Methodology
A transparent, reproducible methodology
Every number in Connect51 traces back to open data and a documented method. No black boxes.
Built on OpenAlex
Connect51 is built on OpenAlex, the open catalogue of the global research record — over 46 million works, with their authors, institutions, funders, and citations. Because the source data is open, every figure we show can be traced back to its origin.
Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI)
Raw citation counts favour large, established fields. FWCI normalises citations against the world average for the same field, year, and document type, so a value of 1.0 means world-average impact and 2.0 means twice the world average. This lets you compare a mathematician and a microbiologist on a level footing.
Research Gravitas
Research Gravitas is our composite measure of an institution’s pull in a field — combining output, citation impact, and the strength of its collaboration network. It answers a question rankings can’t: where does this institution genuinely lead?
A documented subject taxonomy
We map every work to a custom Division and Subject taxonomy so benchmarking is consistent and comparable across institutions. The full taxonomy and every calculation are documented — reproducible by anyone with access to OpenAlex.
Why transparency matters
Research leaders make high-stakes decisions on this evidence. That is why our methodology is public: so you can trust the numbers, and defend them.
See the methodology in action
Book a demo and we'll walk through exactly how your numbers are calculated.