Italy

Evaluation of Research Quality (VQR)

Purpose

The Evaluation of Research Quality (VQR) exercise is primarily a summative assessment model designed to evaluate the research outcomes of public universities and research institutes in Italy, as well as private institutions that voluntarily submit their research for evaluation. VQR is conducted every five years, with each exercise culminating in the publication of a Research Quality Assessment Report for the corresponding period. The results directly impact both funding and institutional reputation.

The VQR exercises provide an up-to-date assessment of research across various scientific fields, aiming to improve research quality in the evaluated institutions. They also play a key role in determining the performance-based allocation of the Fondo di Finanziamento Ordinario (FFO) – the Ordinary Financing Fund that supports the operating expenses of Italian universities.

A total of four VQR exercises have been conducted, covering the years 2004-2024. The most recent, VQR 2020–2024, began in 2023 and is still ongoing.

Since its inception, VQR has been inspired by the UK’s Research Excellence Framework (REF).

Year of Introduction
2011

Census period
5 years

Governance agency(s)
Italian National Agency for the evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes (ANVUR)

Purpose
Funding allocation
Accountability

Unit of Assessment
The organization as a whole
Disciplines across organisations

Focus of Assessment
Scholarly outputs
Societal Interaction
Competitive grants

Governance

The VQR exercises are managed by the National Agency for the Evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes (ANVUR), the intermediary organisation responsible for overseeing the quality assessment of activities carried out by universities and research institutes that receive public funding.

Participation in the VQR is mandatory for public universities and research institutes, while private institutions may voluntarily apply.

Operation of the exercise

The focus of the VQR exercises includes the assessment of scholarly outputs, societal interaction, and competitive grants obtained.

Within the VQR, the evaluation process is conducted by “Assessment Area”. In the latest exercise (2020-2024), the evaluation covers 19 areas in total, including 17 disciplinary areas, along with two interdisciplinary groups focused on evaluating knowledge valorisation activities (Third Mission) and research infrastructures.

The VQR primarily employs the informed peer review method of assessment. The method of assessment varies depending on the field: humanities and social sciences have always been evaluated solely through peer review, whereas STEM disciplines, life sciences, and psychology have relied more on both peer review and bibliometric indicators.

History, reviews and evaluations

From the first edition (VQR 2004-2010) to the most recent (VQR 2020-2024), ANVUR implemented various changes:

A shift in evaluation focus – In the latest editions of the VQR, the evaluation of the “third mission”, which includes activities focused on the valorisation of knowledge by the institutions, has gained increasing importance.
Reduced role of bibliometric indicators – In the most recent VQR, the role of bibliometric indicators has been reduced, as there is no longer an algorithm that provides reviewers with a proposed classification of the evaluated outputs.

Inclusion of international projects and research infrastructure – For the first time in VQR 2020-2024, international competitive projects and research infrastructure were part of the evaluation criteria.

Changes in the census period and product evaluation – A notable change concerns the standardization of the evaluation period and the number of products to be assessed. Starting from the third VQR, the evaluation period is set to five years, compared to seven years in the first VQR and four years in the second. The number of products to be submitted has been reduced to 2.5 times the number of accredited researchers per department.

Training for the Group of Experts for Evaluation (GEV) – To ensure greater uniformity in judgment, specific training sessions are conducted for GEV members on evaluation criteria in the most recent VQR.

Open access – Institutions are required to indicate whether their publications are open access and provide the link to the document upon submission. After the evaluation, the Agency will publish a complete list of evaluated product metadata on its website, including open access links where available.

As of February 2025, the VQR 2020-2024 is underway. The evaluation will start in June and conclude in December. The results will be published by May 2026.

ANVUR is a signatory of the CoARA Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment.

For the meta-evaluation of the system, in preparation for the VQR 2020-2024 exercise, ANVUR prepared an in-depth analytical report on the previous exercise. Based on the results of the Report, a group of independent international experts was tasked with preparing a further report that offers a critical analysis of the VQR 2015-2019 exercise, to inform the preparation of the VQR 2020-2024.

Last updated: May 2025

Acknowledgement: Information provided by Scipione Sarlo.