The educational materials below are keyed to the ethical principles of respect, beneficence, and justice , and will assist investigators and supervisors of student projects in observing these principles in all inquiries that involve gathering information from or about people. The first two links summarize the specific educational requirements for different types of investigators. For additional details on the role of ethics education in college policies for inquiry projects involving people, please see Research Ethics for Inquiries Involving People: Education, Ethics Planning, and Review Policies.
Overview: Education requirements for projects conducted by student investigators
A one-page chart summarizing the education requirements for student investigators and their faculty/staff supervisors, as well as the forms to use and the review procedures, by type of inquiry project.
Overview: Education requirements for projects conducted by faculty/staff investigators
A one-page chart summarizing the education requirements for faculty/staff investigators, as well as the forms to use and the review procedures, by type of inquiry project.
Inquiries involving people: Ethical principles, practical applications, and investigator obligations
An educational handout summarizing the basics of research ethics in inquiries involving people, developed by the St. Olaf IRB. This reading is required of both investigators and faculty/staff supervisors of student investigators, for all types of projects with human subjects.
Project Information for Participants worksheet
Unless an investigator is analyzing existing data previously gathered by someone else, the investigator will need to prepare project information for prospective participants. This worksheet will assist investigators in preparing complete project information.
CITI ethics training website
St. Olaf subscribes to the University of Miami’s Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI), which provides on-line mini-courses in research ethics to investigators in thousands of academic institutions, government agencies, and commercial organizations within and beyond the US. This link takes you directly to the CITI website where specific courses can be completed. Different types of projects require completion of different courses; see the link below for guidance.
How to access and complete CITI ethics training
Detailed information about the different courses provided by CITI to St. Olaf investigators and supervisors, with guidance about the courses that are most appropriate for specific types of projects and step-by-step instructions for navigating the CITI website.