Responsible Conduct of Research

Loyola University Maryland is committed to the responsible conduct of research (RCR).  Loyola is committed to meeting the National Science Foundation (NSF) requirement that each institution have – at the time of proposal submission – a plan in place to provide training in the responsible and ethical conduct of research to all students and postdoctoral researchers participating in NSF-funded research.  Information about the NSF requirement can be found on the NSF website.

Loyola University Maryland has identified the CITI Program (Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative at the University of Miami) to meet this RCR requirement. While this requirement applies only to proposals supported by the NSF, this training program is available to all members of the Loyola research community free of charge. Discipline specific course are available for the following areas:

Physical Sciences
Biology
Humanities
Social and Behavioral Sciences and Education
Administrators

The training covers the areas of Research Misconduct, Data Management, Responsible Authorship, Peer Review, Mentor and Trainee Responsibilities, Conflict of Interest, Collaborative Research and Research with Human and Animal Subjects. The training is divided into modules of 20-30 minutes each. The modules can be completed all at once or separately. Upon completion of the modules a certificate is provided.

Principal Investigators on NSF grants are responsible for informing and ensuring that students and/or post-doctoral researchers complete the training. The PI should inform the student which course should be taken (see above for the discipline-specific courses).  It is expected that faculty members will provide additional mentoring in the responsible conduct of research specific to the needs of the research being conducted.

The student should complete the training before beginning any research activities supported by the NSF grant.  The PI must provide a copy of the certificate of completion to the ORSP before the initial payment request for the student or post-doctoral researcher is forwarded for payment.  The ORSP will maintain copies of the certificates of completion on file for NSF-supported research.

How to Access the Training
1.       Go to www.citiprogram.org.
2.       Select “New Users Register Here”.
3.       Select Loyola University Maryland on the “Select your institution or organization” page.
4.       Create a username and password and select the appropriate Learner Group.
5.       If the training will not be completed at one time, keep a record of your user name and password so that you can log back in.
6.       Upon completion of the training, submit a copy of the certificate to the faculty member who is mentoring your research. 
7.       The faculty member will forward a copy of the certificate to the ORSP.

A more complete statement of Loyola Responsible Conduct of Research Education Plan can be found here.