RCR FAQs

To affirm our commitment to responsible conduct of research and scholarly activity, UK is now requiring that everyone who is eligible to conduct research complete the CITI RCR course and in-person RCR training/discussion session. 

All research-eligible personnel and undergraduate students, as well as graduate students participating in research and scholarly activity (combined groups = more than 14,000 yearly), are required to complete each RCR training component every two years.

Required RCR training components:

1. The Online course through the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Program provides an in-depth review of core RCR topics including: 
   • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Mentoring
   • Peer Review
   • Research Misconduct
   • Conflicts of Interest
   • Data Management
   • Reproducibility of Research Results
     
     ​​​​​​​Once you have completed all 6 modules in the initial stage of the online RCR Basic course, in two years when your certificate expires, you will complete the refresher stage of the course. In the refresher stage, you will complete two modules of your choice for credit
2. The one-hour In-Person session provides discussion-based training in a group environment.

All required individuals will receive an automatic email from RCR@uky.edu with instructions on how to complete each component.

If you are employed as research-eligible faculty, staff, student, or graduate student you are required to take both training components.

Yes, all full-time active faculty are required to complete the RCR training components. Zero Research Distribution of Effort does not necessarily mean you do not conduct work that applies to RCR. In fact, many faculty still conduct research even without DOE in that area.

Yes, everyone who is eligible to conduct research at UK are required to complete both training components in addition to any other RCR training you may have completed.

The online UK CITI RCR course is specific to the University. If you completed a CITI RCR course through your previous institution within the last two years, simply enroll in the UK CITI RCR (Basic) course. If any modules match the modules in the UK CITI RCR course, you will be given credit for those modules. Complete any remaining modules for credit at UK.

No, you must log in to your UK CITI account and enroll in the Responsible Conduct of Research course. Please see instructions on the RCR Getting Started web page. [HTML]

No, the course is housed in the online learning platform, Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Program. 

Yes, you will receive an email from RCR@uky.edu with a link to your in-person training/discussion session completion certificate. The name on the certificate will be listed as it is in the Human Resources database.

If you have a preferred first name, you will need to make the change in the Employee Self-Service (myUK), for this to be reflected in our database. 

To make an official name change, please complete the Human Resources Name Change Form: https://hr.uky.edu/forms/name-change-form. 

No, you do not have to provide a completion certificate unless required by your college, professor, or department/unit. The Research Training Database automatically updates your RCR training information.

The mandated training has a biennial requirement. 

If you are only listed as active faculty or a graduate student and do not engage in research or scholarly work of any kind at the University, you may submit an Exemption Request for RCR ad hoc Committee review. Once a determination has been made, you will receive a notification via email. 

No, they are two separate requirements.

The University of Kentucky's HSP training requirement requires all study personnel conducting research involving living human subjects, or data or biological specimens derived there from, to be trained in the protection of human subjects initially and complete refresher training every three years. This training must be completed before an IRB protocol will be approved by the UK Institutional Review Board (IRB).

The RCR training requirement is mandated by the Vice President for Research (VPR). The mandatory RCR training applies to all full-time faculty, staff, graduate students or trainees (undergraduates, postdoctoral fellows, visiting scientists) who participate in research or creative work. This mandate also includes any individual supported in part or fully through research funding, grants and contracts. Basic or Refresher online Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) RCR training requirements must be completed by eligible personnel annually. As of May 1, 2022, any UK personnel listed on an IRB or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) protocol, must complete RCR training before the protocol will be reviewed. 

Within CITI, you will choose Human Subjects Protection [HTML] and/or Responsible Conduct of Research [HTML] depending on your needs.

No, if your intent is to complete IRB human subject protection training, be sure to select "Human Subject Protection (HSP)" from the CITI curriculum page.

Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR) training covers topics integral to the preparation and development of current and future scientists in all areas of research (not just human subjects). It is a University mandate and requirement of certain funding agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF). 

