Faculty demonstrate research excellence through publishing achievements

Story by Stacey Mickelbart

Photos by Tom Campbell and Joshua Clark

February 21, 2025

F aculty members at Purdue wear many hats: teaching students, conducting research and sharing that research with others. Publishing research papers is one way scientists disseminate their work, and on February 20, the College of Agriculture recognized faculty publishing achievements for the 2023–2024 academic year.

Over this period, the 49 honorees stood out as the top faculty with the greatest increase in the number of times their academic publications were cited by other researchers and/or in their H-index. Both are indicators of the cumulative impact of their work.

Neither citation rate nor H-index are well-known terms outside of academia, so what are they and why do they matter? A rising citation number for the year indicates that the research is being actively read and that its findings influence other scholars.

The H-index represents a formula that factors in both the number of publications a scholar has published and the number of times those papers are cited by other researchers. It shows that an author’s cumulative work is widely recognized and frequently referenced by peers, suggesting that their findings have been influential over the long term.

Together, these metrics highlight a researcher’s role in driving a better understanding of their work area and serve as valuable indicators of a researcher’s impact and influence within their scientific community.

The impact of the index is significant, explains Ron Turco, associate dean and director of agricultural research and graduate education. “These metrics play a significant role in various aspects of our programs, including international rankings of colleges of agriculture, evaluations for awards, and shaping opinions about the reputation of our research enterprise and college,” Turco said.

The dedication of College of Agriculture faculty to their respective fields is truly commendable, says Glenn W. Sample Dean of Agriculture Bernie Engel.

“The high-impact research conducted by College of Agriculture faculty directly contributes to our QS World University Rankings: No. 3 in the U.S. and No. 5 in the world,” Engel said. “We congratulate our colleagues who have been recognized for their exceptional contributions to advancing knowledge.”

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