dentalssale Saveetha Dental College in Chennai recently made headlines by claiming to have surpassed Harvard School of Dental Medicine in publication count on the renowned SCOPUS database. According to the college, as of March 2023, their publication count stood at an impressive 8,920, edging past Harvard’s 8,854 publications. Saveetha Dental College also boasted of having 12 papers published in the esteemed LANCET journal and a team of 75 esteemed researchers.
However, an investigation conducted by SCIENCE journal has raised concerns about the college’s methods. It is alleged that the institution may have resorted to large-scale self-citations, a practice in which researchers cite their own papers excessively to enhance their visibility within the academic community.
SCIENCE journal discovered a line from a paper co-authored by Saveetha Dental College researchers in 2022, which was subsequently followed by 15 citations of other papers from the same college that were less relevant to the subject matter.
In response to these allegations, the research team from Saveetha Dental College dismissed them as propaganda and baseless accusations. They contended that such practices are prevalent among leading academic institutions worldwide and are not unique to their college.
The researchers further emphasized that there is no evidence of any specific wrongdoing or violations of publication ethics, such as plagiarism. They argued that the higher number of publications should be recognized as a testament to their hard work and the quality of the research facilities they have established.
Additionally, the team pointed out that self-citations are not considered in rankings by QS and other reputable organizations. Therefore, they fail to see how this alleged manipulation could have influenced their rankings. They attributed their success to the significant volume of high-impact factor publications they have produced.
Saveetha’s research team accused SCIENCE journal of harboring jealousy and attempting to undermine their progress. They argued that European institutions maintain their top rankings through international collaborations and the enrollment of international students. In contrast, Saveetha Dental College conducts extensive research and serves a higher volume of patients, which they believe is undervalued by the rankings.
The college reiterated that all their data is available in the public domain for scrutiny and expressed confidence in the quality of their work. They highlighted their impressive faculty publication ratio of 1:8, their state-of-the-art research facilities, and the substantial number of research scholars they host. Saveetha Dental College asserted that they possess unique resources and patient numbers that surpass those of higher-ranked European dental institutions.
In conclusion, the dental college condemned what they perceived as a smear campaign aimed at tarnishing the reputation of India. They released a comprehensive four-page response addressing the allegations made against them.
