Research Activity

Research Income, Definition of Research and Classification as Research

DEEWR definition of Research

(From HERDC Specifications for Collection of 2007 data. Section 1.3.9 - 1.3.10 - Nov 2007)

1.3.9. Research

For the purposes of these specifications, research comprises:

• creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of knowledge to devise new applications
• any activity classified as research which is characterised by originality; it should have investigation as a primary objective and should have the potential to produce results that are sufficiently general for humanity's stock of knowledge (theoretical and/or practical) to be recognisably increased. Most higher education research work would qualify as research
• pure basic research, strategic basic research, applied research and experimental development.

Activities that support research and meet this definition of research include: 

• provision of professional, technical, administrative or clerical support and/or assistance to staff directly engaged in research
• management of staff who are either directly engaged in research or are providing professional, technical or clerical support or assistance to those staff
• activities of students undertaking postgraduate research courses
• development of postgraduate research courses
• supervision of students undertaking postgraduate research courses

Activities that do not support research must be excluded, such as:

• preparation for teaching
• scientific and technical information services
• general purpose or routine data collection
• standardisation and routine testing
• feasibility studies (except into research and experimental development projects)
• specialised routine medical care
• commercial, legal and administrative aspects of patenting, copyright or licensing activities
• routine computer programming, systems work or software maintenance (research and experimental development into applications software, new programming languages and new operating systems would normally meet the definition of research).

1.3.10. Reference Year

The reference year for research income (Categories 1, 2 and 3) is the 2007 calendar year. For CRC research income (Category 4) the reference year is the financial year 2006-07.

Research income for 2006 (Categories 1, 2 and 3) and 2005-06 (Category 4) or earlier years omitted from previous returns CANNOT be included.

For publications, see definition - Year of Publication at section 1.3.14.