Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Training Requirements
Federal Requirements
| Federal Sponsor | Personnel Required to Complete RCR Training | Federal Guidelines |
|---|---|---|
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)1 | All trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars receiving support through any NIH training, career development award, research education grant and dissertation research grant | Notice NOT-OD-10-019: Update on the Requirement for Instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research (external link) |
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | Undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers who will be supported by NSF to conduct research
Effective for new proposals submitted or due on or after July 31, 2023: Faculty and other senior personnel supported by NSF |
Implementation of Section 7009 of the America COMPETES Act (external link)
Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) NSF 23-1 (external link) |
| United States Department of Agriculture – National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) | Program directors, faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and any staff participating in the research project for all awards subject to USDA-NIFA | USDA-NIFA’s October 2014 Agency-Specific Terms & Conditions (PDF) (external link) |
1 While UMaine requires all students participating in NIH funding to complete RCR training, undergraduate students subject to NIH’s RCR requirements for specific programs (external link) will likely need additional training beyond the typical UMaine Undergrad RCR Course, as NIH requires approximately 8 hours of face-to-face instruction time. This special requirement applies to the following NIH 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. If applicable, please contact ORC for assistance.
RCR Training Fulfillment at the University of Maine
Principal Investigators (PI) or Project Directors (PD) are responsible for ensuring that appropriate training occurs early in the first year each subject person receives NSF, NIH, or USDA-NIFA support, and for promptly submitting certification of that training to the Office of Research Administration (ORA). Please note: PIs and Co-PIs subject to the RCR training requirement on the following awards must complete training before ORA will establish the project account:
- USDA-NIFA awards
- NSF awards resulting from proposals submitted or due on or after July 31, 2023
All RCR training is valid for four years. Therefore, for applicable individuals with ongoing supported work beyond four years (most typically faculty, staff, post-docs, etc.), training must be completed every four years.
The University’s Responsible & Ethical Conduct of Research plan is outlined below.
Undergraduate Students
Undergraduates may complete RCR training via one of the following options:
- Complete Undergraduate Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Training
- Take INT 125, an introduction to the principles of ethical research, successful research reporting, and using interdisciplinary sharing to create solutions. Learn more about INT 125 on the EPIC website.
Graduate Students
Graduate students may complete RCR training by taking INT 601 or an approved alternate course.
For more information, see Graduate School Responsible Conduct of Research Training. Questions about graduate student RCR requirements or access should be directed to the Graduate School or to the course instructor, as applicable.
Post-Doctoral Researchers, Faculty, and Staff
Post-Doctoral researchers and other subject faculty/staff may complete RCR training via one of the following options:
- Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative’s (CITI) “General RCR Course” (see Instructions for CITI Training [PDF])
- Take INT 601 or another approved alternate RCR course
Contact
If you have questions regarding this training requirement or CITI training instructions, please contact us about Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR).