Impact of Scholarship (metrics)

Overview

Establishing a Scholarly and Professional Online Image enables individuals to increase the visibility of their research and publications, enhance networking opportunities, find potential collaborators, and engage in professional dialog. Deliberating using tools to curate your scholarly online image is a great way to take control of what people see when they search for you online, including potential employers, collaborators, and colleagues.

This page addresses three broad categories of online platforms, which can be used to establish and grow an online scholarly presence.

  • Identity and Profiles
  • Sharing Your Work
  • Networking

Online Identity and Profiles

There are numerous tools available for scholarly identification purposes. Two broad but related categories include Author IDs and Profile Sites.

An Author ID is a unique identifier used to distinguish you from other researchers who have the same or similar names. Using an author ID can help ensure that all of your publications and research are associated with your profile in databases or online. Signing up for author IDs and making sure that you use them in your C.V. and website is something all researchers can do to make their work more findable and identifiable.

An academic Profile Site is a platform used to identify and showcase academic affiliation, publication history, and professional activities. There are numerous profile platforms targeted to and built around the specific needs of researchers and academics, and many individuals also maintain personal webpages for this purpose. Some platforms provide crossover into networking and publication sharing functionality as well.

ORCID and Researcher ID (Author IDs) as well as Google Scholar profile and and Mendeley (Profile Sites) are used across disciplines. There are also discipline-specific IDs and profiles.

What is it?

ORCID ID

ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is an open, non-profit system to provide unique identifiers to researchers working in all fields. It is rapidly becoming a cross-disciplinary standard, and it works with other ID systems as well, which means it can connect different research systems and save you time on entering data.

Some journals now require an ORCID for  article submissions.

How to get one

Go to http://orcid.org/ and click "register now" to obtain an ORCID. 

What it's used for

List your ORCID on your C.V., your web profile, your grants, and anywhere else you provide a list of work.

How to improve your profile and correct errors

Some publications will be automatically loaded when you sign up for ORCID. After signing-in you can manually update publications, add biographical details, or choose to turn on auto-updating for your ORCID record.

What is it? 

Researcher ID is a unique identifier scheme developed by Clarivate Analytics and used in Web of Science as well as being compatible with other ID schemes.

How to get one

Go to http://www.researcherid.com/ and click "join now", and enter your information. You will be sent an email; click on the link in the email and finish entering your information (such as your institution name) to create the ResearcherID. You will then be able to link the ID to ORCID.

What it's used for

ResearcherID, like ORCID is used to tell authors with similar names apart and produce profiles of author work. If you use EndNote or Web of Science, ResearcherID ties into these systems seamlessly. You may also use your ResearcherID to easily collect metrics about your work in Web of Science.

How to improve your profile and correct errors

Once you have gotten the ResearcherID, you can add to your publications list by clicking "add publications" and then searching Web of Science, adding a RIS file from EndNote or RefManager, or connecting directly to EndNote. You can also connect to ORCID, and import the publications from your ORCID profile (or vice-versa).

What is it?

If you have publications indexed in Google Scholar, you can create a profile that will show up when people search on your name. It will display your publications, any information you provide, and a set of metrics including h-index.

How to get one

Go to http://scholar.google.com/citations and sign in with your Google account. You will then be asked for your name, affiliation, etc. Next, Google Scholar will automatically suggest publications to add to your profile. Select the ones that are yours to add to your profile. Add your research interests as keywords, which can then be used to search on by people looking for other researchers in a field.

What it's used for

A Google Scholar profile will show up at the top of results when people search for your publications in Google Scholar. It increases visibility of your work by providing a bibliography, indicates which publications are yours if you share a common name. It also shows a citation count to your work, provides an H-index measure.

How to improve your profile and correct errors

See Google's FAQ for answers to how to add missing publications or correct other errors.

What is it?Mendeley Profile

Mendeley is an academic social networking and reference management tool from academic publisher Elsevier. Profiles can include publications and information you provide from your CV.

How to get one

Sign up for an account and profile at: https://www.mendeley.com/

You can also download the Mendeley reference manager tool for your computer or mobile device from this site.

What it's used for

Mendeley can be integrated into many aspects of your workflow. It can be used to profile yourself and your work, collect and organize references, connect and collaborate with other researchers, and obtain statistics related to how your work is being used. Your Mendeley account is also linked to your Elsevier/Scopus author profile.

Sharing Your Work Online

There are many platform options for uploading, hosting, and sharing scholarly work at no cost. Works can include publications, presentations, research data, and other content.

