Indiana University takes a strong, proactive approach to foster a culture of research integrity and maintaining the public trust in research, including promoting education in and resources for the responsible conduct of research (RCR) to:
Enhance skills for ethical decision making in research;
Provide an open forum for questions, concerns and challenges;
Increase awareness of ethical concerns related to the conduct of research; and
Improve understanding of the consequences of unethical conduct in research;
conflict of interest – personal, professional, and financial – and conflict of commitment, in allocating time, effort, or other research resources
policies regarding human subjects, live vertebrate animal subjects in research, and safe laboratory practices
mentor/mentee responsibilities and relationships
safe research environments (e.g., those that promote inclusion and are free of sexual, racial, ethnic, disability and other forms of discriminatory harassment)
collaborative research, including collaborations with industry and investigators and institutions in other countries
peer review, including the responsibility for maintaining confidentiality and security in peer review
data acquisition and analysis; laboratory tools (e.g., tools for analyzing data and creating or working with digital images); recordkeeping practices, including methods such as electronic laboratory notebooks secure and ethical data use; data confidentiality, management, sharing, and ownership
research misconduct and policies for handling misconduct
responsible authorship and publication
the scientist as a responsible member of society, contemporary ethical issues in biomedical research, and the environmental and societal impacts of scientific research
Formal RCR instruction is just a portion of overall research education and should be supplemented by ongoing mentorship and training within the research team.
RCR instruction is offered by the Office for Research Compliance, the IU Center for Bioethics, and the Bioethics and Subject Advocacy Program (BSAP) of the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI).
Satisfying RCR Requirements at IU
NIH requires RCR education for all trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars receiving support through any NIH training, career development award (individual or institutional), research education grant, and/or dissertation research grant. NIH applications require a plan for instruction in responsible conduct of research.
All eligible researchers must complete an interactive program of RCR education of at least 8 hours within a 2-year timeframe, at least once during each career stage, and at a frequency of no less than once every four years.
Principal Investigators are responsible for:
Identifying individuals who are participating in the research project and ensuring that they comply with NIH RCR requirement
Providing and resourcing project/discipline mentoring and appropriate oversight in the ethical and responsible conduct of research for all personnel participating in the research project; and
Maintaining records to document that each person has completed RCR education.
How to complete the NIH requirement
The Office for Research Compliance and IU Center for Bioethics offer a number of options for completing this requirement.
If your training grant includes funding for education, enroll in a credited course through the IU School of Medicine.
If you do not have funding for a credited course, complete one of the in-person workshop series.
All principal investigators, co-principal investigators, faculty, and senior personnel who are or will be supported by NSF funds must complete RCR training, including:
Successful completion of selected modules of the online responsible conduct of research program hosted by Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI); and
Project/discipline-specific mentoring by the principal investigator and lead investigators during the course of the grant, and understanding of the university policies for research security, export controls and disclosure reporting requirements.
How to complete the NSF requirement
Complete the online RCR course offered through CITI. Visit the University-wide CITI Research Education webpage for specific CITI information and/or to access CITI via the IU CITI single-sign-on (SSO) portal.
Log into your existing IU-affiliated CITI account or register as a new user (using the IU SSO and their network ID/password) to affiliate with IU and complete training.
To add the RCR course:
Click View courses
Click Add a Course
Navigate to Question 5 and select a Responsible Conduct of Research Course based on your area of research.
Biomedical Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Social and Behavioral Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Physical Science Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Humanities Responsible Conduct of Research for Engineers
Responsible Conduct of Research for Administrators.
For faculty: Responsible Conduct of Research Refresher for faculty and senior personnel
If you are unsure which course best fits your research area, your Principal Investigator and lead investigators can guide your Responsible Conduct of Research course selection.
Monitoring and documentation
The Office for Research Compliance will, on a periodic basis, monitor completion of CITI training. The PI and Fiscal Officer will be notified of any individuals who have not satisfied this training requirement. If you have received a notification of noncompliance for the incompletion of the CITI course requirement, IU records indicate that you are affiliated with NSF grant funding and are required to complete CITI RCR. It is the Principal Investigator’s responsibility to ensure that RCR training is completed. Failure to complete the course in a timely fashion may result in reversal of expenses from the grant to a departmental account.
