A government review into the model used to fund research at New Zealand universities will look into allegations institutions have been "gaming" the system and that it has led to unrealistic workloads for academic staff.
A spokesman for Minister for Tertiary Education Steven Joyce said the Ministry of Education began a review early this year into the performance-based research fund (PBRF), which is used to both fund and rank research at universities, and expected it to be finished in June next year.
The review comes after the Tertiary Education Union (TEU) and academics criticised the fund on a number of counts, including that institutions had gamed the system to appear higher on research tables, that under it, the workload for academics had become too great, and that it had come at the cost of teaching.
The spokesman said the review aimed to determine the appropriateness of fund and its fit within the Government's broader objectives for research, science and innovation and economic growth.
"The PBRF has been in place since 2003. It invests $250 million a year, so it is important the funding is effective," he said.
It would also investigate a rangeof criticisms about the fund that have been raised, including issues about the impact on teachingand workloads, and gaming of the fund.
He said it was too early to say whether there would be changes following the review, but said regardless of its outcome, the Government would keep the fund.
