Purpose

Research and knowledge exchange activities are core elements of the modern College. The purpose of this policy is to ensure a shared understanding of the College’s research aims, objectives and underpinning processes and procedures. The research policy represents a framework for the management, support and development of research at the College.

The College’s research policy sets out the measures and means to encourage research and scholarship.

Policy

The Internal regulations of the college emphasize the need to encourage research and development in in the college to create modern academic programs that are results-oriented and that focus on the student’s needs, so that every graduate may aspire to become a competent and qualified professional, in today’s rapidly changing environment.

The College is committed to ensuring members of academic staff engage in research and scholarship.

The research policy outlines the guiding principles regarding the management, support and development of research to all those involved in research at the College. It is applicable to all teaching and non-teaching staff, as well as registered students of the College.

The purpose of the research policy is to:

  • provide a framework for the research development and management;
  • provide for continued effective support for research;
  • ensure the fair treatment of all researchers, staff and students;
  • ensure effective communication to all stakeholders (internally and externally) on the research policy and research strategy including research support;
  • establish rational, and transparent mechanism for approval of research projects and the allocation of research funds and other kinds of support for research;
  • establish mechanism for collaborative research with public and private organisations and universities in the region as well as in other international countries
  • integrate support for graduate research into the main research system; and
  • define roles, responsibilities and functions within the College research system.

Policy Scope

Academic Staff

Programme Coordinators of Academic Departments

Principles and Procedures

1. Research Policy Principles

1.1    Principles

•       The College supports research that is aligned to the College’s mission, vision and strategic goals; and aligned to European frameworks.

•       The allocation of research funding in the College is seen as an investment.

•       All academic members are encouraged and supported by the college to carry out research or scholarship either individually or in collaboration with others.

•       The Research committee is responsible for the management of research at the College level supported by all Department Committees.

•       The non-teaching staff are also encouraged to participate in the research projects where this is practical and appropriate.

•       The academic staff are encouraged and supported to take up sponsored research projects, funded by private or public organizations, locally or internationally.

•       The graduate (bachelors and masters) students are provided with support in terms of fellowships, material and in-kind support for creating an enabling research.

•       Requests for support for research projects or activities are judged on the merits of the proposal, the merits of the applicant, the need for research capacity development, and the need to sustain existing research activities or capacity.

•       All applicants requesting support for research are advised to seek funds outside the College in the first instance, and if outside fund is not available, provide a persuasive rationale why this is not feasible, in order for their application to be considered.

2. Publication and Intellectual property

•       The research policy ensures that publication and intellectual property rights should conform to the laws of Cyprus.

•       The College is committed to supporting its employees in publishing their research in appropriate venues such as Journals, Books, Monographs, Project Reports, Conference Proceedings, and Working Papers.

•       The staff are required to observe any contractual, confidentiality, or privacy obligations entered into in respect of the research and ensure protection of any intellectual property arising out of the research.

•       The staff should observe College policies and adhere to the laws governing Intellectual Property rights in Cyprus.

3. Research plagiarism

All staff of the College are required to carry out their research and scholarship in compliance with all statutory ethical and contractual obligations.

•       Research staff should be honest in respect of their own actions in research and in their responses to the actions of other researchers.

•       This applies to the whole range of research work, including field study design, generating and analyzing data, applying for funding, and publishing results.

•       Research staff should maintain highest integrity and acknowledge the direct and indirect contribution of colleagues, research students, collaborations and others.

•       Research staff must refrain from plagiarism, deception or the fabrication or falsification of results or other forms of research misconduct.

•       Research staff who plagiarize or fail to maintain honesty in their research work, face serious consequences, including affecting promotion and continuance of contract of service.

•       Research staff are encouraged to report cases of suspected misconduct and to do so in a responsible and appropriate manner.

4. Compliance mechanisms with International research ethics

The international rules on research ethics applied by the Research Policy and implement by the Research Committee of the College are the following:

4.1 Compliance with the rules of scientific and professional ethics

The researchers must keep up with the current legislation, the international rules which result from international agreements or from international organisations decisions in which our country also takes part.

4.2 Field of Application

The present code applies to all research activities, as well as the activities which give specialized services, training programs or other scientific applications, which take place at the College under the responsibility of its scientific staff, with or without finance.

4.3 Compliance with the safety rules

The researchers must apply all the safety rules recognized in the familiar scientific field. The researchers who direct research programs must inform the participants and take all the necessary and obligatory scientific measures for the protection of health of the people who work on these programmes from accidents or any side effects.

4.4 Respect of copyright

1.      During the conduct of research activity, the researchers must keep in mind not to offend in any way rights of third parties’ copyrights.

2.      Any person who is officially or unofficially informed on the progress or on the result of the research must have full confidentiality and avoid activities towards taking advantage of the knowledge or of the result of research for his own benefit.

3.      The scientists obtain copyright on the subject of research they conduct and its results according to the extent of their contribution.

4.      This copyright concerns programs of electronic processing as well as of the preparatory material.

5.      The copyright includes the right for exploitation of the research project and the right for protection of the personal bond with it, according to the Copyright Law 59/76 as it was modified.

4.5 Written statement

During the submission of proposals or applications or contracts for research, the researchers declare in writing to the Research Committee that they were informed on the present code, undertake to comply and observe the terms and provisions which are provided by it.

5. Research Management

5.1    The Research Committee is the College’s research management body. It advises the academic and research staff on research strategies to be pursued, develops policy and reviews progress in these areas.

