Training in Responsible Conduct of Research

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has joined the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in a new requirement to ensure funded investigators are formally trained in the Responsible Conduct of Research. Under the NSF implementation, institutions must, at the time of proposal submission, certify that an RCR training plan is in place and must, as a condition of award, ensure that all undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral research scholars/fellows supported under NSF-funded projects receive appropriate training. The NSF implemented these RCR responsibilities as of January 2010 under Section 7009 of the America COMPETES Act, rendering compliance a statutory requirement, and has formally amended its policies, procedures, and conditions of award to incorporate this requirement. More background information is available through the NSF RCR website at http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/rcr.jsp.

To meet the institutional obligation for RCR training, The University of Iowa has developed a Responsible Conduct of Research Plan under the joint sponsorship and responsibility of the Graduate College and the Office of the Vice President for Research. The Plan delineates a training program that responds to the specific requirements set forth by the NSF and NIH and meets wide-ranging needs for RCR training, accommodating all disciplines engaged in research and other scholarly creativity.

The program includes various types of training, targeting position-specific groups of “trainees.” Trainees must complete the RCR program that aligns with their current positions and obtain additional RCR training as position levels change. The program serves four distinct groups of trainees:

1. Undergraduate and professional degree students receiving NSF or NIH support will meet the RCR requirement online, by completing the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI), a web-based training course comprising 10 topic-specific modules; trainees are expected to complete the CITI course before or within the first month of research participation/compensation.
2. Predoctoral Students receiving NSF or NIH support must enroll in UI course 650:270, Principles of Scholarly Integrity, which comprises a four-hour orientation and a series of 90-minute, topic-specific workshops. Master’s degree students must complete the orientation and four topic-specific workshops, for a total of 10 contact hours; doctoral-degree students must complete the orientation and eight topic-specific workshops, for a total of 16 contact hours. All students, master’s and doctoral, are expected to complete the orientation within the first year and the workshops at the rate of two per semester, finishing within a one- or two-year period, respectively.
3. Postdoctoral Research Scholars (FP01) and Fellows (FP02) receiving NSF or NIH support must complete UI course 650:604, Principles of Scholarly Integrity, including a four-hour orientation and four 90-minute, topic-specific workshops, for a total of 10 contact hours. Trainees are expected to complete the workshops at the rate of two per semester, finishing the orientation and workshops within a one-year period.
4. Early-Career Faculty – currently limited to those holding NIH K Awards – must complete UI course 650:614, Principles of Scholarly Integrity. The course includes a four-hour orientation and four 90-minute, topic-specific workshops, for a total of 10 contact hours. Trainees are expected to complete the workshops at the rate of two per semester, finishing the orientation and workshops within a one-year period. Early-career trainees will also be expected to assume a role in the other RCR courses, as described in the following paragraph.

RCR training workshops will require faculty facilitators at the rate of approximately one faculty member per 10 trainees. Departments and programs with participating trainees must provide faculty facilitators in order for their predoctoral students and postdoctoral scholars/fellows to participate in course 650:270 or 650:604, respectively. Early-career faculty enrolled in course 650:614 will automatically be expected to serve as faculty facilitators.

The latest RCR program information is available through an umbrella website located on the OVPR website at http://research.uiowa.edu/content/responsible-conduct-research. At this stage the UI RCR program is naturally evolving and subject to revision, so please revisit this site periodically.

When?  Beginning Fall 2010, the UI Office of the Vice President for Research required that all graduate students (and others) funded through resources from NIH and NSF must complete RCR training in their first year.

How do I determine if I need RCR training?  Use the following flowchart to determine if you need to take Principles of Scholarly Integrity to satisfy the RCR training requirement. Note: This flowchart was developed for the College of Nursing. Students/postdocs in other Colleges should contact their departments for information.