What is an IRB

IRB stands for Institutional Review Board. An IRB is an autonomous committee whose role is to review research with the primary emphasis on maximizing the protection of the rights and welfare of human participants. Research that is funded or supported by the U.S. federal government is required to adhere to the federal regulatory requirements for protection of human participants. However, Aspen University requires the same standards for all dissertation research and doctoral projects irrespective of funding source. The IRB is also used to ensure university compliance with HIPAA, FERPA and similar information privacy protection requirements.

While the composition of the IRB may change over time, consistent with federal regulation, the Aspen IRB has at least five members with varying backgrounds promoting a comprehensive review of activities commonly conducted by the Aspen University community. You will learn details about the IRB during your CITI training (described below). Appendix A also offers additional resources.