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This is the final report of the enhancement-led research evaluation Quality and Renewal 2017, Q&R17 (in Swedish, Kvalitet och förnyelse, KoF17), carried out at Uppsala University between February 2016 and October 2017. The project has been a major undertaking, aiming to strengthen research at Uppsala University through a broad analysis of the functioning of its various research environments, with particular focus on the preconditions and processes that underpin research quality and renewal. 

To this end, an internet-based survey was carried out, in which around 3,700 active researchers at Uppsala University shared their perceptions of and opinions on their local research environments at the University. Together with some bibliometric analyses, the survey results served as background material for departmental self-evaluations, which in turn were subjected to external peer review. In this process, almost 130 ‘critical friends’, most of them from outside Sweden, evaluated 54 evaluation units to assess strengths and weaknesses and make recommendations.

Q&R17 is the third major research evaluation at Uppsala University. The two previous evaluations, Q&R07 and Q&R11, primarily aimed to identify strong research activities and research initiatives with potential to develop into strong future areas of research, thereby aiding the university management in its continuous strategic decision-making process. In contrast to those two evaluations, Q&R17 has not resulted in any sort of grading of the research carried out at Uppsala University, either in its totality or in its parts. Nevertheless, the panel reports include numerous testimonies of the perceived strength and excellence of research at Uppsala University. 

More importantly, given the purpose of Q&R17, a number of areas have been identified where action is needed if Uppsala University is to take steps towards reaching its full potential. These relate to: leadership and strategic renewal; talent attraction and retention; quality culture and control; inter-national milieu; external collaboration and outreach; and research-teaching linkages. The conclusions and recommendations coming out of Q&R17 will form the basis for a number of actions throughout the University aiming to further strengthen the international standing of Uppsala University.