Applying for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval  

Step 1: Determine if your project needs approval

If you are not sure if your project requires approval from the IRB, read our guidelines or call the IRB office at 928-523-4236.

Step 2: Complete training

Take the required IRB training, The Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI). If you have not completed this training within the past three years, take it before submitting your IRB application.

Please refer to the instructions on how to register for the CITI course and take the IRB tutorial. Failure to follow these instructions could result in being assigned more modules than you need to take.

If you are conducting research under NSF funding, you are also required to take the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course. If you do not have NSF funding, take the IRB Basic course, not the RCR course.

Step 3: Submit an Application for Approval of Research 

Go to www.IRBNet.org and register yourself as New User. Click on “New User Registration” in the top right corner. Fill out the basic information, select a username and password (be sure to remember them!), agree to the terms of use, affiliate with NAU, and enter contact information. Click “register” and an email will be sent to you immediately. At that point, your account has been activated and you can begin using IRBNet!

Click on “Create New Project” in the blue field to the left of the screen. Follow the prompts to enter your information. The IRB Application is available under Step 2 on the Designer page.

Use these resources to help you get started: 

For classroom-based research, find out how to integrate informed consent into  your Blackboard Learn course shell.

Once your application has been received by the IRB, you will receive a confirmation from IRBNet. The NAU IRB office will respond to you with either an approval or a request for more information or revisions within ten working days from the date you submit your application to. For questions, please call 928-523-4236 or e-mail the IRB.