Only Deans, Associate Deans for Research, and College Business Officers have access to the RCR Tracking Report. 

All trainees, fellows, participants, and scholars receiving support through any National Institutes of Health (NIH) training grant, career development award (individual or institutional), research education grant, or dissertation research grant must receive instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR). See NIH RCR Update [HTML] and the specific program announcement for additional information.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) requires the University to certify that it has a plan to provide appropriate training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research to undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers who receive NSF support to conduct research. Specific instructions are found in Chapter IV.B. Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) of the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide [PDF].

For questions regarding the NSF requirements for RCR Training, contact OSPA: Emily Bradford, emily.bradford@uky.edu, 859-257-9420.

In response to 2 CFR Part 422 [PDF], the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) requires institutions that conduct USDA-funded extramural research to foster an atmosphere conducive to research integrity, bear primary responsibility for prevention and detection of research misconduct, and maintain and effectively communicate and train their staff regarding policies and procedures.  See USDA Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research [HTML] for more information.

For questions regarding the NIFA requirements for RCR Training, contact OSPA: Emily Bradford, emily.bradford@uky.edu, 859-257-9420.

If you have completed CITI RCR training in the last year under a discipline (e.g., Engineering, Physical Science, etc.), please follow step-by-step instructions on enrolling in the UK RCR (Basic) course [HTML]. When you start the course, you will see a start button next to any modules that you need to complete for credit at UK. Once the new modules have been completed and you have an overall passing score of 80% or more, your training will automatically update in our database. 

CITI currently offers website content in the following languages: English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

To change the language while using CITI, simply click the language drop down menu slightly above your name.

After logging in to CITI through the Single Sign On portal, select "Records" from the menu at the top of the page. 

Or, from the Courses page, scroll to the bottom of the page, then click "View Previously Completed Coursework" under Learner Tools for University of Kentucky.

In order to ensure that any subsequent training is accurately credited to your account, you must:

1. Click the arrow next to your name in the upper right hand corner of the page to access the drop-down menu;
2. Click "Profiles;"
3. On your Profiles page, under "Member Profile," click the "Edit Profile" button;
4. Enter your new last name under "Last Name;"
5. Click the Update button.

You will get a confirmation saying that your information has been saved.

After logging in to CITI through the Single Sign On portal, select "Records" from the menu at the top of the page. Next to “Show Records for:” you should see “University of Kentucky”. If you do not, click the arrow to pull down your list of affiliations, then choose “University of Kentucky”. (The records section provides access to courses from both current and past affiliations.) 

Scroll to the course for which you want to retrieve a certificate.

In the “Completion Record” column, click “View-Print-Share”. Click “View/Print” to have a PDF document generated for you to download or click “Copy Link” to copy a link to send via email.

If you are no longer found within the University of Kentucky system, your CITI account will be unaffiliated from UK one year past your latest course expiration date. Once unaffiliated from UK, you may contact support@citiprogram.org for access to your records, if needed.

The CITI Human Subjects Protection (HSP) courses are distinct courses and required of all investigators and key personnel who participate in the design, conduct, and/or reporting of human subjects research. While some of the material is similar to the CITI RCR course, it does not replace the requirement to take the CITI RCR course. If you have received notice from the Office of Research Integrity or the Principal Investigator/Study Coordinator that you need to complete the CITI Human Subjects Protection course, you will need to complete HSP and RCR both courses.

The CITI Good Clinical Practice (GCP) courses are distinct courses and may be required by sponsors or funding agencies. While some of the material is similar to the CITI RCR course, it does not replace the requirement to take the CITI RCR course. If you have received notice from a sponsor or funding agency that you need to complete a CITI Good Clinical Practice (GCP) course, you will need to complete both courses. Formal GCP training for clinical investigators is not currently required by the university.

• Initial Human Subject Protection Training
• 3 Year Refresher Human Subject Protection Training
• Sponsor-Investigator Training (Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training)
• Other Optional Training (Students in Research, HUD, etc.)