Research Governance
There are different pathways for ethical review of research, depending on whether the project is low risk or higher risk.
Low risk projects
There are two alternative pathways for ethical review of low risk projects:
- Undergraduate and postgraduate taught
Undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate taught (PGT) student projects are reviewed at School level via an online application system. Please refer to the following documents when making your application:
- Staff and postgraduate research
Staff and postgraduate research student projects are reviewed by one of the Cross-Schools Research Ethics Committees (C-RECs).
Higher risk projects
Ethical review within Schools and by research ethics committees is overseen by the University Research Governance Committee (URGC), which is responsible for broader policy decisions relating to research governance and ethics. The URGC also regularly reviews policies relating to the ethics of research to ensure that they are comprehensive, accessible, relevant and up-to-date. University policies relating to research governance are available on the research policies page.
How to apply for ethical review
For detailed information about the ethical review process – including details of when and how to apply – please view the University's comprehensive guidance on research governance.
Applications are made online via Sussex Direct. For more details see the guidance on how to apply for research ethics review.
Specific Information for the School of Engineering and Informatics
Guidance notes for completing your application to the sciences and technology cross-schools research ethics committee (read in conjunction with the University guidance). Completing your CREC application [PDF 72.98KB]
Combined template for participant information sheet and informed consent for the School of Engineering and Informatics. InfoConsent_template [DOC 110.00KB]
Contacts
Email: rgoffice@sussex.ac.uk
Tel: 01273 872748
C-REC
The School of Engineering and Informatics comes under the Sciences and Technology Cross-Schools Research Ethics Committee (C-REC). This committee can be contacted via crecscitech@sussex.ac.uk