Grenfell Campus Research Ethics Board

The Grenfell Campus Research Ethics Board (GC-REB) assesses scholars’ plans for research involving humans. If you are doing any research involving humans, you must submit an ethics application. Research involving humans includes, but is not limited to, online and in-person surveys, focus groups, interviews, and other methods of data collection. If the people who have provided the data you are using (e.g., online forum) have a reasonable expectation of privacy or in the case of program evaluations, you plan to publish the data, ethics approval should be obtained. If there is any doubt, please contact the GC-REB for collegial consultation.

 

Resource information

Tri-Council regulations
Tri-Council is the ultimate authority with respect to ethics requirements; GC-REB adheres to the regulations put forward by Tri-Council. You will find information regarding research that requires Research Ethics Board review and research that is exempt from review in articles 2.1 and 2.2 respectively in TCPS 2 (2022) – Chapter 2: Scope and Approach.

 

Health Research Ethics Board (HREB)

All health research involving humans must be reviewed by the Health Research Ethics Board. Visit the HREB website for information on the types of research that are required to be submitted as well as how to apply. If you are uncertain if your research would be classified as health research, please contact the HREB at administrator@hrea.ca.

 

Animal studies approvals

Similarly, if you are studying animals, your proposal needs to be considered by the Provincial Health Research Ethics Board and by Memorial University's Institutional Animal Care Committee (IACC).

 

Undergraduate research project approvals

The GC-REB does not review undergraduate research projects. These projects are reviewed at a program level. Subsequently, program chairs or an assigned program level ethics representative must complete a form and submit it to the GC-REB chair through the Research Office.

 

Inter-institution research approvals

Researchers who are looking to complete research at Grenfell Campus, but have ethics approval from their own institution, must complete this form. This requirement includes students, staff and faculty who are located on St. John's Campus or have obtained approval from ICEHR. Approval must be granted by the GC-REB chair prior to commencing your research.

 

Indigenous Research approvals

GC-REB does not administer research projects involving Indigenous peoples and lands beyond those considerations under Tri-Council’s own directives. Researchers should consult Chapter 9 here: Tri-Council regulations as well as Memorial University’s own policy - Research Impacting Indigenous Groups (RIIG).

 

GC-REB Information

How do I complete a GC-REB ethics application?

• To submit an application, you will need to have a research portal (ROMEO) account. Click here to sign up for an account. The process of acquiring an account can take up to two days. If you are unfamiliar with ROMEO, it may be helpful to sign up for a researcher portal training session through the portal website. If you are having technical difficulties with the Research Portal website, you can submit a ticket here.
• All ethics submissions require completion of the TCPS2 tutorial, and then submission of the resulting TCPS2 certificate of completion with your application.
• Applications and all accompanying research materials are submitted through ROMEO. Use the appropriate forms found under section 6: Grenfell Campus Research Ethics Board (GC-REB).
• All materials for your study must be uploaded with your application. This includes, but is not limited to, recruitment communication, consent forms, survey instruments (including any specific questions participants will be asked), debriefing information and archives donation forms.
• Graduate students must also complete a supervisor signature form.
• Failure to submit a complete application will result in requests for revision which will cause delays in approval.
• Necessary modification to your application following GC-REB review will be made in ROMEO. Future changes to your project or to extend your project beyond the initial approval date, requires submission of appropriate forms within the Research Portal. Please note that annual reports for multiyear research plans are required.   

 

What happens after I submit my application?

The process

After you’ve clicked “submit,” your application is sent to the Research Office for triaging. It can take two to three days for the Research Office to process your application and forward it to the GC-REB. Then the committee reviews the application and replies in approximately three weeks. If the committee has indicated that changes or further information is needed, the same two-week process occurs. Again, the two weeks begin when the committee receives your re-submission from the Research Office.

 

GC-REB decisions

You will receive one of the following decisions from the GC-REB:

1. Approval – The GC-REB may approve a research project to proceed as submitted. Ethics approval is granted for a maximum of one year. Ethical approval must be renewed annually until the project is completed.
2. Modification Required – The REB may indicate to the Principal Investigator the need for additional information or for revisions to the application that was submitted. The GC-REB Chair will provide a letter to the PI in which a summary of the reviewers' comments is provided. The additional information or the required revisions must be re-submitted for review via the Research Portal. The revisions must be listed along with the section or research materials where they are found in a “letter of revision” that is uploaded to your application.

 

It is strongly recommended that ethics applications be submitted well in advance of six weeks prior to the expected start date of the project—ideally two months in advance.

 

Common Problems Seen by the GC-REB

This is not an exhaustive list. However, these are the most frequent problems that delay the approval process. Consider these as you complete your own application.

• Insufficient information – The GC-REB needs to know enough about your research plan and method(s) to be able to decide whether participants are being treated in an ethical manner. This is an interdisciplinary committee that changes on a regular basis and there may not be someone who is familiar with your specific methodology. Be thorough, use clear statements, avoid jargon.
• Missing Forms – You need to include all study materials. This includes your informed consent form, recruitment materials, questionnaires, and debriefing forms (if applicable). A sample informed consent form can be found here.
• Complexity of language – The application itself should be written in non-technical language. Even more importantly, all information that participants will see (e.g., recruitment messages, informed consent forms) should be written using easy-to-understand language. Scholars generally suggest information being presented to participants be written at an grade six language competency level.

 

Need more information?

For any questions about the application process or for collegial consultation on ethical issues with your research design please, contact the GC-REB chair at gcethics@mun.ca.