Responsible Conduct of Research Program

All undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers supported by NSF financial assistance awards to conduct research on research grants submitted after January 4, 2010, must comply with the NSF training policy. Conferences, symposiums, workshops, and travel awards are exempt from this requirement. The NSF also refers to RCR as RECR (Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research); however, they are the same training and are more commonly referred to as RCR

The CHIPS & Science Act, enacted in 2022, expanded RCR requirements for NSF research awards. Consistent with the act, beginning in 2023, Northeastern’s RCR requirements expanded to include all senior personnel (whether paid or unpaid) and specify the RCR curriculum to include:

• Federal export control, disclosure, and reporting requirements
• Mentor training and mentorship
• Training to raise awareness of potential research security threats

“NU-RES RCR Training Course: Mentorship” can be accessed through Workday Learning here

“NU-RES Research Security Course 1: Foundations of Research Security” can be accessed through Workday Learning here

Training should be completed within 60 days of the start of the award.

Links to NSF Policy on RCR

• NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (See Section B)
• NSF Responsible & Ethical Conduct of Research Page
• The COMPETES Act, 42 USC 1862o-1.

All trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars receiving support through any NIH training, career development award (individual or institutional), research education grant, and/or dissertation research grant must receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research. This NIH policy took effect with all new and renewal applications submitted on or after January 25, 2010, and for all continuation applications with deadlines on or after January 1, 2011.

Applicable trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars who are supported longer than six months by their NIH projects, including sub-awards, must complete 8 hours of in-person RCR training within 12 months of receiving NIH support. Training must be performed every 4 years and at each new career stage

The requirement applies to the following programs: D43, D71, F05, F30, F31, F32, F33, F34, F37, F38, K01, K02, K05, K07, K08, K12, K18, K22, K23, K24, K25, K26, K30, K99/R00, KL1, KL2, R25, R36, T15, T32, T34, T35, T36, T37, T90/R90, TL1, TU2, and U2R. This policy also applies to any other NIH-funded programs supporting research training, career development, or research education that require instruction in responsible conduct of research, as stated in the relevant funding opportunity announcements.

Additional information and guidance can be found at NIH OER Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research

The NIH Grants Policy Statement explains the Responsible Conduct of Research requirements for NIH award applicants and recipients. The NIH RCR policy update provides additional specific information on how to meet the obligations under the NIH Grants Policy Statement, including format, frequency, and subject matter. Anyone applying to or receiving an NIH award should familiarize themselves with the policy update.

Links to NIH Policy on RCR

• NIH RCR Policy Update
• NIH Grants Policy Statement
• NIH RCR Page

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) requires institutions that conduct USDA-funded extramural research to foster an atmosphere conducive to research integrity. USDA considers “education in RCR essential to the preparation of future scientists”. All undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers receiving support through any USDA-NIFA award must receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research.

Institutions awarded with NIFA funding must comply with regulatory requirements, including prevention and detection of research misconduct, and training of staff. Content of training, at minimum, is expected to emphasize: authorship and plagiarism, data and research integration, and reporting misconduct.

Training should be completed within 60 days of the start of the award.

Link to USDA Policy on RCR

• USDA NIFA Page

The in-person Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course is open to all Northeastern faculty and students. The RCR course is offered in Boston during the academic year beginning in September and continuing through April. The course is approximately eight hours long, with significant researcher facilitation and administrative support, and uses discussions and case studies to examine basic ethical and regulatory requirements for conducting research. RCR is a highly recommended “best practices” course for those desiring to deepen their knowledge of ethical research and responsible conduct. It is also an excellent professional opportunity for anyone interested in furthering a career in research. This course fulfills the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) requirements for formal RCR instruction. Topics covered include research misconduct; responsible authorship and publication; peer review and copyright; mentor-mentee relationships; lab safety; conflicts of interest and disclosure; foreign travel and international collaboration; data acquisition and management; grant stewardship; research security; export controls; and working with institutional regulatory bodies (i.e., IRB, IACUC, and IBC).

The responsible conduct of research (RCR) is essential to good science. RCR promotes the aims of scientific inquiry, fosters a research environment that enables scientists to work together toward common goals and promotes public confidence in scientific knowledge and progress for the public good. However, there are several serious detrimental effects of research not being conducted ethically and responsibly. These include, for example, data fabrication and falsification of results which undermine the pursuit of valid knowledge by misleading scientists to accept and further study false hypotheses or unreliable data. Likewise, plagiarism and harassment negatively impact the research environment by harming respect and trust among scientists. Fraudulent or socially irresponsible research undercuts the public’s trust in and support for science.

For more than a decade, the National Institutes of Health made training in RCR for students supported by training grants and individual fellowships a requirement. The National Science Foundation implemented a similar requirement, effective January 4, 2010, following Section 7009 of the “America Competes” Act. The USDA/NIFA was initially effective on their Research Terms and Conditions issued in February 2013. The NSF also refers to RCR as RECR (Response and Ethical Conduct of Research), however, the training program is the same.

All Northeastern University undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers, including short-term visitors, paid by NSF research awards subject to the America COMPETES Act, and individuals receiving support through applicable NIH training, career development award (individual or institutional), research education grant, or dissertation research grant, must participate in instructional programs in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR), which are consistent with the legal, regulatory, and ethical requirements established by regulatory agencies, funding sources, professional organizations, and the University’s Plan for Instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research.

The CHIPS & Science Act, enacted in 2022, expanded RCR requirements for NSF research awards. Consistent with the act, beginning in 2023, Northeastern’s RCR requirements expanded to include all senior personnel (whether paid or unpaid) and specify the RCR curriculum to include:

• Training to raise awareness of potential research security threats
• Federal export control, disclosure, and reporting requirements
• Mentor training and mentorship

Policy on Responsible Conduct of Research

Online training completion is tracked through multiple systems for record-keeping. Training completed through Workday Learning (such as Research Security and Mentorship) is tracked via Workday reporting systems. Live virtual sessions are tracked through attendance data reports during the session. Once any online training component is completed, the records will be updated so that Northeastern maintains documentation of RCR training compliance. Individual researchers are also in the best position to provide updates regarding their training and are encouraged to provide updates towards the completion of the 7 RCR workshop hours to the Associate Director for Training and Learning to qualify for the Capstone workshop and receive a certificate of completion.

If students have completed online training within CITI, their training records will be automatically downloaded so that Northeastern will know that they’ve completed this component of the requirement.

Attendance at all in-person workshops is recorded on-site during each session. Participation will be documented to ensure complete tracking of RCR training requirements and compliance status. Individual researchers are also in the best position to provide updates regarding their training and are encouraged to provide updates towards the completion of the 7 RCR workshop hours to the Associate Director for Training and Learning to qualify for the Capstone workshop and receive a certificate of completion.

All students, faculty, and staff who complete any format of RCR training should keep a copy of their Certificate of Completion for their records. When RCR training is required by the grant, it is a best practice for the PI/college to maintain copies of the certificates for any students paid from applicable NIH, NSF, and USDA-NIFA grants.