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Ethics Review

Research with Human Participants

Consistent with University of Waterloo's Guidelines for Research Involving Human Participants (as presented throughout this website), UW’s Statement on Human Research, and the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (2nd edition), all faculty (i.e., with a regular faculty or research appointment, excluding lecturer; see policy 76), staff, undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows conducting research with humans on or off campus must ensure that their projects undergo prior ethics review and clearance through the Office of Research Ethics (ORE). This requirement applies to all grant-funded and unfunded research regardless of whether the procedures used are invasive or non-invasive in nature. It applies to research conducted by undergraduate or graduate students for thesis or course purposes.    

Research involving human participants conducted by UW adjunct faculty is not under the jurisdiction of the UW Research Ethics Committees or Office of Research Ethics, unless a UW faculty member (with regular faculty or research appointment, excluding lecturer) is the principal investigator.   For a student project/thesis where a faculty supervisor is an adjunct faculty member there must be also a faculty supervisor who is a UW faculty member (i.e., a regular faculty or research appointment excluding lecturer); see policy 76, adjunct appointment.  A lecturer's duties are typically limited to teaching and service and do not include research.  Research  involving human participants conducted by UW lecturers is not under the jurisdiction of the UW Research Ethics Committees or Office of Research Ethics, unless a UW (research) faculty member (i.e., assistant, associate, or full professor) is the principal investigator.

Quality assurance/improvement (QA) studies conducted within the University of Waterloo are not subject to ethics review through the Office of Research Ethics. 

Any person(s) not affiliated with UW who wish(es) to conduct research on campus with UW faculty, students and/or staff as participants is bound by the same ethics review requirements (i.e., ethics review and clearance through the University of Waterloo Office of Research Ethics).

In some disciplines, researchers are involved in a program of research which may extend over several (or more) years, and is comprised of multiple related studies. Ethics clearance is not given to a research program. In the case of funded research covering multiple studies, each study must have a corresponding ORE 101 application that undergoes ethics review and clearance. However, an account can be opened for research that will involve human participants when an application has been submitted to ORE for the first study. Applications for other studies under the same grant must be submitted for ethics review prior to their commencement.

 

FAQs: What comprises Human Research?

  1. I am not sure that what I plan to do is ‘human research’. Is there someone I can talk to about my plan?
  2. My research only involves analysis of human tissue that I am getting from a colleague at another institution. Do I need ethics clearance at Waterloo for this?

FAQs Related to the Ethics Review Process

  1. How long does the ethics review process take?
  2. How will I know if my ORE application will be reviewed by a Research Ethics Committee (REC)?
  3. If my project requires REC review, when should I submit my application so that it is in time for the next meeting?
  4. How can I find out the status of my application?

 

 

 

Last updated on September 11, 2012