About CoRATES
Developed by a research synthesis expert and a software engineer and data scientist, CoRATES combines methodological expertise with modern software engineering to support rigorous evidence appraisal.
What is CoRATES?
CoRATES is more than a checklist platform. It is an ecosystem built to support high-quality and efficient study appraisal by bringing every part of the process into one organized, interactive workspace. Instead of manually managing PDF or Word checklists, tracking decisions across spreadsheets, emailing files back and forth, and creating visualizations in statistical software, CoRATES automates these steps within a single, integrated platform.
Beyond streamlining and automating the study appraisal process, CoRATES is intentionally designed to strengthen rigor by embedding the practices that support high-quality appraisal, including double coding, consensus processes, transparent documentation, and consistent rule-based scoring.
CoRATES was not built to replace established appraisal tools; but to provide the infrastructure that supports the rigorous processes involved in applying those tools and synthesizing results across studies, ultimately improving the rigor of research synthesis.
Who is CoRATES For?
Although CoRATES was designed with evidence synthesis teams in mind, it supports a wide range of users who need to appraise study quality. Whether you are part of a systematic review team, teaching evidence synthesis or research methods, needing to assess a single study, or learning the fundamentals of study appraisal, CoRATES helps you complete rigorous, transparent assessments quickly.
Systematic review and evidence synthesis teams
Appraise multiple studies in a structured, consistent way that supports rigorous, transparent, and well-documented review processes.
Students learning to appraise research
Learn study appraisal by using validated tools in a guided interface, with free single-study assessments for easy practice.
Faculty teaching research methods or appraisal
Use structured appraisal activities to help students understand what makes different research designs rigorous by examining real published studies.
Clinicians and practitioners
Evaluate the quality of individual studies when deciding whether evidence should inform practice, policy, or program decisions.
Anyone needing to appraise a single study
CoRATES makes it easy to complete a one-off appraisal for free, including automatic study-level scoring.
How Did CoRATES Get Started?
CoRATES began with a problem familiar to anyone involved in evidence synthesis: the study appraisal process was far more cumbersome than it needed to be. Managing PDF or Word checklists, juggling multiple spreadsheets, applying complex scoring rules, and relying on separate applications for data entry, documentation and visualization made the workflow fragmented, time-consuming, and prone to error.
Brandy, an evidence synthesis expert who had experienced these challenges firsthand across dozens of systematic reviews, knew there had to be a better way. She not only wanted to streamline and automate the process, but wanted to create a tool that genuinely supports rigorous study appraisal and makes it easier for others to conduct high-quality assessments. To build such a platform, she turned to Jacob, a software engineer and data scientist.
Together, they combined methodological expertise with modern software design to create CoRATES, a platform intentionally built to support rigorous evidence appraisal while making the process more organized, transparent, and manageable. Their goal was not only to reduce the many pain points of conducting quality and risk of bias assessments, but to build a tool grounded in rigor, supported by thoughtful design, and genuinely useful to researchers, clinicians, educators, and students.
Who Developed CoRATES?
CoRATES was developed through a collaboration between an evidence synthesis expert and a software engineer who recognized the need to modernize and streamline the workflow of study appraisal in research synthesis. Our continued development focuses on pairing practical, user-centered features with thoughtful design to enhance both the rigor and the efficiency of the evidence appraisal process.
Brandy Maynard
Research Synthesis Expert
Brandy is a research synthesist with extensive expertise in systematic review methodology and evidence appraisal. She completed her first systematic review as a Campbell Collaboration review during her PhD, reflecting her commitment to rigorous and transparent methods from the very beginning of her career. She has been actively involved with the Campbell Collaboration for over 15 years as an author and currently serves as Co-Chair and Editor of the Social Welfare Coordinating Group.
Over her career, Brandy has authored more than 30 systematic reviews and overviews, regularly teaches systematic review methods, supervises doctoral students conducting evidence syntheses, and supports research teams in developing high-quality, methodologically sound reviews. Her firsthand experience with the practical challenges of managing the study appraisal process shaped the vision for CoRATES and directly informed its emphasis on usability and methodological rigor.
While CoRATES is a project Brandy is deeply passionate about, she spends most of her time at Saint Louis University, where she serves as a Professor and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the School of Social Work.
Jacob Maynard
Software Engineer & Data Scientist
Jacob is a software engineer and data scientist who focuses on designing clear, intuitive, and scalable software. With strengths in systems architecture, user interface design, and data visualization, he enjoys building tools that solve practical problems for real users.
His early work visualizing risk-of-bias data for an overview of reviews sparked his interest in research synthesis processes, and he brings a strong commitment to creating thoughtful, high-quality user experiences.
As the technical lead for CoRATES, Jacob built the platform from the ground up, translating methodological requirements into a modern, collaborative system.
His software engineering expertise and attention to research workflows are central to the platform's design and user experience.
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