Federal regulations and university policies require Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for research with human subjects. This applies whether the research is conducted by faculty or students, by individuals or a group. Failure to obtain proper approval in advance may jeopardize your data, prevent you from publishing the results, and place you and the university in violation of federal regulations.

At the same time, many class projects are conducted for educational purposes and not as research, and will not require IRB approval. This guidance will help you determine whether you need to get approval from the IRB before conducting a given activity. Please note that IRBs do not have the option of granting “retroactive” approval after research is done; you should err on the side of submitting or consulting with the IRBs if there is any doubt.

Student Research

Student research activities include, but are not limited to, projects that result in undergraduate honors theses, masters theses, or doctoral dissertations. IRB approval is required if human subjects are involved, either directly or through use of identifiable data about them… AND… the intent falls under the definition of Human Subjects Research.

Below are some common scenarios with processing requirements:
RESEARCH that involves direct interaction with individuals (e.g., in person, or via mail, email, web survey, or telephone), or data from human subjects that can be linked to personal identities
IRB approval required. Submit IRB application form. Student researcher, co-investigators (if a group) and faculty advisor are required to have HSR training.

RESEARCH that is limited to secondary analysis of data, records or specimens that falls under Exempt Category #4.
IRB approval required. Submit IRB application for Exempt protocol. Student researcher, co-investigators (if a group) and faculty advisor are required to have HSR training.
RESEARCH-like activities using departmental subject pools (e.g., Psychology, Business, Political Science, etc.) even when the activity is conducted for educational purposes as a class requirement.
IRB approval required. Submit an IRB application form. Student researcher, co-investigators (if a group) and faculty advisor are required to have HSR training.
Class Projects

Class projects are generally conducted for educational purposes and not as research. While some require submission of an IRB application, many class projects do not require an application. If a student plans to pursue additional activities with the data that will result in dissemination outside of the class (e.g., thesis project, conference paper, article, poster presentation), then an IRB application must be submitted.
CLASS PROJECTS involving secondary data analyses that are assigned and conducted as class educational exercises.
Need to provide instructor with title and brief summary of project (no IRB application required). Student researchers are required to have HSR training.
CLASS PROJECTS that involve direct interaction with human subjects (e.g., in person, mail, email, web surveys, or telephone), but where the purpose is as an educational exercise and not research that will be disseminated outside of class.
No IRB application required if minimal risk and not covering sensitive topics (sexual behavior, drug/alcohol use). Need to provide instructor with title and brief summary of project. Student researchers are required to have HSR training.

DETAILS FOR INSTRUCTORS

  • Instructors and/or department are responsible for insuring that students complete Human Subjects Research ("HSR") Training.
  • Instructors should collect titles and brief descriptions for all class projects using human subjects and then evaluate whether any may need IRB review (e.g., sensitive topics or more than minimal risk). Once all project titles/summaries are collected, email the IRB office for confirmation that formal IRB review is not required.