Research Security
New Research Security Training Requirement (4/17/2025)
The university has made a Research Security training course available to satisfy a new federal requirement for specific individuals involved in federally funded research. For more information, see New Research Security Training Requirement.
There is growing concern by the United States (U.S.) government regarding inappropriate influence by foreign entities to federally funded research. The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and federal sponsors such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Defense (DoD), and the Department of Energy (DOE) have issued communications with the research community about research security and have expressed concerns for the potential for foreign influence in research due to:
- Failure by some investigators to disclose financial support from other organizations, including foreign governments
- Diversion of intellectual property to foreign entities, and
- Sharing of confidential information by peer reviewers with others, including some instances with foreign entities.
While the University of Maine thrives on, and encourages international collaboration, investigators must be transparent about their foreign relationships and activities, and take steps to protect their research. Failure to mitigate foreign influence in research jeopardizes the research enterprise at UMaine and the U.S. at large.
These webpages serve as a resource for guidance regarding foreign influence in research and research security, including steps the University is taking to address and mitigate these concerns, sponsor-specific guidance, and investigator responsibilities.