Role and responsibilities of faculty advisors of student researchers

All student research projects that require IRB approval at Carleton College need to be supervised by a faculty member. The IRB committee appreciates the supervision and support that faculty advisors provide for student research and relies on these advisors to ensure students have the appropriate ethical, methodological, and background knowledge to carry out their research projects. 

We expect that the faculty advisor is familiar with the IRB application process, including the particular requirements for international research projects and research projects with/in Indigenous communities, and is able to guide students through this process. We also expect that the faculty advisor will thoroughly review a student’s IRB application, ideally working with the student before and as they prepare their application. All IRB applicants, including student applicants, are required to complete CITI training. We highly encourage faculty advisors to complete this training as well. We also encourage faculty advisors to use elements of the CITI training to have more in-depth conversations with student researchers about the particular histories of ethical responsibilities and failures in their disciplinary fields. 

While the IRB chair can provide general guidance to applicants about the IRB process, the committee relies on the faculty advisor to provide intensive initial guidance as well as ongoing supervision of student researchers. The chair and the committee cannot provide extensive feedback on research protocols, for example, beyond evaluating whether protocols will be gathering sensitive and identifiable information and whether they pose more than minimal risk to participants. If the initial application does not contain enough information about data security, research protocol (e.g. survey questions), or the consent process for the reviewers to gauge risk to participants, the application will be sent back to the student for re-editing. We expect students to work with their faculty advisors to revise their applications.

When do student researchers need to apply for IRB approval? 

When student research with human subjects will remain strictly “on campus” as a class or comps project (and thus does not contribute to generalizable knowledge), it does not meet the federally mandated definition of research and does not require IRB oversight. However, beyond this floor of what is required of us by the federal guidelines, Carleton’s IRB committee uses additional criteria to determine which student projects need to obtain IRB approval. Comps and other student research that involves human subjects does need IRB approval if students are doing international research; presenting or publishing their results outside of Carleton; conducting research with/in Indigenous communities; or their research subjects include “vulnerable populations” (minors, prisoners). 

Even if you and your student determine that their project does not require IRB approval, we encourage you to review ethical research guidelines with students, including relevant CITI training modules.

We also recommend that you direct students to appropriate sources to learn more about ethical guidelines to carry out research projects that do not fall under the purview of the IRB, such as these guidelines about oral history projects. Ensuring the ethical conduct of researchers is a collective process and we encourage faculty to discuss the role of ethics in research in their fields with all students.

Checklist for faculty advisors

  1. You and your student have familiarized yourself with the Carleton IRB process by reviewing the IRB website
  2. Confirm that the student’s coursework and previous research experience has given them the appropriate knowledge background, and training in ethics and methodology to carry out their proposed project
  3. Discuss potential research study with the student to ensure their application addresses and has an adequate plan for
    • Data security concerns
    • Privacy concerns
    • Potential risks and harm to participants
    • Data storage for 3 years post-study, especially if the student will graduate within those 3 years
  4. Discuss CITI training elements as appropriate
  5. Review the student’s IRB application to ensure that it includes all necessary components including a consent form and research protocol (e.g. survey or interview questions) 
  6. Provide guidance to the student if IRB committee requests revisions of IRB application
  7. Supervise the student’s project to ensure they follow ethical guidelines and requirements laid out in their IRB approval letter on an ongoing and regular basis