As a comprehensive academic health center with a dedication to excellence in all aspects of research, service, and education, OU Health Campus is privileged and compelled to model the highest standards of research integrity. To affirm this commitment, the University of Oklahoma Health Campus requires all individuals who conduct or oversee research, or who are eligible to conduct research or oversee research - including managing research accounts (administrative and/or financial aspects) to complete the required training course on Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR). Departments are responsible for assigning Research Integrity Training (via ePAF) to individuals in their unit (faculty, staff, students, postdocs or others working on campus) whose duties involve conducting or overseeing research or whose salaries are paid from sponsored research accounts. Please contact your supervisor or departmental business manager if you have questions regarding whether you must complete the Research Integrity training.
Please note that all OU Health Campus Graduate College students and Postdoctoral Fellows, as well as all individuals conducting research in OU Health Campus labs who are appointed as trainees on NIH, NSF, AHA, or other awards, will have additional training requirements for the Responsible Conduct of Research. Those individuals should contact the Graduate College for more information.
The Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training course should be completed within 4 weeks.
Individuals who manage administrative and/or financial aspects of research accounts are required to take the Research Integrity training.
- If you are having technical issues accessing the CITI application or logging in to the CITI Program website, technical assistance is available at support@citiprogram.org.
- If you have questions about accessibility or wish to request an accommodation on the basis of disability, please contact support@citiprogram.org. Accessibility issues can usually be resolved within 24-48 hrs.
- Click here for RCR CITI Access Instructions for accessing CITI RCR.
If you have an existing CITI Program account, you will need to add the RCR course to your profile once your profile is affiliated with the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. To do this:
- click "My Courses" at the top of the home page, then
- click "View Courses" next to the Institutional Courses for the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (If you are not yet affiliated with OUHSC, first you must add that institutional affiliation before adding the course)
- scroll to the bottom of the page to the section "Learner Tools for University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center", then
- click "Add a Course" and then select the “Responsible Conduct of Research” course.
- Once you submit, the RCR course will appear in the list of your assigned courses.
Step-by-step instructions with screen shots are available at RCR CITI Access Instructions.
Note: The RCR Refresher course is required after 4 years from taking the initial RCR course from CITI Program. When the initial course expires, CITI Program will send a notification and the Refresher course will automatically show in your “Courses ready to begin” section of your CITI Program account.
Yes, all faculty, staff, and students eligible to conduct or oversee research activities at OUHSC are required to take the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. If you received an email from the OUHSC Research Integrity Office with notice that you have been assigned Research Integrity Training, then your department has determined that you are required to take the training.
If you’ve taken the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course within the last four years while at OU Health Campus, then you do not need to take the course again until the course expires after 4 years. If you completed the RCR course through another institution within the last 4 years, please transfer your completed modules from another institution to the OU Health Campus profile in CITI Program. To do this, log onto your CITI account then click on the “Affiliate with another institution” link; choose “University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center” from the drop-down menu. When prompted, choose the RCR course/modules that you completed at your previous institution. Review the OU Health Campus module list and complete any modules that OU Health Campus requires that you have not yet completed. Course completion will automatically be registered with OU Health Campus.
To view your course completion history, click on “Modules Completed.” Once the modules are transferred, you should see the RCR module in your OU Health Campus course history. If you have any questions during the process, please contact the OU Health Campus Research Integrity Office (ResearchIntegrity@ouhsc.edu).
There are thirteen required modules in the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. Review of the required materials and completion of the quiz will take approximately 20-25 minutes for each module. Most users report a total time of about 4 hours to complete the entire course with all 13 modules. You do not have to complete all modules in one session.
A minimum aggregate score of 80% is required to pass the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. CITI allows you to retake the quizzes if you do not get the minimum score required to pass the course.
No, you do not have to provide a completion certificate unless required by your college, professor, or department/unit. The CITI system keeps track of all completion data, and OU Health Campus accesses completion data directly from CITI.
No, if you have already completed the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training within the last 4 years, you do not need to take it again. If it’s been more than 4 years since you took the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training, then you are required to take the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Refresher course from CITI.
Yes. Everyone who is eligible to conduct research on the OU Health Campus must complete the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course available on the CITI Program.
