The Office of Institutional Research & Institutional Review Board (OIRIRB) exists to provide accurate and timely information to support institutional and strategic planning, create policy formation and inspire informed decision making. The OIRIRB is also committed to providing support and expertise for the evaluation and assessment of activities throughout the University.
Reports
Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Human Subjects Research Resource Links
Institutional Enrollment & Performance Federal Reports Satisfaction Survey
Institutional Enrollment & Performance
The Office of Institutional Research creates analytical reports that help the University administration make effective decisions. These reports are available by request and some are available on the website (below). It is this office’s goal to communicate effective and clearly the successes and opportunities at Campbellsville University.
Institutional Enrollment & Performance
Federal Reports
Satisfaction Survey
The purpose of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) is to protect the rights of human subjects in research. This includes making sure that vulnerable populations are protected (i.e., prison populations, minor children, neurological impaired adults, etc.) and that informed consent is maintained for participation in research. The IRB is a University committee composed of faculty members and the Director of the Office of Institutional Research Office. The IRB is responsible for reviewing all research activities involving human subjects. The mission of the IRB is to promote and safeguard research activity that involves human subjects within the academic community and to monitor non-CU researchers seeking to conduct research at any of our campuses or centers.
What is Subject to IRB Review?
All projects that involve human research subjects are subject to review by the IRB prior to the initiation of the study. To determine whether a study is subject to IRB review, the definition of human subject and the definition of research should be examined.
Only the IRB has the authority to grant exempt status to a study. A determination of exemption requires that the researcher complete training on the use of human subjects in research and submit a limited review application for exemption to the IRB. The federal regulations include specific categories of exemptions, and any research procedures falling outside those categories must be reviewed through expedited or full review procedures.
What is Not Subject to IRB Review?
An example of a project that would not be considered human subject research is a student project that occurs in the classroom if there is no intention of using the results for any purpose other than a class assignment. This type of project is undertaken as a learning experience to help students understand the process of conducting research, and the focus is not on producing meaningful results. In these cases, only the student and instructor have access to the results, and the project’s purpose ends when a grade is assigned. However, some class assignments are undertaken as part of a project with a broader purpose that makes them subject to IRB review. For example, if a student intends to later use data collected as part of a class assignment for a thesis project or if a student plans to share the results with an audience outside the classroom he or she should seek IRB approval prior to initiating the data collection process.
Thesis or dissertation projects conducted to meet degree requirements are subject to IRB review and approval any time human subjects are involved.
When a project is undertaken by a student as a learning exercise with the results not shared beyond the classroom, the text below is provided for use in data collection instruments:
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS)
Department of Education
Department of Education Human Subjects Protection
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Research Involving Human Subjects (NSF)
Ethical Guidance
Data Protection Policies