Moscow City University (MCU) has developed an Intelligent Digital Service for Social Impact Assessment. The project is being implemented as part of the Priority 2030 programme. It is designed for social initiative leaders, research project managers, authors of educational and other projects, experts, and executives from public-sector organisations and businesses.
The service identifies the changes a project has brought about in people’s lives, helps forecast the social effects of its implementation, and provides an evidence-based assessment of the results achieved. It also helps prepare materials for evaluating these effects, including their economic value (social return on investment), identify gaps in the available evidence, and determine areas for further development.
For the University, this tool provides a foundation for analysing the societal value of its developments and making evidence-based management decisions.
How the Service Works
The process begins with completing an online form. Users provide information about their project, its participants, resources and partners, as well as the expected changes, and upload relevant supporting documents. Before submission, the system checks whether all the required information has been provided.
Users can track the assessment status in their personal accounts and view the results for individual indicators on the project page. This helps them identify which materials need to be supplemented and which results still require verification.
The methodology comprises three successive assessment levels:
- Social Potential. The assessment considers the societal problem the project seeks to address, its target audience, its potential scale of implementation, and the extent to which the development is ready for practical application.
- Impact Readiness. This stage examines documentation on piloting and implementation, information about partners and participants, evidence that the developed product works, and its potential for wider application.
- Verified Changes. The assessment analyses data on the outcomes achieved for people, including their scale, sustainability, and socio-economic value.
This step-by-step approach makes it possible to assess a project in light of its current stage of development and the data available. Any conclusion about the social impact achieved must be supported by evidence, such as survey findings, measurements, statistics, and field research materials.
The service combines artificial intelligence capabilities with expert analysis. AI processes project materials, while the methodology provides for an independent expert assessment of the project’s impact readiness and the changes it has achieved. Responsibility for interpreting the results remains with human experts.
Project Piloting
On October 27, 2026, the team presented the methodology and capabilities of the service at the 12th Conference of the Association of Specialists in Programme and Policy Evaluation, “Evaluation Without Barriers”. The presentation, “An Intelligent Service for Social Impact Assessment: A Three-Level Assessment System Using Projects in Education and Science as Examples,” was included in the session “Social Impact Assessment – 1”.
The service has been piloted on ten projects. The next stage will focus on expanding the sample, testing the reproducibility of the results, and examining the consistency between expert and machine-generated assessments.
The team’s plans include developing tools to help project teams design their activities around expected outcomes and support ongoing assessment monitoring. Another goal is to create a regional platform for social impact assessment and evidence-based management of the education system.
The project is led by Valentina Salakhova. The team also includes Tatiana Ivanova (Le-Van), Anna Istomina, Natalia Ageeva, Yuri Kupriyanov, Oleg Zubkov, Tatiana Mysina, Yulia Sumenkova, and Maria Fedorovskaya.
Become Part of the Project
If you are implementing a social, educational, or research project and would like to provide evidence of its value, identify its actual social impact, or forecast its future effects, you are welcome to submit an application via the project website. The service will help identify gaps in your evidence base and determine directions for further development.
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