Human Subjects Review Board

The Human Subject Review Board (HSRB) serves as the federally recognized Institutional Review Board (IRB) for Concord University. The HSRB helps faculty, staff, and students comply with federal and institutional requirements and policies regarding the ethical treatment of human participants in research. HSRB strives to protect the rights, dignity, welfare, and privacy of human subjects in research conducted by any person affiliated with the university.

All research involving human subjects at Concord must be reviewed and approved by HSRB PRIOR to starting the project!

Please contact any member of the HSRB members for assistance completing your Humans Subjects Review Board proposal.

1. Complete the Citi Online Training module
You must provide a copy of the final certification of completion with your documents. This only needs to be completed once by each researcher. After the training has been completed future projects will not require this step.

  • Create an account
  • Attach your account to Concord University
  • Complete the modules that are relevant to your research area
    • Note: Most research participants will complete RCR for Human Subjects
  • Provide a copy of your completion verification to the HSRB

2. Determine the Review Category
Research reviewed by the HSRB will fall into one of three categories. Fill out the appropriate HSRB forms based on your review category. Submit a single, signed copy to the HSRB Chair. The Office of Human Research Protections Decision Charts can help you determine whether your research qualifies as Exempt, Expedited or requires a full review of the CU Human Subjects Review Board.

  • Exempt Category I: The research is exempt from full board review.  The HSRB chair reviews the applicant’s submission and either approves, requests modification, or disapproves the research. This type of review generally takes about two weeks.
  • Expedited Category II: The research qualifies for expedited rather than full board review. The chair and two other members of the HSRB must review the applicant’s submission and either approve, request modification, or disapprove the research. Every effort will be made to inform the applicant of the results of an expedited review within three weeks of the submission date.
  • Full Board Review Category III: Meetings of the full board are scheduled four times an academic year, the 4th week of September, the 1st week of November, the 4th week of February, and the 1st week of April. If your research requires full board review, please submit your application at least one week prior to an upcoming meeting.  The principal investigator is expected to attend the HSRB meeting during which your research is reviewed.​

Consult Section IV. of the HSRB Procedures Manual for more information about determining the correct review category.

3. Submit the Following Documents to the HSRB Chair

  • HSRB Proposal Cover Page -Required for ALL proposals. Must include signatures of principle investigator and faculty/staff supervisor.
  • HSRB Project Proposal Questionnaire – Required for ALL proposals.
    • Exempt Category I: Complete Questions 1-7
    • Expedited Category II: Complete Questions​ 1-11
    • Full Board Review Category III: Complete Questions 1-16
  • HSRB Form 1A: List of Ethical Issues in Human Research – Required for ALL Expedited Category II or Full Board Review Category III proposals.
  • A copy of the completion verification of the CITI Online Training module (see CITI Training above)

Submit all required documents electronically to the HSRB Chair for evaluation at hsrbchair@concord.edu

Principle investigators who have received approval from HSRB at Concord University may request an extension to his or her existing project beyond the 1 year maximum timeframe. For renewals with no more than minimal changes, complete and return the HSRB Renewal Request form below. Renewal requests must be submitted before the prior project approval end date. If the project has more than minimal changes or is past the approval end date, then researchers are required to submit a new HSRB research proposal application.

HSRB Renewal Request

Contact the members of Concord’s Human Subjects Review Board with any questions about the HSRB application approval process. Thank you for helping to foster sound and ethical human subjects research at Concord University!

Academic Year 2023-2024

HSRB Meeting Schedule for research proposals requiring Full Board Review Category III:

  • The fourth week of September
  • The first week of November
  • The fourth week of February
  • The first week of April

Additional meeting times may be arranged at the discretion of the Chair. Researchers anticipating summer research should plan to prepare their proposals for discussion at the April meeting. All materials must be submitted to the Chair no later than one week before the HSRB meets.