Dear Colleagues,

I am delighted to announce the upcoming launch of the Faculty Insight and External Discovery tools within Academic Analytics on March 31, 2025. This initiative, which has been in development for the past year, is designed to enhance our research community's visibility, facilitate collaboration, and streamline access to funding opportunities.

As you may recall from Provost Watkins' 2024 fall campus update, Academic Analytics is a powerful platform that showcases faculty research activity. Over the past several months, we have conducted two successful pilot programs, involving 75 faculty members, to refine the tool and ensure it meets the needs of our community. Their valuable feedback has been instrumental in preparing for this full launch.

What are the Faculty Insight and External Discovery tools?

These tools provide a comprehensive view of your research and facilitate connections with potential collaborators, both within and outside UCR. The External Discovery tool will also increase the discoverability of our faculty’s expertise to external stakeholders, including journalists, government agencies, and other research institutions.

Key Dates

Who Has Access to These Tools?

Faculty, as well as Agronomists (AES) and Specialists in the Cooperative Extension (CE), have Faculty Insight profiles and access to the resources within. All academic personnel have access to the External Discovery Site and resources within.  

What to Expect During the Review Period

You will receive instructions on how to access Academic Analytics and review your profile.

Self-help guidance on how to customize your profile and manage your public-facing page will be available.

If you identify a problem with the information presented on your profile, you can report it from within the tool.

Adding Value for UCR Researchers

As I shared with our pilot participants, my experience with Academic Analytics at the University of Kansas highlighted its transformative potential. Its ability to easily search for experts by topics or keywords connected researchers across disciplines, which is crucial for interdisciplinary projects. Journalists, government agencies, and other external stakeholders also used it to find the right experts. It streamlined the process for assembling multidisciplinary proposals, ensuring no key resources were missed. 

Here at UCR, with over 1,000 PIs, it will similarly make it much easier to locate expertise and prevent missed opportunities for funding and collaboration. This platform will be transformative for showcasing our PIs' expertise both inside and outside UCR

The Provost and I believe this tool will be a valuable asset to our research community, however, we appreciate that there is a learning curve when using any new tool. The project team has worked closely with Academic Analytics to provide comprehensive training and support materials to ensure you are set up for success. These resources will be shared closer to the review period. 

In the meantime, I encourage you to visit the UCR Academic Analytics webpage at research.ucr.edu/academic-analytics to learn more about this initiative.