The UNM Digital Repository is where UNM faculty and graduate students are encouraged to deposit materials representing the research output of the institution. Figshare and SlideShare are commercial platforms geared toward publicly sharing a broad range of content. Some networking and profile sites also allow users to upload and share publications and research materials.

Regardless of the platform, users must always ensure that they understand the terms of their author agreements when posting published works to avoid violating copyright.

What is it?

The UNM Digital Repository is UNM's institutional repository. It hosts scholarly work produced by UNM faculty, staff, and graduate students. Relevant works include scholarly publications, datasets, theses and dissertations, presentations, media, UNM administrative records, and more.UNM Digital Repository

How to submit materials

See the Author Corner - Submit Research for more information on submitting materials. You may need to contact the appropriate collection administrator for further instructions.

What it’s used for

UNM’s Digital Repository is a free, institutionally supported repository where UNM faculty, staff, and graduate students can deposit scholarly and professional materials to make them openly available to the University and the broader public.

More information                                                  

See the Digital Repository FAQ: http://digitalrepository.unm.edu/faq.html or email disc@unm.edu for more information.

What is it?

Figshare is an open access digital repository where researchers can create free accounts to upload, share, and preserve their research outputs. Any file format can be uploaded to the platform; popular uploads include figures, datasets, filesets, papers, posters, presentations, and media.

How to submit materials

Create a free account, then select or drag and drop files up to 5 GB in size for upload. When uploading, you have the option to elect to make files publicly available. Each user is allotted 20 GB of free private space and unlimited public space.

What it’s used for

Figshare is used by researchers to store, manage, share, and publicize their research outputs. Publicly available uploads are made citable and discoverable through the integration of ORCID author IDs, DOI registration, and compatibility with the open access altmetrics tool ImpactStory.

More information                                                  

Find a list of figshare features at https://figshare.com/features, and keep up to date on new developments through the figshare blog at https://figshare.com/blog

What is it?

SlideShare is a free document hosting service acquired by and integrated with LinkedIn in 2012. It is geared particularly for presentation slides and related materials.

How to submit materials

To create a free account, users are required to have or create a LinkedIn profile; SlideShare is fully integrated in this platform. After account setup is complete, upload presentations, infographs, documents, and videos. Privacy settings allow for viewing control of each upload (public, private, or available only with a specified link).

What it’s used for

SlideShare is used primarily to make presentations and related content available and sharable to the public or a specific audience. It is frequently used to make conference and class presentations available beyond live presentations. Files uploaded onto SlideShare can also be embedded into outside websites.

More information                                                  

Find thorough information about getting started, site features, and tips and tricks in the Creator Tools resource at http://www.slideshare.net/ss/creators?from=sub-nav. Browse presentation tips on the SlideShare blog at https://blog.slideshare.net/

What is it?

openICPSR is a place to share and store your social and behavioral science research data. Your data will be preserved as-is and be available to data users at no cost. UNM is a member of ICPSR (fee-based), which allows UNM researchers to store data on openICPSR at no cost.

How to submit materials

Create an ICPSR account and the account works for ICPSR and openICPSR. Go to openICPSR site, login, select Get Started, then Create a New Project. You may want to contact UNM Libraries' Research Data Services to help curate your dataset(s).

What it’s used for

openICPSR let's you freely share your data, control your own updates, provide immediate public access to your data, and easily meet funder requirements to share data. Other researchers now can cite your data and/or your publications.

More information                                                  

See the openICPSR's About page.

These are some resources to help you navigate copyright considerations:

Online Networking

Researchers use a number of platforms for Networking, some of which are specific to academia.

Tools like Academia.edu and ResearchGate are targeted to academics and professional researchers. These sites allow users to create profiles similar to resumes or CVs, upload publications, and find connections based on similar research interests.

General networking platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn are also frequently used by academics to connect with others in the field, engage in professional dialog surrounding new research or current events, and establish a professional presence.

What is it?

Academia.edu is a social networking service geared toward academics in a variety of disciplines. The primary purpose of the site is to enable open networked sharing of research papers, in addition to monitoring research impact analytics and tracking the research of colleagues and connections.

How to get an account

Register for a free Academia.edu account with any email address or use integrated Google or Facebook sign-up options. New users will be prompted to set up a basic profile, including academic or institutional affiliation, provide research interests, and upload authored papers or a BibTex format bibliography.

What it’s used for

 

Academia.edu is primarily used as an academic social networking and publication sharing site. Users can follow specific research topics, individuals, or institutions to keep up with new publications in their areas of interest. The site can also be used to find collaborators, download open access articles, and be a means of tracking analytics or research impact based on article downloads and profile views.

