Emily Carr Research Ethics Board (ECU-REB)

Emily Carr University researchers and student researchers can apply for research ethics approval of research projects using the ROMEO - Researcher Portal. Sign in using your ECU email and a password you have created.

• If you are new to ROMEO, follow the self-registration instructions. To speed up the process, please also send an email to research@ecuad.ca to confirm that you have self-registered.

• If you are an Emily Carr student researcher (undergraduate and graduate), please follow these instructions.

After login, click on "APPLY NEW" (right side of screen). Then, select "Application for Human Research Ethics" and follow the prompts.

Courses that include research activities involving human participants require prior review and approval by the Emily Carr University Research Ethics Board (ECU-REB). Emily Carr University instructors can apply for research ethics approval of course-based research using the ROMEO - Researcher Portal. Sign in using your ECU email and a password you have created.

• If you are new to ROMEO, follow the self-registration instructions. To speed up the process, please also send an email to research@ecuad.ca to confirm that you have self-registered.

After login, click on "APPLY NEW" (right side of screen). Then select "Application for Human Research Ethics: Course-Based Research" and follow the prompts.

For more information on the course-based review process, review this step-by-step guide.

The Emily Carr University Research Ethics Board (ECU-REB) is not yet part of Research Ethics BC’s harmonized REB process but an expedited review process for previously approved research is available. For research with REB approval from another site (or REBC), only the approved documents are required. In most cased the review involves the ECU-REB Chair or designate alone. No new application is required.

Researchers who are external to Emily Carr University should apply for multi-jurisdictional research ethics approval using the ROMEO - Researcher Portal.

• If you are new to ROMEO, follow the self-registration instructions. To speed up the process, please also send an email to research@ecuad.ca to confirm that you have self-registered.

After login, click on "APPLY NEW" (right side of screen). Then select "Multi-Jurisdictional Applications for Human Research Ethics" and follow the prompts.

Research ethics review processes and standards for research-creation and art practices are not always straight forward. At Emily Carr University there is often a blurring of the line between art practices and academic research projects; as well as the line between design research and creative practice. Research-creation is a term that is utilized in a variety of settings. Some of these activities are exempt from research ethics review, some need a combination of review and exemption, and some need research ethics review.

The TCPS2 describes an exemption for creative practice activities this way,

“Creative practice activities, in and of themselves, do not require REB review. However, research that employs creative practice to obtain responses from participants that will be analyzed to answer a research question is subject to REB review.

Creative practice is a process through which an artist makes or interprets a work or works of art. It may also include a study of the process of how a work of art is generated. Creative practice activities do not require REB review, but they may be governed by ethical practices established within the cultural sector.”

(TCPS2, Article 2.6)

Also note that for projects involving First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples or content, the creative practice exemption may not apply, even if it fits the TCPS2 creative practice description.

If you are uncertain about whether or not your project qualifies for the “creative practice exemption” you are invited to discuss it or request advice from the ECU-REB. Email to set up a consultation.

Informed Consent Checklist 201.1

Use this checklist to ensure that your consent and release documents meet the requirements of Canada's TCPS2 (Tri-Council Policy Statement Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, 2018). While it is mandatory that this tool be consulted to ensure that the consent documents are complete, it does not need to be included with the research ethics application.

Download Informed Consent 201.1 checklist

Invitation / Consent Form Template 201.3

This template provides line-by-line suggestions for an invitation and consent form that meets TCPS2 standards. (Optional).

Download Invitation / Consent Form Template 201.3

Invitation / Consent and Assent Form Template 201.4

This template includes wording that might work for some children who can read but are not old enough to provide legal consent. Ensure that modifications are written to meet the specific needs of the anticipated research participants. (Optional)

Download Invitation / Consent and Assent Form Template 201.4

Release Agreement Template 201.5

This template can be used for the release of photographs, digital images, video, audio recordings, or other identifiable information of the research participants or of their property. Publishers or partner organizations may have release agreements that can be used instead. If the research project does not make public any identifiable information (for example, if all of the publicly available data is completely anonymous), this form is not necessary. (Optional).

Download Release Agreement Template 201.5

Informed Consent for Online Surveys Template 201.7

This template offers instruction on how to construct an online survey preamble. It can be used with online tools like surveys as well as other data collection tools.

Download Informed Consent for Online Surveys Template 201.7

Applications for research ethics approval should be submitted when the researcher has a clear proposal for human participation in the research. There are no specific deadlines.

Graduate Students

Applications for research ethics review are submitted after your interim thesis plan has been successfully defended. Since the supervisor will be listed as the principal investigator (PI) and will eventually submit the application, the process will require their consultation. There is also direct consultation available from the Research Ethics Coordinator and other members of the ECU-REB. Typically, graduate students use the summer months to write and revise their research ethics applications so that they are ready for approval in the fall semester of second year.

Faculty or External Researchers

Research ethics applications should be submitted after the research funding and partnership contracts are in place, and after the research team has agreed on the plans for research activities involving human participants. If an Emily Carr researcher is a co-investigator on an external project where the PI’s institution has its own ethics review process or if the project is being reviewed through the harmonized REBC process, the ECU-REB will use an expedited process to review applications that have already been approved.

Review and approval process times depend on the completeness and complexity of the application, and the availability of reviewers. In general,

• The delegated review process for complete applications takes 2-3 weeks.

• The full board review process for complete applications can take from 1-2 months.

These times do not include the time that researchers need to respond to the need for changes generated by the review process.

To ensure that there is enough time for the research ethics approval process, make sure that plans for research activities involving human participants are discussed with supervisors, co-researchers, and partners at least 3 months before the expected start of research activities involving participants.

As a rule of thumb, plan to submit applications:

• For applications requiring delegated board review, 1 month in advance of the research activities (see level 2 & 3 of The Risk & Review Tool).

For applications requiring full board review in a meeting of the ECU-REB, 2 months in advance of the research activities (see level 4 of The Risk & Review Tool).

In general, the ECU-REB meets to perform full board reviews (see level 4 of The Risk & Review Tool) once or twice during the fall and spring semesters. The ECU-REB schedules meetings on an as-needed basis. There are no full board review meetings available in July or August.

To ensure that there is time for these revisions, you are invited to work with the research ethics coordinator to appropriately schedule the review. For applications that need to be reviewed at a scheduled full board meeting, please make your applications available for pre-reading and distribution at least 2 weeks in advance of the meeting date.

If you think your project will require the full board for a review, contact the Research Ethics Coordinator to discuss the timing of reviews.