If you have completed the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research course at another institution, follow these instructions to transfer your course history to Indiana University/IU Health.
If your primary email in CITI is listed as a non-IU email, your completion will not sync to IU’s report. To update your email address in CITI, log in to your account, navigate to the arrow next to your name in the top right corner, click “Profiles”, click “Edit Profile”, and the IU email address can be updated.
Please note, Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course is distinct from other CITI courses, such as training required by the IRB/Human Subjects Research, Good Clinical Practice, Export Controls, IBC/Biosafety, or Lab Animal Research.
Documentation of training is subject to review upon request by NSF.
Program directors, faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and any staff participating in the research supported by USDA-NIFA must complete RCR training, including:
Successful completion of selected modules of the online responsible conduct of research program hosted by Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI); and
Project/discipline-specific mentoring by the principal investigator and lead investigators during the course of the grant, and understanding of the university policies for research security, export controls and disclosure reporting requirements.
How to complete the USDA-NIFA requirement
Complete the online RCR course offered through CITI. Visit the University-wide CITI Research Education webpage for specific CITI information and/or to access CITI via the IU CITI single-sign-on (SSO) portal.
Log into your existing IU-affiliated CITI account or register as a new user (using the IU SSO and their network ID/password) to affiliate with IU and complete training.
To add the RCR course:
Click View courses
Click Add a Course
Navigate to Question 5 and select a Responsible Conduct of Research Course based on your area of research.
Biomedical Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Social and Behavioral Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Physical Science Responsible Conduct of Research Course
Humanities Responsible Conduct of Research for Engineers
Responsible Conduct of Research for Administrators.
For faculty: Responsible Conduct of Research Refresher for faculty and senior personnel
If you are unsure which course best fits your research area, your Principal Investigator and lead investigators can guide your Responsible Conduct of Research course selection.
Monitoring and documentation
The Office for Research Compliance will, on a periodic basis, monitor completion of CITI training. The PI and Fiscal Officer will be notified of any individuals who have not satisfied this training requirement. If you have received a notification of noncompliance for the incompletion of the CITI course requirement, IU records indicate that you are affiliated with USDA-NIFA grant funding and are required to complete CITI RCR. It is the Principal Investigator’s responsibility to ensure that RCR training is completed. Failure to complete the course in a timely fashion may result in reversal of expenses from the grant to a departmental account.
If you have completed the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research course at another institution, follow these instructions to transfer your course history to Indiana University/IU Health.
If your primary email in CITI is listed as a non-IU email, your completion will not sync to IU’s report. To update your email address in CITI, log in to your account, navigate to the arrow next to your name in the top right corner, click “Profiles”, click “Edit Profile”, and the IU email address can be updated.
Please note, Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course is distinct from other CITI courses, such as training required by the IRB/Human Subjects Research, Good Clinical Practice, Export Controls, IBC/Biosafety, or Lab Animal Research.
Documentation of training is subject to review upon request by NIFA.
Post-doctoral fellows are strongly encouraged to complete RCR training, regardless of funding. The Office for Research Compliance and IU Center for Bioethics offer a number of RCR options, including credited courses through the IU School of Medicine or other department and in-person and virtual workshop series.
RCR Offerings
RCR Offerings
The following courses and workshops satisfy the NIH requirements for instruction in RCR.
Individuals who need to satisfy RCR training requirements for an NIH training grant or as a condition of employment at IU may be required to register with the graduate office as a non-degree seeking student to enroll in G504/506. See how to register as a non-degree seeking student here. Some departments and graduate programs also offer their own RCR courses, such as NURS-D 602: Responsible Conduct of Research in the School of Nursing.
Three-credit course offered each Fall term. This course provides an in-depth introduction to a wide range of issues related to scientific integrity and the responsible conduct of research. The course meets for 2 hours and 40 minutes once a week and has a required take-home midterm and final exam. G504 course is most appropriate for students who would like a complete introduction to RCR, especially those who are in a graduate program where they can count this course towards their degree. Some graduate programs require G504, including the CITE program.
One-credit course providing an overview of the rules and standards required for Graduate Students, Research Technicians and Post-doctoral Fellows conducting responsible scientific research.
