Institutional Review Board

The University of Arkansas - Fort Smith Institutional Review Board (IRB) is responsible for the regulation and monitoring of all university research on or involving human subjects. The IRB must ensure that all federal and state regulatory requirements are met by the university.

The UAFS IRB is guided by the ethical principles regarding research involving human subjects set forth in the United States Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 45 Part 46 (45 CFR 46), Protection of Humans Subjects, Subparts A through D.

UAFS students who need human subjects research certification must complete the UAFS certification before applying to the IRB. This certification is free, and you may stop, save, and reenter at your convenience. Contact your professor to register and enroll in the UAFS online IRB – Human Research Training. Students need to save their successful certification for submission to the IRB.

Faculty or staff seeking IRB approval must also have Human Subject Research Training before submitting their IRB proposal.

Investigators are strongly encouraged to utilize the Human Subject Regulations Decision Charts to determine the appropriate level of IRB review to request or to determine if their research meets the definition of "human subject research."

All research proposals to IRB should be submitted at least one month prior to the start date of the research. No research may begin prior to approval.

All investigators should contact IRB@uafs.edu or Lisa-Marie.Norris@uafs.edu with any questions.