Institutional Review Board

The Institutional Review Board (IRB) facilitates and promotes the ethical conduct of research with human subjects at Farmingdale State College. The IRB is the administrative body that oversees the conduct of research involving human subjects at Farmingdale State College.

Our mission is to protect the rights and welfare of participants in human research. The IRB supports, facilitates and promotes the ethical conduct of research involving humans.
There is one IRB committee on campus and it reviews, approves and monitors all research involving human subjects. The IRB offers services in support of research and compliance with federal, state, and institutional regulations governing human subject protections.

The IRB Administrator can provide you with:

What you need to know about human subjects research and what you need to consider when developing your research proposals.
The information you need to conduct your research and remain in compliance.
Ongoing education on human subject research issues through computer based training.

Does my project need IRB approval?

Any project that involves the collection of data from human subjects may require review and approval by the Farmingdale State College Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to data collection.
Projects that involve opinion surveys, educational tests, focus groups and other data collection methods are likely to require IRB approval.
Some projects may involve data collection that is not considered research with human subjects and these projects do not need review/approval of the IRB.

The key defining factor of whether a project is considered research with human subjects requiring IRB review is whether the purpose of collecting the data is to answer a universal question that would apply outside the walls of Farmingdale State College. In other words, if the data are collected solely for our own internal "program evaluation" (such as internal course evaluation or college policy assessment) it is not considered "generalizable knowledge" and such program evaluation does not require IRB review. On the other hand, if the data have any relevance to answer research questions outside of our institution, it is considered research with human subjects and would require IRB review.

In practical terms, if the data could lead to publication/presentation in any venue outside of Farmingdale State College (conference presentation, scientific journal, educational journal, etc.) then obviously the data are answering some aspect of generalizable knowledge and the project would, therefore, require IRB review. Please note, the IRB is not able to provide retroactive approvals so if there is any possibility that the project may lead to information that would be presentable/publishable in the future, the project must receive IRB approval before initiating data collection. IRB members are always available to discuss a prospective project with a researcher to help determine whether IRB review is required.

If you believe that your project does not meet the definition of research, and thus would not require IRB review, please complete the IRB Questionnaire. The IRB will make the final determination as to whether your project meets the definition of research.

Forms & Policies