing /Page Contact:  Crawford Webmaster