5.2    Research Planning:

•       The Research Committee Guides Academic Departments on research activities and monitors the research progress twice a year.

•       Each Academic Department Committee is required to develop and implement its own research plan in coordination with the Research Committee.

5.3    Evaluation and monitoring of research performance:

•       The research performance of academic staff is monitored and evaluated as part of the annual appraisal and staff development process.

•       Academic staff are required to supply full and accurate details of their research outputs on an annual basis to the College Principal / Dean of Academic Affairs to compile the Research Report and submit to the Research Committee.

6. Standard operating procedures for research

•       The College staff, seeking research funding, either individually or as a team, are required to contact the Research Committee and to submit a request for R & D support to the College Principal / Dean of Academic Affairs.

•       The applicant(s) must have completed at least one semester at the College.

•       The College Principal / Dean of Academic Affairs considers the application for discussion and approval in the Academic Department.

•       Once the application is approved by the College Principal / Dean of Academic Affairs, the application will be forwarded to Research Committee.

•       Research Committee discusses the application for research funding.

•       After the Research Committee’s approval, the application is forwarded to the President of the Board of Directors for budget/funds allocation.

•       The Accounts Department informs the applicant(s) through the Head of Academic Department.

•       The Accounts Department is responsible for disbursement of the funds to the researcher(s) as per the College procedures.

•       All staff must follow the rules and regulations of the College on spending funds and provide adequate proofs.

•       Procurement of hardware or software, if needed, should be done as per the College’s procurement process.

•       All staff are required to submit the progress of research to Research Committee through the Academic Department.

•       Research Committee reviews the progress and if unsatisfactory, may revise the milestones or may recommend for stopping further support for the project for the same year.

•       After the completion of the project, and also for discontinued projects, the hardware and/or software purchased must be handed over to the College, that is, to the appropriate department.

•       After completion of the project, the researcher(s) should submit the final report to the Research Committee.

•       The researcher(s) should take permission from the President before applying for external sources/externally sponsored project.

•       The Research Committee compiles an annual research report and presents it to the College Council.

•       The Programme Coordinators of each Department, with assistance from the IT administrator are responsible for placing research information on the College website and regularly updating the information.

7. Permissible EXPENDITURE ON SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

1.      Purchase of research apparatus, equipment and tools including computers and specialized required software;

2.      Purchase of biologic, chemical and physical materials, glass tools and other items which are required for scientific research projects;

3.      Purchase of specialized books or scientific journals required for supporting a specific project provided that these books or journals shall be handed over to the institution library after completion of the project;

4.      Purchase of databases required for implementing research projects or payment of subscription fees;

5.     Purchase of specialized scientific experiments and measurements, or rental of equipment required for implementing a whole or part of a determined research project;

6.      Make agreements with suppliers to maintain and repair the equipment and apparatus purchased for the purpose of research projects;

7.      Amend existing facilities for accommodating a determined research project or a group of research projects such as a biosafety laboratory, low vibration room or a research plant for animal care;

8.      Make arrangements for data collection and / or analysis with outsourced companies where data collection and / or analysis is not possible or feasible for a researcher to undertake;

8.      Scientific publication expenditures resulting from publishing research projects provided by a teaching staff member in the refereed scientific journals or the refereed conference proceedings;

9.      Expenditures for preparing and participating in refereed scientific conference, scientific seminars and related academic arrangements;

10.    Expenses of teaching staff member’s travel if it is necessary to visit a body overseas for the purpose of undertaking a particular research project such as collecting data or using specialized equipment available only at this body overseas;

11.    Expenditures of scientific advices and external services if required for a research project;

12.    Any other expenditure aiming at the accomplishment of a research project and expenditures like the items mentioned hereinabove. All expenditures shall be subject to financial auditing.

Internal Funding

The policy for internal funding for research relates to those programmes that are financed through the college budget. This budget is approved by the College Council. Researchers, individually or in teams, can apply for a funding from College for their research activities by submitting application to their Academic Department and Research Committee.

Teaching staff is encouraged to engage in research activities and their teaching load is reduced. The college is responsible for paying the cost of publishing the results of the research in accredited academic journals and covers participation in academic events.

Academic staff are entitled to receive financial reward/s for their undertaking research work under any of the following conditions:

More than 2 papers are published in refereed journals in an academic year
A book chapter / book is published by reputable publisher
III.     Published patent

Financial reward/s will only be given if the published work mentions/cites Mesoyios College.

The application for financial reward/s will be submitted by the academic staff member to the Research Committee.

The Research Committee will submit the application to the College Council who will then determine the financial reward/s after careful examination

Definitions

Arbitrator/Examiner – the body of evaluators who are responsible for assessing the research proposal.

This body is also responsible to verify and approve the corrected research.

Research – the systematic investigation into existing or new knowledge. Research may be undertaken primarily to acquire new fundamental knowledge (basic research) or to acquire new knowledge for a specific practical objective (applied research).

Researcher – a member of academic staff or graduate student of the College.

Research and development (R&D) – covers the creation of new knowledge and uses it to improve technologies and their application. R&D is closely linked to innovation, which can be defined as the introduction of new ideas, devices, or methods into use.

Main Researcher – a member of staff supervising and conducting a research to incorporate various aspects like, gathering funds, data, information and supervising project(s), abiding to the regulation and requirements of the research.

Participants Researcher – a member of staff or graduate student assisting the main researcher(s) in carrying out the research and supporting activities like instrument development, distributing, collecting and analyzing data, preparing and presenting reports.