All email queries: STA-researchethics@sta.uwi.edu
New Applications
- All named Investigators must Complete the Online CITI Research Ethics Course. Instructions for accessing the course.
- Review Applicant Manual - Updated February 16 2023
- Log into UWIScholar - Students: Register for UWI Scholar Account (click here for more information); Staff: Enter staff email address as username and click "forgot password" to set your password.
- Fill out the "Research Proposal" and "Investigators Information" Forms
- Upload all supporting documents
- CITI completion certificates
- Data Collection Instruments - Surveys, Questionnaires, Interview Guides
- Consent Forms
- Assurance Form - when conducting Research at UWI (staff/students as participants)
- Letters granting or seeking permission of organization(s) that are research sites
- PI/Supervisor Authorizations
- Submit Application - make sure you click the "Submit Application" button.
NOTE: Applications should be submitted using Principal Investigator UWIScholar profiles. We note however, that many students/research assistants are submitting applications via their (student) user profiles on behalf of the research group. In such cases, verification of the submission by the Principal Investigator(PI) must be done by any one of the following:
- a letter signed by the PI acknowledging the submission can be uploaded with the other application documents in the application portal
- an email from PI's official UWI email account to STA-researchethics@sta.uwi.edu quoting the title of the research project and the reference number (this is generated once the application is submitted)
Student Applicants may follow disciplinary norms when deciding to list the student or the Supervisor as the Principal Investigator. Students are advised to discuss this matter with their Supervisors prior to submitting applications. All applications must be accompanied by Supervisors acknowledgment. Please follow instructions above to submit Supervisors Authorization/Acknowledgment.
Resubmitting amended applications
- An email notification will advise you if your application requires changes
- Review pages 12 to 13 of the Applicant Manual
- Log Into UWIScholar
- Navigate to relevant application in the Research Ethics Module under "Open Applications"
- Revise the application
- Submit Application - make sure you click the "Submit Application" button
Requests for Extension or Modification of Approval - Updated December 2021
- Review pages 14 to 15 of the Applicant Manual
- Log Into UWIScholar
- Navigate to relevant application in the Research Ethics Module
- Click on the link "Extension/Modification"
- Complete the form, upload supporting documents
- Submit application for Extension/Modification
Intellectual Property Help Desk
The UWI Intellectual Property Help Desk now operates virtually to support graduate students. For details or to make an appointment, click here.
- After submission of applications a pre-screen will be conducted to determine the category of review: Full, Expedited, Exemption and Waiver and whether all supporting are submitted etc.
- Exemptions (Human Subject) and Waivers (Non-Human Subject Research)
- These applications will be processed as submitted (daily) - average processing time is 1 week
- Click here for more information on applications that meet criteria for Exemption
- Please note that for applications that may meet the criteria for Waiver of Review impact on human subjects, animals and the environment will be considered and may require the application to receive more detailed review by the Committee.
- Full and Expedited Reviews will be conducted on a monthly cycle
- The Deadline for applications is the first Thursday of each month
- Expedited applications average processing time is 2 weeks after the respective deadline
- Full Review applications require full committee review. Committee Meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month and responses to applications are usually dispatched within a few days of the meetings. Please note there is no review cycle for December
- Revised and Resubmitted applications average processing time is 1 week, unless full committee review is required of the resubmission.
- Modification/Extension applications average processing time is 1 week.
All applicants who use The UWI as a Research Site i.e. will interview staff, students or collect secondary institutional data should complete the Assurance Form and upload this along with the request for approval in the UWIScholar portal. As at April 2021 The review of nominess of the Office of the Campus Registrar is included in the Research Ethics Review process.
External researchers (persons who are not staff or students of The UWI) who intend to use The UWI as a Research Site (to interview staff, students or collect secondary institutional data) please send an email of introduction to STA-researchethics@sta.uwi.edu for instructions on submission.
External Researchers who wish to conduct research in Trinidad & Tobago or the wider Caribbean Region should consult with the Ministry of Health or the CARPHA website that provides a listing of all Research Ethics Committees (IRB's) across the region (CARNEC).
Sample Completed Consent Forms
Templates for Consent Forms that can be edited by researchers and uploaded with applications
Listing of government-run mental health services in Trinidad & Tobago - Link to gov.tt website
Campus Research Ethics Committee Members 2023-2026
Prof. Rahul Naidu - Chair
Dr. Talia Esnard - Deputy Chair
Prof. Duraisamy Saravanakumar – Director, Graduate Studies and Research
Faculty of Engineering
Faculty of Food and Agriculture
Faculty of Humanities and Education
- Dr. Karen Sanderson-Cole
- Dr. Korrine Louison
Faculty of Law
Faculty of Medical Sciences
- Dr. Averell Bethelmy
- Prof. Christopher Oura (Animal Reviews)
- Dr. Dale Ventour
- Prof. Donald Simeon
- Dr. Jenelle Johnson (Animal Reviews)
- Dr. Venkatesan Sundaram (Animal Reviews)
Faculty of Science and Technology
- Prof. Shirin Haque
- Dr. Luke Rostant (Animal Reviews)
Faculty of Social Sciences
- ChandraShekhar Bhatnagar
- Dr. Cheryl-Ann Boodram
- Dr. Christine Descartes
Institute for Gender and Development Studies
- Dr. Angelique Nixon
- Dr. Deborah McFee
Non-UWI Community Members
- Dr. Avery Hinds
- Mr. Jason Alexander
Contact Information for the Committee
Prof. Rahul Naidu
Chair
Campus Research Ethics Committee
The UWI, St. Augustine
Email: STA-researchethics@sta.uwi.edu
General queries by staff/students and external researchers: STA-researchethics@sta.uwi.edu