The CITI Good Clinical Practice (GCP) course is a distinct course and may be required by sponsors or funding agencies or by the OU Health Campus Office of Human Research Participant Protection (aka IRB office). While some of the material is similar to the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course, completing the GCP course does not satisfy the requirement to take the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. If you have received notice from a sponsor or funding agency or the OU Health Campus IRB that you need to complete the CITI Good Clinical Practice course, you must complete both the GCP course and the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course.
The Human Subjects Protection (HSP) course and the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course are distinct course offerings that provide different educational content and satisfy different training requirements.
The CITI Program Human Subjects Protection course is a distinct course and is required of all investigators and key personnel who participate in the design, conduct, and/or reporting of human subjects’ research. While some of the material is similar to the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course, the Human Subjects Protection course does not satisfy the requirement to take the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course
For more information please go to the Office of Human Research Participant Protection page at https://compliance.ouhsc.edu/offices/human-research-participant-protection
Please note that all Graduate College students and Postdoctoral Fellows at OU Health Campus , as well as all individuals appointed as trainees on NIH, NSF, AHA, or other awards, will have additional training requirements for the Responsible Conduct of Research. Those individuals should contact the Graduate College for more information. The additional information below relates to details regarding the NIH requirements for RCR.
All trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars receiving support through any National Institutes of Health (NIH) training grant, career development award (individual or institutional), research education grant, or dissertation research grant must receive instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR). See NIH RCR Update and the specific program announcement for additional information.
For the specified award categories, the Principal Investigator (PI) must develop a discipline-specific, tailored plan for Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training that meets the NIH requirements. The instructional plan is evaluated as a component of the NIH funding proposal and applications lacking an RCR instructional plan may be delayed in the review process or not reviewed. The PI is also responsible for ensuring that course attendance is monitored and that a certificate or documentation of participation is available upon course completion. Although the NIH does not require OU Health Campus or the PI to submit training documentation to the NIH, training records are subject to audit. The PI is responsible for maintaining RCR training records to document that all NIH supported trainees, fellows, and scholars received the required instruction. The PI must also comply with the specific reporting requirements in continuation applications.
Instructional Plan
The RCR instructional plan must meet NIH requirements for educational content, training format, and frequency. The following topics must be addressed in the training plan:
The instructional plan should include coursework with significant face-to-face interaction and participation by research faculty members. Analysis of relevant case studies is recommended. While on-line instruction may be used as a component of the training program, it is not sufficient to meet the NIH requirement for RCR instruction, except in special or unusual circumstances.
Training plans must address all program participants and should be appropriate to the career stage of the individuals receiving training. Research faculty should participate in instruction in ways that allow them to serve as effective role models for their trainees, fellows, and scholars. Individual fellowship and career development award applicants/recipients are encouraged to assume individual and personal responsibility for their instruction in responsible conduct of research.
PIs may want to use the online CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training course as part of their instructional plan. All the NIH required topics are addressed in the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) coursework. The CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course also offers online case studies that can be used for face-to-face discussions.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) requires the University to certify that it has a plan to provide appropriate training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research to undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, faculty, and other senior/key personnel supported by the proposed NSF research project. Certification of University compliance is done by an authorized OU Health Campus representative as part of the institution’s proposal approval process (e.g., when a sponsored program official submits the proposal). Details can be found in Chapter IX.B Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research (RECR) of the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide.
Required Instruction
All OU Health Campus researchers supported by NSF sponsored projects must complete the CITI Program online course in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) within 60 days of appointment to an NSF grant. The Principal Investigator (PI) of the NSF grant awarded to the OU Health Campus is responsible for ensuring that individuals receiving NSF support complete the RCR course from CITI Program. The PI must maintain records to document that each trainee has completed the CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. Training records are subject to monitoring by the OU Health Campus Office of Research Administration, Research Integrity Office, and by NSF auditors.
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Please note that all Graduate College students, Postdoctoral Fellows, and all individuals appointed as trainees on NIH, NSF, AHA or sponsored research awards at the OU Health Campus, will have additional training requirements to satisfy additional RCR training requirements by the sponsor. Those individuals should contact the Graduate College for more information.
Individuals who do not complete the required CITI Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training by the expected completion date will receive one email reminder and then the individual’s supervisor will be asked to address the non-compliance. Non-compliance may result in suspension of certain research privileges until the required training is complete.