Stanford is dedicated to maintaining the highest scholarly and ethical research standards among its students, faculty, and staff. Education is fundamental to ensuring the integrity of all research and the data that underpin it.
The Director of Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research Education serves as a resource and guide for information related to the training programs available to everyone within the Office of the Vice Provost and Dean of Research (VPDoR) engaged in research. The education provided to the Stanford research community—including students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and staff—encompasses required training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research.
This training offers comprehensive guidance on a wide range of topics, including:
- Conflict of interest and commitment
- Human research protection and animal welfare oversight
- Safe laboratory practices
- Mentor/Mentee responsibilities and relationships
- Safe research environments
- Collaborative research
- Peer review
- Data acquisition and analysis
- Secure and ethical data use
- Data confidentiality, management, sharing, and ownership
- Research misconduct and policies for handling misconduct
- Responsible authorship and publication
- The scientist as a responsible member of society
- Contemporary ethical issues in biomedical research
- Environmental and societal impacts of scientific research
Through these training programs, Stanford ensures that its research community is well-equipped to conduct research responsibly and ethically, fostering an environment of integrity and excellence.
Services
The Education Director provides information and resources regarding training requirements for the Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research (RECR), including regular updates on these standards. This includes training for research sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and other funding agencies. Researchers are encouraged to contact their respective funders to inquire about any additional or specific requirements.
NIH - Responsible Conduct of Research Education
The Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) education required by NIH applies to all of its Institutional Research Training Grants. These include individual fellowship awards, career development awards (institutional and individual), research education grants, dissertation research grants, and additional grant programs.
Graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who are supported by NIH grants are required to take this training. In addition, many departments and programs also recommend or require this course as part of their curricula.
This requirement can be met through the Stanford School of Medicine course MED 255.
- Graduate students can enroll through Axess.
- Post-docs, faculty, staff, and affiliates can enroll through STARS.
For further information, please contact med255rcr@stanford.edu.
NSF Training Requirements
The National Science Foundation requires RECR training for all undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, faculty, and other senior personnel who receive NSF funding to conduct research.
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Undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars must complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) training modules relevant to their area of study within the first 90 days of support on an NSF project. They also must complete RECR training at “each career stage.” To get credit for the training, participants must click on “log in through my organization” and select Stanford.
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Faculty and senior or key personnel on NSF projects must also complete RECR education prior to the processing of any grant or contract award and then, every three years for as long as they continue to be supported by NSF funding.
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Training Options: See the instructions in the Learn More section below on how to meet these training requirements through CITI.
