RCR Training
The Responsible Conduct of Research means conducting research in a way that is honest, trustworthy, reliable and accountable. Topics included within RCR include:
- Authorship, peer review, and publication practices
- Data acquisition and management, sharing and ownership
- Mentoring Practices
- Conflicts of interest and commitment
- Collaborative research
- Research misconduct and the handling of misconduct
- Scientific responsibility, ethical issues in research, and impact of research
- Protection of human and animal subjects (Note: These areas are not covered within the CITI Program RCR course. See stand-alone training courses in “HSR” and “Working with IACUC”)
For whom is training required?
Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research is required for all members of the CUNY who are actively engaging in research. For the purposes of this policy, research is defined as “a systematic experiment, study, evaluation, demonstration or survey, in any academic field, designed to develop or contribute to general knowledge (basic research) or specific knowledge (applied research) by establishing, discovering, developing, elucidating or confirming information about, or the underlying mechanism relating to, causes, functions or effects.”
CUNY faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, graduate and undergraduate students involved in research are subjected to this policy, regardless of whether the research activities are supported by internal or external funding. The policy also applies to members of administration who are engaged in research.
What type of training do I need?
Faculty and Research Administrators. Faculty and Administrators must complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative’s (CITI) on-line training in RCR within six weeks of initiating their research activities. CITI certificates should be sent to rio@baruch.cuny.edu.
Postdoctoral Fellows, Graduate Students and Research-Active Undergraduate Students. Postdocs, Graduate and Undergraduate students must complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative’s (CITI) on-line training in RCR within six weeks of initiating their research activities. Postdocs must enroll in an annual workshop offered by The CUNY Office of Research. Graduate students must enroll in the CUNY-Wide workshop offered by The Graduate Center. Registration links will appear on this website as they become available.
For the purposes of this policy, a research-active undergraduate student is a student who is substantively engaged in research (e.g., completing an honors thesis or independent project, or working as a research assistant in a lab). Undergraduate students enrolling in Research Methods course to fulfill degree requirements are not required to complete the CITI on-line training unless asked to by their course instructors.
As a faculty mentor, what can I do to ensure that my students and post-docs are receiving adequate training in the responsible conduct of research?
Faculty members should strive to promote RCR in everyday interactions with their students and protégés. Raise issues related to scientific integrity with your students throughout the academic year. Research methods classes, lab meetings, and collaborations involving data analysis and manuscript preparation all provide terrific opportunities to discuss best practices in research. Faculty mentors have a strong, indelible impact on the perceived norms, expectations, and habits of young investigators; what is believed to constitute an acceptable or questionable research practice will be passed down to future generations. So the first step in promoting RCR is to be a good role model and set high expectations for research integrity!
Where can I find additional resources for RCR training?
A comprehensive list of RCR topics with links to CUNY policies can be downloaded here. In addition, The CUNY Office of Research has compiled a list of videos, case studies, and role plays from the Office of Research Integrity and elsewhere. The CUNY Office of Research site also provides links to general resources and guides on RCR training. Finally, you can reach out to the Baruch College RIO to arrange a workshop with your students or program participants. Workshop offerings include authorship and peer review; mentoring; competing interests; human subjects research; scientific recording keeping; and research misconduct.
Last updated: August, 2025