Why Research Matter?: An Evaluative Study of Research Productivity Performance of the Faculty Members of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines

Abstract

This study evaluates the research capability of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) in realizing a Research University status through faculty productivity in research activities such as production, presentation, and publication. Using the data collected from Quarterly Accomplishment Report (QAR) submitted by the faculty members, the participation rate and compliance rate of the faculty in research activities were computed to measure their research productivity. Specifically, participation rate was used to determine the rate of engagement of faculty in research activities while compliance rate was utilized to identify if the faculty involvement in research was based on their required mimimum role in each research activity and their academic rank. The results show that the average participation rate of the faculty in the three research activities was below 26 percent wherein almost three-fourths (75%) of the faculty did not at all participate in any of the research activities. Among the three research activities, faculty were more engaged in research production. Accordingly, the average compliance rate of the faculty members in research in each of the research activities was no more than 20%. Specifically, faculty with ranks of Associate Professor and Professor were more involved in research activities than those with ranks of Instructor and Assistant Professor. Because of these results, the University’s interventions to enhance research productivity were crucial. These interventions include research capability programs, development of culture of research which may result in research collaborations and linkages, and policy creation considering research productivity as a factor of job promotion.