Undergraduate and Taught Masters Research Ethics Committee

Research

UTMREC-SPHPSS Terms of Reference:

The UTMREC-SPHPSS will review applications from the undergraduate and graduate taught programmes in the school only and not the research of graduates on research programmes, or staff research.
All research conducted by students on graduate research programmes remains subject to an application to HREC.
The UTMREC-SPHPSS is a local subcommittee and will follow the standard REC Operating Procedures that set out best practice for all of the UCD Research Ethics Committees.
Students registered to an undergraduate or taught graduate programme in the SPHPSS, completing a research project will be required to submit their research proposal (through their supervisor) to UTMREC-SPHPSS for approval or for exemption from full ethical review.
UTMREC-SPHPSS may refer any application to the main HREC.

How to apply:

Applications must be e-mailed by the supervisor (and not the student), by the closing date, in Word format and by email to (opens in a new window)utmrec-sphpss@ucd.ie. There is a strict deadline for the receipt of the applications. It is the supervisors responsibility to ensure that the submission is on the latest version of the relevant forms from this web page.

The cover email must include the following information:

Whether the documentation is for:
- a full ethical review
- a declaration of low-risk exemption from that
- an amendment/extension of a previously processed review/declaration.
If declaring a low-risk exemption from full ethical review, state which of the exemption criterion the research satisfies. Please refer to Further Exploration of the Process of Seeking Ethics Approval for Research, HREC Document No: 7. Note in this case your documentation will still be ethically reviewed, but not in detail by all committee members.
The supervisor's name (must be a UCD staff member)
The student’s name (must be a UCD student)
The student’s programme of study
The title of the research
The proposed end of study date
Confirmation that the supervisor has reviewed and endorsed the application.

The cover email must have no more than two file attachments:

One of:
- application for full ethical review (HR1)
- declaration of low risk exemption from full ethical review (HR3)
- an amend-extend application of previous research (HR4)
A single file of any and all supporting documents required, collated into the single checklist-template document (using HR2, as given below).

Note that the requirements for supporting documentation for low-risk declarations and full review may differ, but in any case, please use the checklist-template HR2 to collate/submit any required supporting documentation (note some supervisors may provide a separate endorsement letter with the application and supporting documents). Use of the HR2 checklist template facilitates both the process of constructing and reviewing your documentation.

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Please ensure that for any research which intends to generate original data via the use of a survey instrument, that a copy of such instrument is provided in a HR2 form as part of the application.

In all cases where a study is to use pre-existing secondary data, if this is by private arrangement between the supervisor/students and the original data controller, the supervisor should obtain and store with the declaration a letter/email from the data controller clearly confirming that:

They are the data controller for the data being used in this research;
This use is in keeping with the consent originally obtained from the participants;
They are giving permission for the named UCD student(s) to access this data by providing them with a secure, fully anonymised dataset, i.e. that the student(s) will in no instance have the ability to look at personal data in the data controller’s institution but may securely analyse the dataset in UCD.

If the data controller for the original study is the current research supervisor, this should also be acknowledged in the stored letter.

Supervisors should also consider:

Whether a DPIA is required for the research; please see the (opens in a new window)UCD GDPR Website for a short guide: All queries should be directed to the UCD GDPR/DPO.
Whether a data sharing agreement should be in place where data is obtained from or shared with another organization.
Whether the UCD insurance requirements have been fulfilled in all the required documentation.

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The UTMREC email address: (opens in a new window)utmrec-sphpss@ucd.ie must be used to officially submit the documentation. No documentation will be reviewed without also including a submission to the committee using this email address.

The review process will take approximately 2-4 weeks from the submission deadline to when the applicants will receive the outcome of their application.