Research Compliance Training

The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is committed to fostering and upholding the highest ethical standards in the conduct of research and scholarship. As part of our ongoing commitment to strengthen the culture of ethical research and integrity across the University, all employees and students engaged in research and scholarship are required to complete an updated, role based Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) curriculum. The National Science Foundation (NSF), advocates "The responsible and ethical conduct of research is critical for excellence, as well as public trust, in science and engineering." Similarly, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) holds as a core principle the belief that "responsible conduct of research is a fundamental element of research training." In addition to RCR, other research compliance training requirements apply to selected researchers and personnel as described below.

CITI Program

UTEP has elected to join the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI Program), a web-based training platform to provide all research-related compliance training to UTEP's research community.  The training curricula available through CITI Program (and described in more detail below) include:

• Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR)
• Export Control
• Undue Foreign Influence
• Research Security

Research Compliance Training Process

Research & Innovation (R&I) has developed a certification, notification, monitoring, and training assignments system.  This system identifies trainees, their training requirements, and collects data on training status (pending, completed, initial, or renewal). When a new trainee or renewal is identified, a notification is issued specifying training requirements. The training must be completed within  30  days upon notification. If not completed, a reminder notice will be issued to the individual before the deadline. Upon successful completion of each training module, a certification of completion will be provided for your records.

Noncompliance

Noncompliance with Federal, State, UT System, and UTEP policies and regulations may suspend the PI’s sponsored project privileges, including but not limited to freezing proposal submission, delayed project setup at notice of award, and freezing expense activity for on-going projects.  Any questions regarding exceptions and re-instatement of privileges must be sent in writing to the Office for Research Protections at rso@utep.edu. Upon review by the RPO, requests will be forwarded to the Vice President for Research (VPR) for review. Decisions regarding re-instatement of privileges are at the advice of the VPR and are final. 

Research Compliance Training Policy

Research compliance training is role based and each training curriculum has specific requirements as outlined below.

Responsible Conduct in Research

RCR is required for undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, faculty, senior personnel, and other research-related staff that are involved in sponsored research projects. Principal Investigators (PI) and Project Directors (PD) should encourage external consultants participating in a sponsored project to complete RCR Training. In addition, RCR training is also required for staff with pre-and post-award functions for sponsored projects. This includes Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) and Grants Management Accounting (GMA) staff under Research & Innovation. RCR training through CITI is valid for three years from the date the training is completed.

UTEP has identified and established a specific Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR) curriculum for learner groups by specific disciplines (Biomedical, Social & Behavioral Research, Physical Sciences, Humanities, Engineers, and Administrators). Topics include:

1. Authorship
2. Collaborative Research
3. Conflicts of Interest and Commitment
4. Data Management
5. Mentoring and Healthy Research Environments
6. Peer Review
7. Using Animal Subjects in Research
8. Research Involving Human Subjects
9. Research Misconduct

Export Compliance

Export Control training is required for all engineering PIs or those who submit proposals that involve export-controlled activities.  Export Control training is valid for three years from the date the training is completed and must be completed before submission of a proposal to a federal agency.  The Export Compliance curriculum is applicable to a specific role:

1. Research Administration

• Introduction to Export Compliance
• Export Compliance for Research Administrators
• Export Compliance and Collaborations

2. Business Centers & Administrators

• Introduction to Export Compliance
• Export Compliance for International Shipping
• Export Compliance and Purchasing

3. Researcher

• Export Compliance for Researchers
• Export Compliance When Using Technology in Research
• Export Compliance and Biosafety

Undue Foreign Influence

Undue Foreign Influence (UFI) training is required for all PIs. UFI training is valid for three years from the date the training is completed and must be completed before submission of a proposal to a federal agency.  

1. Introduction to Undue Foreign Influence Impacts and Concerns in Academia
2. Reporting, Research Integrity, and Effective Practices to Manage Undue Foreign Influence Risk
3. Nondiscrimination Considerations When Managing Undue Foreign Influence

Research Security

Per Section 10634 of the "CHIPS and Science Act of 2022", covered individuals (senior/key personnel) listed on the application for a Federal research and development award are required to take research security training. This training is valid for three years from the completion date and must be completed within 30 days of submission of the application to a federal agency. Award funds will not be released to the PI until all covered individuals have completed the training. Follow these instructions to take the CITI Program Research Security Training Course .

How to take CITI Program Training

New Trainees

CITI Registration Instructions

RCR Renewal Training

RCR Renewal Instructions

Instructions are similar for each CITI Program training curriculum.

Resources

Agency Specific Links
https://nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/rcr.jsp
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-10-019.html

Related Links
CITI Program Website