Kerala’s universities have witnessed a substantial growth in research output during the last five years, according to an assessment by international scientific publisher Elsevier.
The report has recorded an 11% cumulative annual growth rate of publications while evaluating the research performance of State universities between 2018 and 2023. It has also pegged the average field-weighted citation impact (FWCI) at 1.38 and the average citations per publication at 11.3 during the period.
FWCI compares the total citations received by a researcher’s publication to the average number of citations received by similar publications with a value greater than one indicating citations higher than that expected based on the global average.
While there has also been steady improvement in the number of research papers published by all universities in the State, Kerala University and the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) have topped the list.
The study found Material Science (26.1%), Chemistry (21.7%), Engineering (19.3%) and Astronomy (18.6%) to be the most preferred subject areas of research, while considering scholarly output. The research output by way of international collaborations stood at 20.7% (of the total number) with a high FWCI of 2.81.
Despite the increase in research output seen over the last few years, the assessment flagged the untapped potential of academia-industry collaborations. Academic-corporate collaborations accounted for a mere 0.6% (87) of publications. Such tie-ups are bound to have a direct impact on building a strong foundation leading to better placements, the report prepared for Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) stated.
Surmising a direct correlation between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) index of Kerala and the performance of State universities, the report found CUSAT, Kerala University, Calicut University and Mahatma Gandhi University to form a major representation towards SDG-related research.
Pointing out that the State’s research had tremendous potential to grow at an accelerated pace, the report noted a qualitative and quantitative impact resulting from access to quality information is bound to improve global rankings and international visibility of State universities.
