Human Subjects Responsible Conduct of Research Course

Registration for the Fall 2026 Human Subjects RCR course will open in July/August. The course will run for eight weeks between September 29, 2025 and Nov 17, 2025.

Course description:

The Human Subjects RCR course is administered by UCSF Bioethics. It is offered twice a year during the Fall and Spring quarters. This course is designed for researchers who work with human subjects or data derived from human subjects (e.g. clinical, survey, EHR, or ethnographic data). The course is comprised of video and in-person lectures, readings, case studies, and weekly real-time small group discussions via Zoom. It addresses requirements and regulations for human subjects research, including IRB approval and consent.

Learner requirements:

Human Subjects RCR runs for eight weeks. Participants are expected to devote at least 4 hours per week to individual work and small group discussion. This is a pass/fail course. Receiving a passing grade in the course requires attending a weekly one-hour Zoom discussion session. There are no exceptions to this rule. There will be a wide variety of days and times, Monday through Friday, for learners to attend weekly discussion sections. Learners will select their discussion section during the first week of the course. Topics include:

Overview of Human Subjects Research Regulations
Informed Consent & IRB Review
Legacies of Scientific Racism
Authorship & Data Sharing
Research in Resource-Poor Countries
Research Misconduct, Conflicts of Interest, & Reproducibility
Ethics in Big Data Research & Learning Health Systems
Ethics in AI-Based Research

Fall 2026 Details:

Sept 29, 2025 – Nov 21, 2025
There will be a wide variety of days and times for the weekly discussion sections – learners will select their discussion section during the first week of the course.

Week 1 (09/29 - 10/03) includes one in-person lecture and welcome event on either the Mission Bay or Parnassus Campus, date and time to be determined. Co-director Dr. Julia Brown will give a broad overview of research ethics and outline what you can expect in the course. This event will give you a chance to meet your group leaders and peers in person.

Am I eligible to take Human Subjects RCR?

This class is open to all UCSF faculty, fellows, and postdoctoral trainees whose research is primarily conducted with human subjects or the data (clinical or otherwise) derived from human subjects. This includes both researchers whose methods are quantitative and whose methods are qualitative. 5^th year graduate students who need to take an RCR refresher course are also eligible but should enroll in the RCR course that best fits their research agenda (Basic Science or Human Subjects). If you have questions about your eligibility, please email the program coordinator at [email protected].

Am I required to take Human Subjects RCR?

The NIH, NSF, and other federal funders require all individuals on training or career development awards to take Responsible Conduct of Research at least every four years and at least once per career level. This applies to all levels of training awards (e.g. T32 for postdoctoral scholars or K awards for faculty).

Postdoctoral scholars are strongly advised to take RCR in their first year of training, even if you received training recently as a graduate student.

If you are not sure if you are required to take RCR, please contact [email protected]. Faculty and postdoctoral scholars not funded by NIH or NSF are still strongly encouraged to enroll.

I am an established researcher on a career development award. Do I need to take Human Subjects RCR?

Any faculty funded on a training or career development award is subject to the NIH requirement for RCR Training. This includes K and F awards for mid- and late-career researchers. However, NIH recognizes that RCR training may look different for scholars with a more established research agenda. Given that, midcareer and senior scholars at UCSF are invited to serve as small group facilitators for the Human Subjects RCR course, rather than enrolling in the course as learners. Please contact the course manager at [email protected] if you are interested in this option.

I took the CITI Human Subjects Protection Training. Do I need to take Human Subjects RCR?

The CITI Human Subjects Protection Training is required by the UCSF IRB for any Key Study Personnel at UCSF or at affiliated institutions to engage in human subjects research. IRB approval of a study is contingent on study personnel having fulfilled this requirement. However, the CITI training does not meet NIH requirements for RCR and does not replace the need for formal RCR instruction for anyone funded on an NIH training or career development award.

Human Subjects RCR Course Contacts

Sara Ackerman, PhD, MPH
[email protected]
Associate Professor, UCSF Bioethics
Associate Professor, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Spring RCR Course Director

Julia Brown, PhD
[email protected]
Assistant Professor, UCSF Bioethics
Assistant Professor, Humanities & Social Sciences
Fall RCR Course Director

Chanel Matney, PhD
[email protected]
Program Manager, UCSF Bioethics
RCR Course Assistant