RCR for Faculty and Key Personnel

The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 altered the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) required training in the responsible conduct of research (RCR). Faculty and senior personnel with NSF funding must now also complete RCR training. This legislation also added new required topics as part of RCR training, including mentoring, mitigation of foreign influence on research outcomes, and federal export control. This new requirement is applicable to anyone funded on NSF proposals submitted on or after July 31, 2023. The Office of Research recommends that all NSF faculty and senior personnel complete training at their earliest opportunity to ensure they are compliant as soon as possible.

To help faculty and senior personnel meet this new NSF requirement, we have compiled a suite of resources on each of the required topics that faculty and staff may choose from to satisfy their requirements. Please note that these trainings do not need to be completed in any specific order, and that principal investigators are responsible for maintaining training records for their federally funded projects.

Complete RCR Training through CITI

To enroll in the applicable CITI courses:

1. Sign up for a CITI Account.
2. Affiliate with Boston University (please note that if you affiliate with Boston University Medical Campus through CITI, you will not be able to access the RCR course).
3. Select “Add a Course or Update Learner Groups”
4. Select the courses you need:
   • RCR Basic (Note: Faculty and research staff should either complete the basic course or sign up to be part of the EK800 instructor team by emailing burcr@bu.edu)
   • Undue Foreign Influence: Risks and Mitigations
   • Export Compliance

Complete Mentorship Training

Effective mentor training is aligned with an individual’s stage of career, their interests and mentoring context, and their specific growth areas or skill needs. As such, we are not requiring a singular program or approach for faculty and staff to meet this required topic. BU offers a range of opportunities to complete this training requirement:

• Provost Mentor Fellows, an in-person training program offered annually
• Mentoring workshops through our Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI)
• Programs and departments may request tailored mentoring workshops for faculty and research staff by emailing sch1@bu.edu
• Faculty on the Medical Campus can participate in mentoring workshops offered by Faculty Development & Diversity

There are also online resources available for mentor training:

• The Postdoc Academy (a BU-based initiative) has developed productive conversation frameworks to help faculty prepare for and have effective mentoring conversations with their trainees.
• The University of Minnesota has also developed several online courses through their CTSI program.