Federal regulations require that students, trainees, postdoctoral researchers, and others engaged in federally funded research (through agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-NIFA)) receive training in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) and most recently, Research Security Training (see NIH and NSF notices) . These agencies emphasize that ethical research practices are essential to maintaining public trust, protecting research subjects, and ensuring the credibility of scientific findings. To comply with these requirements and to foster a culture of integrity in research, OGSR has registered with the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative Program (CITI) in order to provide this required research compliance training. Individuals in the aforementioned categories must complete the CITI Program RCR training and the newly added Research Security Training before engaging in any research activities. These training modules provide a foundation in the principles and best practices of responsible research conduct.
To learn how to access CITI and register for the required RCR and Research Security Training, please click here for step by step directions. The CITI Program also offers a webinar package for users to access, as well as a full grants writing course!
TCNJ’s Research Misconduct policy incorporates standards for responsible conduct of research, inclusive of “proposing, conducting, or reporting research.” This policy directs the reader to “comply with all College policies and procedures and all applicable laws, policies, rules, and regulations of the US government, NJ State, or local laws.” Required training for federal applicants in “other support” , from October 1, 2025, will be provided on an individualized basis during the proposal preparation process and/or at the required submission meeting. Additionally, training on Other Support may be found via the same government-wide training module used for Research Security Training, provided at TCNJ through CITI.
Research using human and animal subjects is overseen by the TCNJ Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Institutional Care and Use Committee (IACUC), respectively. These two bodies ensure that all research taking place at the College adheres to all federal guidelines. To view information pertaining to these entities or to institutional policy and procedure, please see below.
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee