When you log into Brightspace, click on the 'EXPLORE' link. In the 'My Modules' section, 'Research Integrity Training' should be the first module presented to you.
Research Integrity Training
Research Student Training Requirements
UCD is dedicated to upholding the highest standards of professionalism and rigour in research conducted by its staff and students. This commitment extends to ensuring the accuracy and integrity of research publications.
Research Integrity training is compulsory for all graduate research Students. For doctoral students who have started their programme from September 2024, they must complete the Research Integrity Training in Stage 1 of their programme.
Your training requirement can be met during your research programme by taking either:
- an online Research Integrity Training course in Brightspace, containing 8 sections and taking approximately 5 hours to complete.
- Research Integrity Module (opens in a new window)SCI50020 in which online training is accompanied by face-to-face workshops with discussion of specific case studies. This module attracts 5 ECTS credits and is most suitable for science and engineering research students.
Learn more: explore the University's Research Integrity Policy.
Online Research Integrity Training for Research Degree Students
As part of the Irish Universities Association's Research Integrity Forum, UCD secured a national subscription for an online Research Integrity Training Course from Epigeum, a leading provider of online courses for the university sector.
This online Research Integrity course, available in Brightspace, will help you to better understand your obligations and responsibilities and will provide practical advice on how to deal with the complex situations in which you may find yourself. This course will help you develop self-assessment techniques that will be invaluable throughout your career.
There are no credits associated with this course, but upon successful completion of the multiple-choice quizzes at the end of each section, you will receive a certificate. Having this certificate meets the university requirement for graduate research students to satisfactorily complete research integrity training, prior to submission of your thesis at the completion of your research programme.
Please note that the shorter version of this training, marked as 'Concise' on the certificate, is not sufficient to meet the Research Integrity training requirements of a UCD graduate research programme.
Online Training FAQs
The expected time to complete is 300 minutes (or 5 hours), but it may take longer depending on the individual.
Please note that you must complete sections 1–8 to receive the certificate and meet University requirements.
No, you may log on and off the course as needed until you have completed the course, passed successfully and are ready to download your certificate. Please keep your certificate safe as this will be requested by funding agencies as proof that you have successfully completed the course.
In order to meet the requirements of the Academic Regulations, you need to complete sections 1–8 inclusive, and to complete the quiz at the end of each section. The pass mark is 80% in each section. You can retake any quiz to reach this pass mark.
You must achieve a minimum of 80% in the test at the end of the course to be able to download the certificate.
Yes, (opens in a new window)the National Policy Statement on Ensuring Research Integrity in Ireland was published in June 2014. The signatories to the statement are the main research-performing and research-funding organisations in Ireland. They have agreed the following four commitments:
- Commitment 1 – We are committed to ensuring the highest standards of integrity in all aspects of our research, founded on basic principles of good research practice to be observed by all researchers and research organisations.
- Commitment 2 – Education and promotion of good research practice are the foundations of research integrity. We are committed to maintaining a national research environment that is founded upon a culture of integrity, embracing internationally recognised good practice and a positive, proactive approach to promoting research integrity. This will include support for the development of our researchers through education and promotion of good research practices.
- Commitment 3 – We are committed to working together to reinforce and safeguard the integrity of the Irish research system and to reviewing progress regularly.
- Commitment 4 – We are committed to using transparent, robust and fair processes to deal with allegations of research misconduct when they arise.
The Research Integrity Course is appropriate to all disciplines, and within the course you can choose activities/scenarios for the following areas of research:
- Arts and Humanities
- Biomedical Sciences
- Engineering
- Natural Science
- Social Science.
Additional FAQs can be found on UCD Research and Innovation page.