1. What is the St. Clair College Research Ethics Board?
Research ethics at St. Clair College refers to the principles, processes, and oversight mechanisms that help ensure research involving human participants is conducted responsibly, respectfully, and in accordance with recognized ethical standards. Research ethics protects the rights, dignity, privacy, and welfare of participants while supporting high-quality research, scholarship, and innovation. St. Clair College follows the principles outlined in the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2, 2022) and is committed to ensuring that research activities meet appropriate ethical, legal, and professional standards.
2. Does my study require ethics clearance?
All research projects involving human participants, human biological materials, as well as human embryos, fetuses, fetal tissue, reproductive materials and stem cells require ethics review and approval by the REB before the research commences. This applies to materials derived from living and deceased individuals (Article 2.1). Articles 2.2 through 2.4 describe research that is exempt from REB review and Articles 2.5 and 2.6 outline activities that, though similar to research, do not require REB review. If you are not sure if your project requires REB, please reach out to us at research@stclaircollege.ca.
3. How long does REB clearance take?
It depends on the quality of the submission and the level of risk of the proposed research. The minimum review period is 4-6 weeks, but often the board has questions and clarifications that need to be addressed in subsequent meetings.
4. What is the TCPS2-CORE 2022 Certificate and do all researchers need to have one?
All investigators on a research project associated with St. Clair College are required to complete the free online TCPS2-CORE 2022 training available through the Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics (PRE) website. Once all modules have been completed, a TCPS2-CORE 2022 Certificate of completion will be issued. Please save, print and include these certificates with your application submission, as per our checklist.
5. What if I need to make change to my research after REB clearance has been granted?
A “Request for Change” must be submitted to the Board when any change is being proposed to the cleared research plans. This form would apply to changes in recruitment, methodology, timelines, and/or location of the research.
6. Where do I submit my REB application?
7. What should I do if there is an adverse event?
If an adverse event occurs, please report it to the REB on our “Adverse Event” form within 48 hours of the occurrence. The REB email (research@stclaircollege.ca) is managed 12 months of the year. If it is an emergency, please follow the necessary emergency protocols in addition to the previously mentioned notification form.
8. What if I have a clearance from another institution’s REB?
Even if your project has already been reviewed and cleared by REB at another institution, you must still have written clearance from St. Clair College’s REB before you may commence the proposed research activities at St. Clair College or with St. Clair College staff, students, and/or resources. In addition, separate from the REB, you must submit an administrative notification form that will be reviewed by the Senior Operating Group at St. Clair College. Please see our flow chart for details on this process.
9. As a St. Clair College faculty, student or staff member, I am interested in conducting research, but will not be using SCC resources, staff, or students. Do I still need to come to the SCC REB?
If the research will include human participants or materials, you will be required to come to the SCC REB as we would be considered your board of record. This would be the case even if you are collaborating with a colleague from another institution and have already received REB clearance there.
10. What types of research require REB review?
REB review is required for any research involving human participants, including:
- Surveys, interviews, focus groups
- Course‑based research projects
- Program evaluations used for research purposes
- Multi‑site or collaborative studies involving St. Clair College researchers or participants
If you’re unsure, contact the Research Office before proceeding.
11. Do I need to submit an ethics application if the data has been already collected and de-identified?
Yes, an application needs to be submitted for secondary use of information. Secondary use refers to the use in research of information originally collected for a purpose other than the current research purpose.
As outlined in the Tri-Council Policy Statement, Chapter 5, Section D, Consent and Secondary Use of Identifiable Information for Research Purposes, researchers who have not obtained consent from participants for secondary use of identifiable information shall only use such information for these purposes if:
- identifiable information is essential to the research;
- the use of identifiable information without the participants’ consent is unlikely to adversely affect the welfare of individuals to whom the information relates;
- the researchers will take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of individuals, and to safeguard the identifiable information;
- the researchers will comply with any known preferences previously expressed by individuals about any use of their information;
- it is impossible or impracticable to seek consent from individuals to whom the information relates; and
- the researchers have obtained any other necessary permission for secondary use of information for research purposes.
12. An outside agency wants to conduct research using St. Clair College students but have already been reviewed by another Research Ethics Board. Do they need to be reviewed by St. Clair’s REB?
Yes, if you are using St. Clair College students, staff, or facilities in your study you must apply to St. Clair College’s REB.
13. In addition to my role at the College, I am a student at another institution. As part of my studies, I am required to complete a thesis/ dissertation. My project does not include staff/ students/ resources/etc. from St. Clair College. Do I need SCC-REB?
No, your board of record would be the institution for which you are a student. It is very important, nevertheless to manage your dual roles if this arises. Please note that if you intend to use SCC resources, staff, students, or affiliation for publication, you will need to complete the SCC-REB application in addition to the REB at your board of record.
14. I would like to recruit students, faculty or staff at St. Clair College. Who would I contact to recruit participants via email?
St. Clair College’s has specific processes for recruiting students, faculty, and staff. For online research, recruitment emails can be sent to St. Clair College’s email lists for students and staff. Please indicate this protocol in your application and work with the REB Chair to send this information to the proper departments. Online recruitment to students will be sent out from the IT department at the college, whereas online recruitment to staff will be sent out from the Office of College Communications and Community Relations. Alternative forms of recruitment can be proposed in your REB application (e.g., onsite recruitment, snowball approaches, etc.).
15. I am teaching a class, and my students have assignment that require conducting research. Would this research come through St. Clair College’s REB?
Yes, all course-based research requires clearance and should be submitted on a Student Course-Based Research Application Form. Course-based research is when the objective of project/data collection is for the student to acquire skills involved with conducting academic and scholarly research in a rigorous manner. If it is an annual activity/assignment, then the REB can set up a process of renewal, but initially, it must be reviewed and cleared by the REB.
16. What happens after REB approval is granted?
After approval:
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- Researchers must comply with all REB conditions and timelines
- Amendments, renewals, and reportable events must be submitted to the external REB
- St. Clair College continues institutional oversight and compliance monitoring
17. Is REB approval required for multi-site or collaborative research?
Yes. Multi-site or collaborative studies must receive REB approval through the appropriate external REB pathway. Additional approvals or agreements may be required depending on partner institutions.
18. Who do I contact with questions?
19. Does St. Clair College have its own Research Ethics Board (REB)?
No. St. Clair College does not currently operate an internal Research Ethics Board (REB). Instead, the College utilizes authorized external REBs through established review and reliance arrangements. This model allows the College to access experienced, independent ethics review processes while ensuring compliance with TCPS 2 requirements and sector best practices.
20. Why does St. Clair College use an external REB?
St. Clair College uses external REBs to ensure that research involving human participants receives independent, qualified, and objective ethical review. External REBs provide access to specialized expertise, established review processes, and diverse disciplinary perspectives that support ethical decision-making. This approach also allows the College to focus resources on supporting researchers, facilitating research activities, and ensuring institutional compliance while leveraging recognized ethics review expertise from partner institutions and organizations.
21. Who is responsible for ethics oversight if the REB is external?
Although ethics review is conducted by an external REB, St. Clair College retains responsibility for institutional oversight of research conducted under its authority.
The College is responsible for:
- Ensuring researchers obtain appropriate ethics approval before commencing research activities;
- Maintaining policies, procedures, and institutional requirements related to research ethics;
- Supporting compliance with TCPS 2 and applicable regulations;
- Managing institutional agreements and reliance arrangements with external REBs;
- Monitoring and addressing institutional concerns related to research conduct when required.
Researchers remain responsible for conducting their projects in accordance with approved ethics protocols and institutional requirements.