Student Research Resources
Training for Students Conducting Class Projects
Montclair State University is now offering CIRTification Online as the preferred training method for student class assignments or other educational activity. Ethics training for the purposes of fulfilling course requirements should no longer use CITI training modules.
CIRTification Online is a free, web-based human research protections training program developed by the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). The training covers the following topics:
- Introduction to Research: The basic terminology, activities, and people involved in research and various ethical considerations.
- Research History: Some research abuses that have happened in the past and the rules we have now to prevent those abuses. This module also introduces the goals of community engagement in research and the important responsibilities shared by community research partners.
- Eligibility & Recruitment: The importance of adhering to study inclusion/exclusion criteria and best practices identifying and recruiting research participants.
- Informed Consent: The key components of informed consent, the kinds of information included in the consent form, how to respond to participants’ questions about enrollment and withdrawal, and discussion of practical challenges and good practices.
- The Institutional Review Board: The people on the IRB, the process of submitting to the IRB, and the criteria that IRBs apply to the review of research.
- Collecting & Protecting Data: How to protect participant privacy and keep data safe and confidential during collection, transport, and storage.
- Handling Issues in the Field: What do to if you suspect a co-worker of falsifying data, run into a study participant outside of work, and get challenging questions from study participants
CITI training is still required for individuals conducting research that needs to be reviewed by the Montclair State University IRB. Students who are listed as holding a research team member designation on an electronically submitted Cayuse application must complete Human Subjects Research (HSR) training through CITI. If a student has already completed CIRTification, they still must complete the CITI HSR Training module for an electronically submitted application.
Community partners and external collaborators who do not have access to human subject research training through CITI can use the CIRTification course to fulfill the requirement for training in the ethical treatment of human subjects as part of research for team members. PI’s should provide all members of the research team with the link to the CIRTification site, there is no permission needed from Montclair to use the site. PI’s need to include completed certificates of completion provided on the CIRTification site as part of their Cayuse submissions as appropriate.
Visit the CIRTification website and select “Enroll in CIRTification” to begin the training.
Mock IRB Template for Classroom Use
The Mock IRB Initial Submission Template is a teaching resource designed to give students practice completing an IRB application without submitting an initial submission through Cayuse eIRB.
The fillable Word document includes the questions from the Cayuse eIRB Initial Submission application and can be used by faculty as an instructional exercise. Students can complete the template based on a proposed research project and receive feedback from their instructor.
Please note: This template is for educational purposes only and does not constitute an IRB submission, review, or approval. Research requiring IRB review must be submitted through Cayuse eIRB and receive the appropriate approval or determination before research activities begin.