One-credit course that is offered each Spring term. It meets for just 8 sessions, 1 hr and 30 minutes each, for two months (e.g. Jan-Feb) and has a take-home midterm and final. This course provides a more limited and focused introduction on key topics in RCR, especially related to translational research, such as clinical trials and other human participants research.
IU Indianapolis In-person RCR Workshop
The IU Indianapolis In-Person RCR Seminar Series is offered by the IU Center for Bioethics. Participants will refine and define expected standards of conduct, increase their confidence in dealing with difficult issues, and meet current NIH requirements for formal training in research ethics. Each session will open with an introduction to RCR principles and policies related to the day’s topic and will be followed by at least one case example for attendees to discuss. The series runs January through December.
Registration: Enroll for the next series by emailing Colin Halverson at chalver@iu.edu.
Topic
Date/Time
Research Misconduct
January
Animals in Research
February
Data Ethics
March
Consent and Assent
April
Conflicts of Interest and Collaboration
May
Authorship
September
Interpersonal Ethics
October
Community Engaged Research
November
The Office for Research Compliance presents the IUB In-Person RCR Seminar Series each month for 1 hour. Register once for all eight sessions. Further information on topics and presenters is provided via Canvas. Emails will also be sent to enrollees. Certificates of completion will be sent to attendees that request them upon completion of all eight sessions.
University Collections at McCalla Building, Multipurpose room
525 N Indiana Ave
Bloomington, IN 47408
Human Subjects
October 16, 12-1pm
University Collections at McCalla Building, Multipurpose room
525 N Indiana Ave
Bloomington, IN 47408
Animal Research
November 20, 12-pm
University Collections at McCalla Building, Multipurpose room
525 N Indiana Ave
Bloomington, IN 47408
Authorship
January 15, 12-1pm
Simon 001
Simon Hall MSB1
212 S. Hawthorne Drive
Bloomington, IN 47405
Data Management
February 19, 12-1pm
Simon 001
Simon Hall MSB1
212 S. Hawthorne Drive
Bloomington, IN 47405
Conflict of Interest/Research Security
March 12, 12-1pm
Simon 001
Simon Hall MSB1
212 S. Hawthorne Drive
Bloomington, IN 47405
AI
April 16, 12-1pm
Simon 001
Simon Hall MSB1
212 S. Hawthorne Drive
Bloomington, IN 47405
Community Engaged Research
May 21, 12-1pm
Simon 001
Simon Hall MSB1
212 S. Hawthorne Drive
Bloomington, IN 47405
The ORC Virtual RCR Seminar Series, presented by the Office for Research Compliance, is specifically designed for individuals on regional campuses or those who cannot attend the in-person offerings or miss an in-person session. These sessions are offered in a live, synchronous format via Microsoft Teams and are not recorded. Attendees must be on camera and engaging in the conversation in order to receive credit.
Register once for all eight sessions. Further information on topics and presenters is provided via Canvas. Emails will also be sent to enrollees. Certificates of completion will be sent to attendees that request them upon completion of all eight sessions.
The ORC Virtual RCR Seminar Series, presented by the Office for Research Compliance, is specifically designed for individuals on regional campuses, those who cannot attend the in-person offerings, or miss an in-person session. These sessions are offered in a live, synchronous format via Microsoft Teams and are not recorded. Presenters specifically create material to foster discussion, as such, attendees must be on camera and engaging in the conversation in order to receive credit.
Register once for all eight sessions. Further information on topics and presenters is provided via Canvas. Emails will also be sent to enrollees. Certificates of completion will be sent to attendees that request them upon completion of all eight sessions.
IU Center for Bioethics and the Bioethics and Subject Advocacy Program (BSAP) faculty can help applicants for K-series grants formulate and then carry out extended training in responsible conduct of research that spans the period of the award. For more information about RCR training for your K grant, contact Peter Schwartz, MD, PhD or Nic Oliver, MA.
Research Ethics for K Recipients (REKR). The Research Ethics for K Recipients (REKR) seminar is for NIH K applicants and awardees to discuss their research with their peers. Participants meet every two months and take a deep dive into the ethics issues specific to their research project. If interested in participating, please contact Nic Oliver, MA.
