#DiscoveryProjects peer assessments will land in nervous applicants& #39; inboxes in 3 weeks (18Jun).

You& #39;ve 2 weeks to submit a rejoinder.

BUT you& #39;ve just *3 days* to call out #BadReviewers!

#ARC3DayRule appears designed to fail, supporting process over applicants.

Thread https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Down pointing backhand index" aria-label="Emoji: Down pointing backhand index">

#DiscoveryProjects are a chance for researchers to gain more independence, demonstrate their ideas, & make a difference *their* way.

They are prestigious but extremely competitive. So competitive that just one slightly biased reviewer can scupper a project, even a career.

Imagine you& #39;re a female or minority researcher, with all the systemic biases stacked against you. #DiscoveryProjects is your chance to break through. You work for 2 months & nail your proposal.

Now imagine a reviewer calls you a "fraud", "cheat" or just "not worth any money".

How long before you could muster a response?

Before you contact colleagues, & your Research Office, to ask what to do? How long before they respond?

What if you& #39;ve got other duties, like child care? Maybe you work part time, or it& #39;s grading time?

Or there& #39;s #pandemic.

Well, you& #39;d better hope it all adds up to less than 3 days.

Introducing the #ARC3DayRulehttps://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Down pointing backhand index" aria-label="Emoji: Down pointing backhand index">
(from https://www.arc.gov.au/grants/grant-application/rejoinders)

I">https://www.arc.gov.au/grants/gr... know, I know, the ARC& #39;s bold font cuts through all those silly barriers, especially the hit to mental health.

It& #39;s easy to see why Assessment Reviews have to be lodged well before the 2-week rejoinder period ends. ARC needs to assess them, respond to RO, RO needs to contact the applicant and, if the ARC said there& #39;s no problem, the rejoinder needs to address the reviewer& #39;s assessment.

But *3 days*? That& #39;s ridiculous!

Seems especially designed to *prevent* anyone raising concerns in time.

It& #39;ll hit early-career researchers – more likely female or minority – hardest: they& #39;re less likely to know the process & get help to do something about #BadReviewers.

As one DMer put it, ARC seems focussed on "bureaucracy rather than concern over poor peer review practices".

While we& #39;re on bureaucracy:
The ARC doesn& #39;t even report the number of Assessment Reviews requests it receives. Maybe one for #SenateEstimates, @Louise_Pratt, @SenKimCarr?

First, simple changes, @arc_gov_au:

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> #ARC3DayRule clear in notification that assessments in RMS

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> #ARC3DayRule clear in Grant Calendar

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Report number of #BadReviewers per uni & year

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Investigate & remove #BadReviewers even if request is lodged late

Fix, don& #39;t hide.

But really, 3 days is just never going to be enough, @arc_gov_au!

#ARC3DayRule needs to change. It needs to *triple* to at least 9 working days.

Maybe that means the rejoinder period needs to be 3 weeks, not 2. So be it, I reckon.

And Research Offices, some things you can do (if not already):

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Scan assessments for defamatory, conflicted, discrim/biased comments

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Alert applicants to #ARC3DayRule

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Support applicants to report #BadReviewers

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="White heavy check mark" aria-label="Emoji: White heavy check mark"> Assist affected applicants to counselling services