Human Subjects Training and eIRB Education

All investigators and key personnel who participate in the design, conduct, or reporting of human subjects research (including exempt research) must be appropriately trained in the protection of human subjects. Additional training in the responsible conduct of research and good clinical practices may also be required by funding agencies and other research sponsors. Requirements and training resources are explained below.

The Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) offers web-based training packages on issues relating to research. The University of South Carolina has contracted with CITI to provide training to investigators in the following areas:

Human Subjects

All USC investigators and key personnel involved in conducting human subjects research (including Exempt research) are required to complete the CITI web-based course on protection of human research subjects.

Investigators must select the Basic course that is most congruent with the nature of their research (biomedical or social & behavioral). Both courses are not required; appropriate content is repetitive in both courses.

The course will require 5-6 hours to complete; you can exit and enter at will. Do not exit the program if you have a low quiz score; go back, review the module and retake the quiz. You can take the quiz as many times as needed. However, once you exit the program, the quiz score cannot be changed.

The Refresher Course is required every 3 years after the initial Basic Course is successfully completed.

Courses Not Related to Human Subjects

Responsible Conduct in Research
These courses meet the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) requirement for the training of study personnel who are supported by NSF grants.

Conflicts of Interest
This optional course consists of 9 sections and a final quiz. It takes about 20 minutes to complete.

Good Clinical Practice (GCP)
The CITI Program offers the following GCP courses that are acceptable GCP training for the NIH policy.

GCP for Clinical Trials with Investigational Drugs and Medical Devices (U.S. FDA Focus)
GCP for Clinical Trials with Investigational Drugs and Biologics (ICH Focus)