All Graduate College students must receive training in Responsible Conduct of Research. The level of training in Responsible Conduct of Research is dependent upon the degree program. Training for doctoral students must occur prior to enrolling in doctoral dissertation research. RCR training for thesis masters students must occur prior to enrolling in master’s thesis research. For non-thesis master’s students, training must occur prior to approval to take the comprehensive examination. Programs must submit a proposal to the Graduate College Responsible Conduct of Research Committee as to how their students will meet this requirement, and any changes must be approved by the Graduate College RCR Committee.
Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research is required every 4 years and at least once in every career stage (graduate student and postdoc) as per NIH guidelines and OUHSC Graduate College policy. An advanced refresher course is offered every fall semester and graduate students entering their 5th year of graduate studies must enroll in this course. Graduate students who have already confirmed their defense date in the fall semester with the Graduate College, may be exempt from enrolling in the RCR II course (BMSC 6011). Those who might potentially graduate in the fall, but have not confirmed their defense date yet, will be required to enroll in the course. After submitting their defense request to the Graduate College, students may choose whether they wish to drop the course or remain enrolled. If the course is dropped after the second week of the semester, the course will remain on the transcript with a grade of “W”, according to the Add/Drop deadlines in the OUHSC Academic Calendar. Students must complete all the required class sessions to receive a grade of “S” in the course.
