By Cathy Fussell[2] is a Sir Roland Wilson PhD scholar at the Australian National University
How to…find an academic[1]
Under APS Reform Priority Two, the Australian Government has committed to building genuine partnerships and engagement—including with academia—to help develop policies and services that reflect the needs and aspirations of the people they affect.
Why partner with academics?
Academia and the public service are certainly different (e.g. in timescales, theory versus action focus, constraints and incentive systems etc.). But rather than these differences being a source of conflict, their complementarity can be a source of strength when harnessed through effective partnerships. Across their careers, academics build deep subject matter and methodological expertise. As an institution, academia has a long memory as it maintains a vast body of thoroughly indexed research and evidence. Not only are academics well connected to the past, they have their finger on the pulse of emerging trends and ideas. They tend to be well connected to local and international colleagues enabling them to keep abreast of international activities and tap into a broad body of collective wisdom and perspectives.
Such deep and broad knowledge, expertise, and networks are a vital resource for the public service. Whether that is, for example, to better understand how a policy challenge emerged, bring fresh perspectives on how to tackle it, enhance the rigor of analysis, or be partners in implementation and monitoring.
Yet the first step in such partnerships is not always easy. That is, finding the right academic partners. A range of options to find academics are outlined below, including through:
- Online searches
- Word-of-mouth, conferences and seminars
- Peak and intermediary bodies
- In-house researchers i.e. internal to government
Finding university researchers through online search engines
One of the first steps university researchers often undertake to find each other and the relevant literature, is to develop a list of search terms relevant to the topic of interest. For advice on how to do this effectively see here. These search terms can be entered into a scholarly search engine, such as Google Scholar.
Google Scholar provides a range of information about researchers and their work. This includes how often a work has been cited in other publications, links to authors’ profiles which include their body of work and H-scores that indicate the depth of their contribution to the field, and links to their university webpages. University webpages usually provide a biography of their career, research interests, current research projects and grants, advisory roles, teaching responsibilities, etc. Publications that collate works from multiple authors on a topic, such as handbooks or special journal issues on a theme, can be another way to find key academics relevant to a subject.
To make it easier to find an academic, the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) is currently developing a research capability discovery platform called Research Link Australia. The project is funded by the Department of Education through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS). Co-designed in partnership with academics, government, and industry the platform will provide a range of information about individual researchers including their capability to collaborate with other non-academic sectors. It will also provide aggregate data about broader research investment across disciplines. Start discovering collaboration opportunities with academics by using Research Link Australia.
Finding researchers through word of mouth, conferences, and seminars
Once you find one or two researchers in the relevant field, a more analogue method is to ask them for referrals to other relevant experts. They may also be able to identify conferences and seminar series in the discipline or field where you can listen to and meet researchers directly.
Peak and intermediary bodies
The Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) hosts a seminar series in partnership with the Australian Parliamentary Library, and another series with the Australian Public Service (APS) Academy. ACOLA is the convening body of five member academies that include Australian Academy of the Humanities, Australian Academy of Science, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, and Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. Through this network, ACOLA has access to more than 3,000 experts in their fields who contribute knowledge, critical thinking and academic evidence to inform national policy. With this breadth of interdisciplinary coverage, ACOLA is able to facilitate expert discussions on complex issues through trusted, independent and evidence-based advice. With values for integrity, rigor, transparency and inclusiveness, ACOLA works with Australia’s decision-makers to develop resources that range from advice and conversations to in-depth analysis and reports.
The Australian and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG) was established over 20 years ago by a consortium of governments and universities. It provides public administration leadership and governance education and professional learning, expert advice, and government-focused research relevant to the public sector in partnership with academia. ANZSOG’s website includes a directory of its faculty and expert partners and can be contacted for advice on accessing university-based researchers it works closely with.
The more recently established James Martin Institute for Public Policy is a joint venture between the New South Wales government and leading Australian universities. It works across government – both state and federal – to help address pressing policy priorities in Australia. The Institute works closely with ministers, advisors, and public servants in harnessing expert advice and public investment in research to improve evidence-based policymaking. Its Collaborative Projects bring together policymakers, researchers and practitioners to outline policy opportunities for critical, cross-government challenges, and its Rapid Response capability includes facilitating timely connections with relevant experts.
Another way to find academic experts is to search online for university colleges, schools, or institutes to review their databases of academics or reach out to them to seek recommendations.
In-house connections
The Australian Government has a range of in-house research capabilities which can be leveraged to provide expert advice or links to external researchers. Broad scientific expertise can be accessed through, for example, the Office of the Chief Scientist or the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). More specific advice could be sought through, for example, behaviour insights units, design labs, or data analytics units or agencies such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, or the Australian Institute of Family Studies.
And finally, the Australian Government has invested in building academic expertise through the Sir Roland Wilson and Pat Turner scholarships for APS staff to undertake PhDs and postgraduate studies. The Sir Roland Wilson Foundation lists on its website scholars and alumni across a broad range of subject areas including, for example, economics, First Nations’ perspectives, climate change, cyber security, data analytics, health, welfare, education, etc. Their recent deep engagement in academia makes these scholars and alumni a great source of expert advice and links to broader networks of relevant academics. Either reach out to a scholar or alumni directly, or you could seek advice on the best contacts from the Sir Roland Wilson Foundation.
Over the coming months we will publish a series of articles on how to establish partnerships between academia and the public service. Please let us know if you are aware of other mechanisms to find academics that we may have missed or opportunities for establishing great partnerships. We would love to hear about it. Contact us to hear more.
References
[1] This article is part of a ‘How to…’ series aimed at increasing awareness of APS-academic partnership opportunities.
[2] Thank you to the ARDC, ACOLA, ANZSOG, James Martin Institute, and the Sir Roland Wilson Foundation for their assistance in preparing this article.