Montclair State University requires that all faculty, staff, students, and visitors who conduct research that involves human participants complete a training program on the protection of human participants. The University has selected the CITI program to meet this requirement.
CITI Instructions for New Users (PDF)
“The Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI Program) is a web-based training platform that was founded in 2000 as a collaboration between the University of Miami and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Montclair State University joins more than 1,500 institutions and organizations and 2.8 million people committed to research ethics.” Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative, Retrieved November 1, 2011, from www.citiprogram.org
Remember that if you are a student transitioning to graduate school or to a career at any one of the other participating institutions, your certification can transfer with you!
FAQs
- How do I log in (new users)?
- How do I log in (returning users)?
- What will I learn in taking the CITI human subjects course?
- How long does it take to complete the CITI course?
- How do I print a completion report/certificate?
- How long is my CITI certification valid for?
- I took CITI training at another institution. Will my certification transfer?
- Will I be required to complete additional modules?
- Do the CITI trainings come in any additional formats?
How do I log in (new users)?
If you are a new user, you will be asked to register:
- From the CITI website click on “Register Here” and select Montclair State University under Participating Institutions.
- Choose a Username and Password.
- Enter your name.
- Enter your email address.
- Users will be prompted to complete the several registration pages.
- Users will be presented with several Curriculum choices. The module called “Human Subjects Research” (question 1) is the only group required for IRB certification at Montclair State University. You may choose the subsection of Question 1 based on what area your research will be in.
- Under “My Courses,” click on the Enter link beside the course for which you have registered.
- Complete the “Integrity Assurance Statement.”
- Complete the required modules to finalize your certification. When all modules are completed with an overall score of 80%, CITI will issue you a “completion report.” At that point, your name and certification expiration date will be entered in a database accessible to the IRB office.
CITI Instructions for New Users (PDF)
How do I log in (returning users)?
Returning users may simply log in to the CITI website and affiliate with Montclair State University to complete their training. If prior login information has been forgotten, click on the forgot login information link to recover login information.
- From your main menu, click on the link “affiliate with another institution.”
- Choose Montclair State University from the appropriate drop-down menu.
- Answer the member information questions required by your newly affiliated institution.
- Enroll in the course(s) required by your newly affiliated institution.
What will I learn in taking the CITI human subjects course?
You will be able to:
- explain the definition of research
- explain the definition of a human subject
- describe the differences between private and public information and behavior.
- recognize the elements of consent
- distinguish between privacy and confidentiality
- identify privacy risks associated with study designs
- identify laws that limit the ability to ensure confidentiality
- identify the three ethical principles described in the Belmont Report
- provide examples of how the ethical principles can be applied to research in the social and behavioral sciences, education, and the humanities
- plus much more…
How long does it take to complete the CITI course?
It is not recommended that you try to take the CITI course in one sitting. The CITI program is designed so that you can easily exit and re-enter modules at your convenience. The estimated time for completion is anywhere from two to four hours.
How do I print a completion report/certificate?
After completing a course, your learner menu will display an option for “print” under status for the course.
If you do not see the course on your Main Menu, click on the link called “previous coursework completed” to access older course completion reports.
How long is my CITI certification valid for?
Your human subjects training is valid for three years. CITI will send you an automatic email reminder with ample time to complete the refresher modules. The refresher modules are significantly shorter than the original modules taken for the initial course. More information on Human Subjects Training Expiration and refreshers.
UPDATE: CITI HSR Training includes 1 basic training followed by 2 refresher training courses required at 3 and 6 years after completion of the basic training. After completion of the basic and refresher trainings a repeat of the basic and 2 refresher trainings will be due again in 10 years time. For example, if the second refresher training is completed on 1/1/21 the next basic training will not be due again until 1/1/31.
I took CITI training at another institution. Will my certification transfer?
Returning users may simply log in to the CITI website and affiliate with Montclair State University to assess if the training completed is equivalent with the required University training. Some users may have to take additional modules.
To affiliate with Montclair State University after login to CITI:
- From your main menu click on the link “affiliate with another institution.”
- Choose Montclair State University from the appropriate drop down menu.
- Answer the member information questions required by your newly affiliated institution.
- Enroll in the course(s) required by your newly affiliated institution.
Will I be required to complete other modules in addition to the basic Human Subjects course?
Not only will the CITI program improve the human subjects protections training you receive, but it also allows for added protections that permit you to take modules specifically suited to your research. For researchers working in specific areas or with specific populations, we may require additional modules, i.e., if you are doing research in elementary or high schools, we may require that you take a specific module as part of your training before receiving approval to work with those populations of participants.
Do the CITI trainings come in any additional formats?
The majority of CITI trainings include modules requiring users to watch educational videos, which may be problematic for researchers with visual impairments and/or sensitivities. As an alternative, CITI offers audio-visual formats, in addition to its classic formats, for most courses. In the audio-visual format, a slideshow presentation replaces actual videos, with the option to turn on audio narration as well. For instructions on how to turn on audio-visual format, as well as a list of CITI courses that offer it, please refer to the CITI website.
For further questions regarding CITI training accessibility issues, please contact our office.