PROFESSORIAL BANDING
DISCIPLINARY NORMS AND EXPECTATIONS
Department/School: Physics
Discipline (only if different to the above):
Faculty: Science
I confirm that the discipline norms detailed below were completed following consultation with Professors in the
department, and have been verified by an external advisor.
Completed by: Brian Cowan Date: August 2014
RESEARCH
1.
What are the top-rated forms of research work in your discipline? E.g. journal articles, monographs,
editions
Journal articles
2.
What lesser publications such as encyclopaedia entries, programme notes, reviews etc. command
respect in your discipline?
Review articles, monographs.
3.
What are the top-rated outlets for dissemination of research in your discipline? E.g. major publishers, top
journals?
High Impact journals; eg Nature, Nature Group, Science, Physical Review Letters, Physics Letters, Physical Review,
Reviews of Modern Physics, Applied Physics Letters, European Physical Journal, Journal of High Energy Physics,
Nuclear Instruments and Methods, Reports on Progress in Physics, New Journal of Physics. Single author
monographs: OUP or CUP.
4.
What are the guiding assumptions about sole authorship, PI status, percentage contribution, joint
editorship, etc.?
CMP: first author is often graduate student, with senior author/PI lower down the list – often last. In some cases
alphabetical order is used.
PP: for large collaboration/many author papers difficult to extract importance of contribution from author list.
5.
What is the volume of productivity over what sort of timeline that might signify a.) a reasonable
performance; b) a positive step-change for a professor in your discipline?
These vary significantly between different sub-discipline area; yearly numbers of publications can fluctuate
significantly year on year. One high impact paper per year is to be expected (as lead investigator), perhaps slightly
less on average for experimental research.
But note:
PP – Output in experimental particle physics is subject to the natural cycles of activity at CERN etc.
CMP – Research in some areas e.g. low temperature physics involves experiments with a long time scale.
6.
What are the top-rated funding sources for Research in your discipline? E.g. ESRC, AHRC, Leverhulme
Trust, Wellcome etc.
PI on STFC, EPSRC grant. Co-ordinator or local PI on European Union grant. Leverhulme Trust.
[Royal Society Joint Project grants are also a positive esteem indicator].
7.
What levels of funding would you regard as indicating a) a reasonable performance; or b) high
performance in your discipline?
CMP: Any grant >£200k is particularly significant. The mark of distinction is the consistent ability to attract external
funding (including beam time at central facilities).
PP: Large rolling grants have been the norm: PI on large grants in high priority areas is a key indicator. Academic
leadership within large collaborations operating at international level is demonstrated in a variety of ways.
8.
Are invited lectures/ conference plenaries/ conference organization/ visiting professorships/ particularly
significant in your discipline, and in what sort of ranked order?
Invited talks at major international conferences, and regular invitations to speak at international meeting and
workshops, are of critical importance. Significant visiting professorships, RCUK Senior Fellowships, exceptionally
ERC grants. Membership of conference organizing committees.
9.
What awards, prizes and honours if any, are significant in your discipline?
There is a number of international prizes, as well as Institute of Physics prizes/medals distinctive to the discipline.
10.
Membership of which learned societies or other discipline-specific groups or organizations carry weight in
your discipline?
Fellowship of Royal Society – exceptional significance. Chair/membership of Institute of Physics panels and other
physics-related bodies.
TEACHING
1.
How many PhD students (in FTEs) would you expect to be supervised by Professors in your discipline?
It is impossible to give a definitive number for this, as Professors will likely be involved also in supervision of the
students of other members of their research group. However a Professor might be the named supervisor of
approximately one student per year.
2.
What are the norms for contribution by Professors to Masters courses and their validation in your
discipline?
In Physics, Masters courses are often also part of the fourth-year undergraduate list. Teaching norms may not be
significantly different from the contributions of Lecturers, Senior Lecturers and Readers. Exceptionally there could
be proposals/designs for new postgraduate programmes/courses.
3.
What are the norms for Professors devising and teaching undergraduate courses in your discipline?
These may not be significantly different from the contributions of Lecturers, Senior Lecturers and Readers: for all
this is approximately two half-course units per year. Exceptionally there could be proposals/designs for new
undergraduate programmes/courses.
EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT AND IMPACT
1.
What are the norms for external involvement in your discipline within University of London, UK
universities, international HE activity etc. that indicate a) a reasonable performance; b) a high
performance?
Engagement in international research collaborations, and research collaborations with leading UK universities and
research institutions.
2.
What particular forms of external academic, and where relevant non-academic, impact would indicate an
acceptable and high performance in your discipline?
Leadership of sub-groups within large international PP collaborations. Leadership of RCUK projects and panels.
Industrial collaborations.
3.
What kind and volume of Third Stream activity (including patents, spin-outs, outreach, knowledge
transfer, consultancies, cultural interventions etc.) of benefit to the College etc. would be important in
your discipline?
Patents, spin-outs, outreach, knowledge transfer, consultancies, can be important. However there would be no
expectation of involvement in all of these.
LEADERSHIP AND ENHANCEMENT
1.
What forms of leadership, internal and external, command respect in your discipline?
Chair and membership of national and international panels. Membership of EPSRC and STFC award panels.
Membership of editorial boards can be significant, but not a major factor
2.
What forms of enhancement, such as support of improved performance by colleagues, command respect
in your discipline?
Research leadership will automatically include (official or unofficial) mentoring of younger staff. In addition there
could be elements of performance support for group members.