NSF RECR Training Requirement
NSF requires training in the Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research (RECR) for all:
- undergraduates,
- graduate students, and
- postdocs
- faculty and other senior personnel
who are supported by NSF funds to conduct research. For trainees, the RECR training requirement has been in effect since 2010. For faculty and other senior personnel, the RECR training requirement applies to all awarded research proposals submitted or due on or after July 31, 2023.
NSF’s regulations require that, at the time of proposal submission, “each institution that applies for financial assistance from the Foundation for science and engineering research or education describe in its grant proposal a plan to provide appropriate training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research to undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, faculty, and other senior personnel supported by the proposed research project. Such training must include mentor training and mentorship.
To view the University Plan for Fulfilling NSF RECR Training Requirements, click here. For a list of Frequently Asked Questions for NSF-funded undergraduates, graduate students and postdocs click here. For other questions, see below, or contact the Office of Research Compliance and Training at [email protected].
Frequently Asked Questions - (Faculty and Senior Researchers)
In 2022, Congress mandated that faculty and senior personnel supported by NSF must complete RECR training. This training requirement has applied to NSF-funded undergraduates, graduate students and postdocs since 2010. Congress has mandated that RECR training for faculty and senior personnel must include training on mentoring and mentorship. Other topics include, e.g., safeguarding intellectual property, authorship and publication, research misconduct, and peer review. RECR training need be completed only once; there is no refresher training requirement.
If you are listed as faculty or senior personnel on an NSF proposal due on or after July 31, 2023 and the proposal is awarded, then you must complete RECR training before the award can be set up. If you do the training now, you will avoid delays when your next NSF project is awarded. This requirement does NOT apply to proposals for conferences, symposia, workshops, or travel. Finally, this requirement does NOT apply retroactively to projects submitted and awarded before July 31.
You may complete the RECR training requirement through the Rascal Training Center, Course No. TC7000. There are 9 relatively brief modules. It is not necessary to complete all modules in one session, but the modules must be completed in sequence. There are quizzes at the end of most modules. Including the time needed to read through the material, we estimate that completing all the modules will take around 2.5-3 hours. If you are very familiar with the material, you have the ability to skim and scroll to the quizzes. If you need help navigating to the training, please review the step-by-step instructions posted on the Research Compliance and Training website.
The Office of Research Compliance and Training (RCT) will assign the training in Rascal to any identified faculty, senior personnel, postdoc or student supported by NSF. This means that the training will appear automatically in the My Training To-Do List, in the Rascal Training Center. In addition, over the next several months, RCT will send regular reminders to NSF faculty and senior personnel who have not completed RECR training. At award setup, Sponsored Projects Administration will confirm that all individuals named in the proposal have completed RECR training and will inform those who have not completed RECR training that they must do so. The award will not be set up until all faculty and senior personnel named in the proposal have completed the training.
No. Award set-up will only be held until faculty and other senior personnel named in the proposal complete the training. The Office of Research Compliance and Training has a separate process for students and postdocs.
We know that researchers must complete many administrative and compliance responsibilities, and mandatory RECR training adds to this burden. However, the topics covered in these trainings are essential, and we encourage researchers to take advantage of the opportunity to review the same materials as their students and postdocs. This shared understanding of the fundamental principles and norms that underly our work will help promote a cohesive research environment.
