Rethinking the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Course

Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR; also referred to as Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research) courses are required for students funded by NIH training grants or NSF awards. Most university RCR courses closely follow the list of topics described by the NSF/NIH and use the low-effort, distributed teaching model described by the NIH. Recommended topics include research misconduct, data management, authorship, peer review, conflicts of interest, intellectual property, mentor/mentee relationships, collaboration, safety and regulatory processes, and ethics. While these topics prepare the student to become a responsible researcher, we also considered our responsibility as a department to provide students with tools to succeed. Specifically, we wanted this course to 1) build community, 2) provide students with skills to face challenges associated with graduate school, and 3) prepare the student to start their research project. To accomplish these goals, we incorporated additional topics and used an instructional model with a central instructor supported by faculty discussants during a subset of classes. The result is a course that is compatible with funding agency requirements but also helps to build a stronger community and formalize aspects of training that do not easily fit within technical courses.