Authors have the opportunity to upload their papers to the site, but individuals are responsible for interpreting and abiding by specific publisher/author agreements in terms of copyright. For example, most publishers allow authors to freely share draft or pre-print versions of their articles, but not the finalized published version. Registered users on the site can download uploaded papers for free. 

Additional features include connection suggestions based on institutional affiliation and research interests, a job board (paid ads), and the opportunity to open up a draft paper or presentation for community discussion and comments.

More information                                                  

Visit the Help Center at http://support.academia.edu/ for thorough information about how to use the platform’s various features.

What is it?

ResearchGate is a social networking platform targeted specifically for scientists and researchers. Through this platform, researchers can easily connect to share papers and other scientific output, hold discussions, and find potential collaborators.

How to get an account

Register for a free ResearchGate account with an institutional email address (required). New users are prompted to set up a profile including academic or professional affiliations, skills and research interests, and full text publications. Publications can include traditional journal articles, book chapters, or conference papers as well as other types of research output such as datasets, code, experimental findings, negative results, etc.

What it’s used for

ResearchGate is primarily used for academic social networking and publication sharing; it has a more robust networking and communication features than similar platform Academia.edu. ResearchGate is most popular in the sciences, though researchers in a wide array of disciplines use the site. When registered, users are able to find and follow the research of specific individuals, institutions, or subject areas; this may be done actively, but the site also regularly suggests connections with similar interests.

Authors have the opportunity to upload their papers to the site, but individuals are responsible for interpreting and abiding by publisher/author agreements in terms of copyright/sharing. For example, most publishers allow authors to freely share draft or pre-print versions of their articles, but not the finalized published version. Registered users on the site are able to download uploaded papers without cost.

All registered users can view limited statistics including how often uploaded works are accessed, profile views, and citation information.

ResearchGate offers numerous opportunities for communication, including through a Q&A feature, a private chat component, and an article commentary interface. The platform also hosts a research-focused job board; there is a fee associated with position postings, but the job board is free to search and will provide personalized job suggestions to users.

More information                                                  

For thorough information and Q&As about the ResearchGate platform, visit the Help Center at https://explore.researchgate.net/.

What is it?

Twitter is an information networked used to read, send, share, reply, and react to brief 140-character messages and links called “Tweets”. Registered users can post messages, follow other users, “Retweet” posts, and use Twitter hashtag keywords (#) and username handles (@) to engage in conversation with others around a single topic, event, or person.

How to get an account

Create a free Twitter account using an email address. New users are prompted to create a twitter handle (username), brief narrative profile, upload profile images, and begin following other users.

What it’s used for

Twitter is used for many purposes beyond academia, but it is also a popular place of conversation for research and academic topics in many fields. It can be a great place to engage with colleagues—both those you know in real life and those interested in similar subjects—on issues in your field of interest, leading to new connections.

To use Twitter strategically, set up a professional account following departmental friends and colleagues, current and potential collaborators, organizations and institutions of interest, prominent people in your field, topical news outlets, and professional organizations. Start and participate in conversations around recently published research, trending topics, and issues in your field.

Most professional conferences use a designated hashtag, which you can use to comment on programming and engage with other attendees.

More information                                                  

Search or browse topics on Twitter’s Help Center at https://support.twitter.com/

What is it?

LinkedIn is a professional and commercial networking website. The site’s user base is wide ranging but particularly strong in the business community and the private sector.

How to get an account

Register for a free profile using your email address. LinkedIn profiles allow users to create an online resume or CV. Paid premium account options include additional analytics, search functions, and connection opportunities. 

What it’s used for

LinkedIn is used to build a virtual professional network as well as showcase accomplishments to potential employers and collaborators. Search teams often check LinkedIn profiles during the hiring process, and some employers even proactively invite LinkedIn users to interview for specific positions.

Registered LinkedIn users can create a thorough professional profile including educational experience, employment and volunteer work, professional skills, coursework, honors & awards, publication citations, and more. Media such as presentations, videos, and documents can be linked to enhance profile components. Narrative endorsements by colleagues can also be included.

The platform will suggest connections based on users’ affiliations, skills, groups, and the networks of existing connections.

There are many opportunities for interaction, including private messaging, group discussions, and a newsfeed feature that enables users to share updates, links, publish more in-depth posts, and interact with the connections’ posts and activities. 

More information                                                  

Find information on starting and managing your account, including video tutorials, at https://www.linkedin.com/help/

Further Reading