Australia (Commonwealth)_It’s truly commendable that the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is actively addressing ongoing Relative to Opportunity (RTO) concerns and showing willingness to experiment with gender parity initiatives. While awaiting the results of ongoing trials, it’s important to continue discussing RTO policies and ensure that future improvements go beyond just addressing gender disparities.
The RTO section within the recently concluded NHMRC Investigator Grant Scheme offers a platform to outline RTO circumstances, even beyond the formal career disruption criteria. However, this approach isn’t consistently applied across other grant schemes, and that’s a concern. As recently pointed out, frequent shorter disruptions (lasting < 90 days) might be as significant, if not more, than continuous absences but aren’t covered under current disruption rules.
Another issue arises when a grant scheme confines RTO information to a specific period (e.g., the past decade). This disregards the known trajectory of academic careers. Just like a thriving superannuation fund, academic track records grow through regular contributions and compounded gains. Hence, any disruptions, no matter how short, can impact immediate career contributions and subsequent “interest earnings” witnessed annually thereafter.
While pertinent, the above overlooks the fact that disclosing career disruptions can be precarious. A 2022 study highlighted researchers’ concerns that revealing disruptions might harm rather than boost funding prospects. There’s a fear that it could introduce reviewer bias, whether unconscious or not, casting doubt on one’s ability to achieve proposed research goals.
So, what’s the way forward? Eliminating the 90-day continuous career disruption criterion and discarding fixed reporting periods would enable candidates to include all significant disruptions they’ve faced. Furthermore, further research is required to comprehend and quantify potential biases reviewers might have toward RTO. Overcoming equity challenges in research won’t be simple, but as with anything worthwhile, it’s a necessary pursuit.
