AA is a complementary tool that provides a dashboard of verified scholarly data for doctoral-granting research universities. For selected metrics, the data provides a source of external benchmarking and comparison to other institutions. AA helps academic leaders identify their strengths and areas for improvement.

The AA database includes information on over 270,000 faculty members associated with more than 9,000 Ph.D. programs and 10,000 departments at more than 385 universities in the United States and abroad. The data include the primary areas of scholarly research accomplishment:

• Publication of scholarly work as books and journal articles
• Citations to published journal articles
• Research funding by thirteen federal agencies and two non-federal agencies
• Honorific awards bestowed upon faculty members