Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Research proposals generally fall into one of three of the following categories, those that: 

• require a full IRB Committee review
• require an expedited IRB Committee review 
• and are exempt from review  

Regardless of how researchers categorize their own research, completion and approval of the IRB Research Committee is required before any data are collected.

IRB Proposal Form

Studies that require a full IRB Committee review potentially pose risks to a participant that is considered more harmful than most activities of daily life.  Minimal risk is defined by the Office for Human Risk Protections as “the probability and magnitude of harm or discomfort anticipated in the research are not greater in and of themselves than those ordinarily encountered in daily life or during the performance of routine physical or psychological examinations or tests.”  Studies that require a full committee review usually require one month for completion of the review.

Studies that are eligible for an expedited review do not exceed the standards for minimal risk as described above.  These studies usually require a period of two to three weeks for completion of the review.  For more information on expedited review, please go to this website:

Categories of Research

Studies that are exempt from full or expedited committee reviews do not exceed the standards for minimal risk and require no identifying information or other data that could potentially jeopardize a participant’s social or career standing.  Completion and submission of the IRB Research Proposal Form is required for studies falling into this category.  

Please keep in mind that the IRB Chair and the IRB Committee are responsible for deciding what category a research proposal belongs.  Completion of an approved informed consent document is also required for all submitted studies. For more information on informed consent documents, please click on the following link:

Office for Human Research

Informed Consent