Human Research Protection Program/Institutional Review Board

At the OVPRI Human Research Protection Program (HRPP), our mission is to protect human subjects' rights, welfare, and safety through supporting scientifically sound research, minimizing potential risks to participants, and conveying clear information to participants and their communities on the risks and benefits of research.

The OVPRI Human Research Protection Program provides guidance and resources for researchers and IRB members at Virginia Commonwealth University. We review all research involving human participants to facilitate the conduct of ethical research and ensure compliance with federal, state and institutional regulations. 

Don't submit until you're ready. There are several ancillary reviews and processes that are required for different kinds of research that should take place before the IRB review. Use the Human research quick start guide* to develop a personalized list of ancillary requirements for your research.

*The human research quick start guide is a REDCap-based tool. Users make selections in the tool to describe aspects of their project, and the tool will generate a list of links, suggestions, and contacts to help get a research project off the ground and ready for IRB review! This list can be saved as a PDF and referenced again later.

Submit to the IRB

HRPP newsletter and blog

Stay in-the-know by signing up for the HRPP/IRB newsletter and tuning in to the HRPP blog! Sign up to receive important notices of upcoming events and training sessions, new resources, and more.

Would you like your research featured in one of our upcoming newsletters?
Please submit a request.

Did you miss the latest newsletter? View the latest newsletters below.

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Previous newsletters

Volume 012: October 2023 (HRPP News)
Volume 011: September 2023 (HRPP News)
Volume 010: August 2023 (HRPP News)
Volume 009: July 2023 (HRPP Toolkit)
Volume 008: June 2023 (The HRPP Transformation Project)
Volume 007: May 2023 (The HRPP Transformation Project)
Volume 006: April 2023 (The HRPP Transformation Project)
Volume 005: March 2023 (The HRPP Transformation Project)
Volume 004: Oct. 2022 (Research Ethics: Past, Present and Future)
Volume 003: July 2022 (New-to-VCU Investigators)
Volume 002: May 2022 (Independence of IRBs)
Volume 001: March 2022 (Reportable events)