Scaling research growth responsibly with LeapSpace
Why a growing research university in Jordan chose LeapSpace to stay connected to their research ambitions.
Rapid growth brings new responsibilities
When research output rises at a young university experiencing rapid growth, expectations climb as well.
But growth changes more than size and scope. As research scales, the systems around its researchers should as well: reliable access to knowledge, support for funding and collaboration, and most importantly, clear standards for how the work gets done.
Applied Science Private University (ASU)opens in new tab/window in Jordan knows this story well. A private university established in 1989, its scholarly output grew fourteen-fold between 2020 and 2025. This growth was partly accomplished by significant international collaborations, representing 80.7% of their published output in 2025. At the same time, ASU has prioritized quality: 24% of their research outputs were among the world’s top 10% most-cited publications (field-weighted), with a Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) of 2.49.1
This momentum raised new considerations for how to sustain further growth responsibly. Prof. Muna Barakatopens in new tab/window, Dean of Scientific Research and Graduate Studies, explains: "At ASU, the acceleration in research output changed the nature of the questions we ask ourselves. Growth is very exciting, but our approach had to become more strategic."
AI enters the research workflow
Protecting their hard-won research momentum has especially influenced how the university responded as researchers began to explore AI tools.
Prof. Barakat notes, "researchers are naturally interested in tools that can save time and foster new ideas. At the same time research decisions must be based on evidence that can be checked and defended."
As many universities experienced after generative AI tools became broadly available, the Dean’s office observed that faculty and researchers were experimenting with these tools in their research work, but without clear guidelines.
This observation led to an institution-wide discussion with researchers, the library, and other teams involved in strengthening the university’s research culture about how to support researchers with modern tools while still protecting academic integrity. These discussions considered not only evidence quality but also confidentiality and critical thinking skills. Prof. Barakat recalls, "what concerned me most was that researchers might rely on AI outputs that sound convincing but are not fully traceable."
For ASU, scaling responsibly means building the right infrastructure before problems appear. ASU was already familiar with Elsevier’s research ecosystem, especially tools such as Scopus and SciVal. Through their ongoing engagement with Elsevier and discussions around research analytics and institutional research support they learned about LeapSpaceTM, Elsevier’s research-grade AI workspace.
“We needed something designed for research, not a general tool that researchers were trying to adapt to academic work,” she notes, adding, “LeapSpace attracted our attention because it is built around trusted scholarly content, traceability, and responsible use.”
What made LeapSpace the right fit for ASU
While careful prompting in generic AI tools may yield some insights, when an AI response draws from a corpus that isn’t curated for the rigor of academic research, how do you know if the insights are worth exploring?
LeapSpace is built to offer transparency and traceability. With the power of more than 23 million peer‑reviewed articles and books from Elsevier, alongside licensed content from over 1,500 partners and millions of records from more than 7,000 publishers indexed in Scopus2, LeapSpace insights are grounded in trusted, peer-reviewed scholarly content.
Prof. Barakat notes, "trusted content matters because research is built on previous knowledge. If sources are unclear or the reasoning cannot be checked, it creates risk. Safeguards and transparency matter because they allow the researcher to remain in control."
The sources of each insight can be validated through Trust Cards, a feature in the LeapSpace environment which provides not only bibliographic metadata and a link to the source paper but also shows the original citation in context — and evaluates how the statement connects to the insight.
Prof. Barakat observed, “the most valuable AI tool is the one that helps researchers produce stronger, more defensible work. LeapSpace felt relevant to us because it helps researchers move faster while staying grounded in trusted scholarly evidence.”
The most valuable AI tool is the one that helps researchers produce stronger, more defensible work. LeapSpace felt relevant to us because it helps researchers move faster while staying grounded in trusted scholarly evidence.Prof. Muna Barakat
Dean of Scientific Research and Graduate Studies em Applied Science Private University (ASU)
Beyond trust and transparency: LeapSpace support for research strategy
Besides supporting research integrity, LeapSpace offers features for other aspects of the research workflow that were attractive for their alignment with ASU’s research ambitions.
Many researchers have strong ideas but need earlier and clearer visibility of suitable funding resources. The Find Funding tool within LeapSpace, with over 40,000 active and recurring awards3, provides a gateway to international funding calls, grants and other opportunities.
Prof. Barakat notes the clear advantages to researchers. "If a tool can help them explore calls that fit their topics and ambitions, it can make proposal development more strategic and less last-minute."
In addition to seeking funding opportunities, ASU is also leveraging collaboration with researchers outside the region. Prof. Barakat notes, "we encourage interdisciplinary and international research, but it is not easy for a researcher to identify the right collaborator beyond their immediate network. The Discover Experts tool helps surface relevant expertise and can support stronger teams and partnerships."
Informal response to the introduction of LeapSpace from ASU’s research community has been positive. Prof. Barakat has heard that LeapSpace is giving researchers more confidence and clarity in their work, noting “they value having a research environment that helps them explore ideas without feeling disconnected from scholarly evidence.”
She added that they appreciate that LeapSpace is not being received only as a faster search tool:
Researchers see the possibilities for LeapSpace to help them think more clearly, organize evidence responsibly, and move toward stronger research questions. For a university like ASU, that is exactly the kind of support we want technology to provide.Prof. Muna Barakat
Dean of Scientific Research and Graduate Studies em Applied Science Private University (ASU)
References
1. Source: SciVal. Figures obtained from SciVal on September 24, 2026
2,3: Source: Elsevier. Figures current as of October 2026
Next steps
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