Classroom Research

Review Procedures-Summary

Classroom projects that involve systematic collection of data and for which the objective or design is to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge are considered research. In other words, if a student plans to use the data outside of the classroom, then the project is considered research. Such projects should be reviewed by the IRB.
Classroom projects that are designed with the objective of providing students with training about and experience with research methods are not considered research. In these cases, students will not use the data outside of the classroom. Such projects do not require IRB review.

For more information about whether a project requires IRB approval, please review the Classroom research decision tree and Guidance Document Classroom Research.

Faculty advisors of both undergraduate and graduate students must be certified to conduct research with human subjects, even if they are not currently conducting research with human subjects. One way of receiving certification is to complete the online human subjects training.
Another method is to attend one of the Human Subjects Protection seminars presented by the IRB Staff.

make the decision about whether student research activities involving human participants meet eligibility for exclusion from IRB review.
oversee these activities.
assure that ethical principles are adhered to in the conduct of those activities. Specifically all participants must be invited to voluntarily participate and receive an explanation of what the activity is about and understand that their participation is voluntary, and the Principles of the Belmont Report regarding Respect for Persons, Beneficence and Justice should be adhered to when conducting the activity.