The HRPP has identified the most common reasons a submission is returned for corrections. Ensuring you have addressed the items identified below prior to submission can significantly reduce your review time. The HRPP website offers substantial guidance and FAQs to assist you. We encourage you to review the information relevant to your project prior to submitting your application in order to avoid common errors that can delay the review.

Submissions may be returned without review for the following issues:

  • Application and/or documents containing conflicting or inconsistent information.
  • Application inaccurately describes data collection and/or data in the submission materials (e.g. ‘anonymous’, ‘confidential’, ‘de-identified’, etc.). See IRB guidance Glossary of Research and IRB-Related Terms.
  • Application is missing documents (e.g. letters of support, consent forms, study instruments, recruitment documents, eligibility screening documents, etc.)
  • Application contains materials that are incomplete, include jargon, or have not received a substantive review by the PI.
  • Application lacks adequate information about external collaborations. Additional review requirements may apply when OSU investigators are dually affiliated or appointed, or when projects involve non-OSU collaborators who are affiliated with an institution that has their own IRB. The OSU investigator and/or external collaborator should reach out to that institution’s IRB to inquire about their review requirements prior to submitting to the OSU IRB in order to provide the relevant information for the OSU submission.   
  • Application contains poorly written materials. Contact Dennis Bennett at the Writing Center if you would like help improving the quality of protocol and consent documents 
  • Application does not comply with one or more OSU IRB policies. Some projects involve additional considerations (e.g. students and employees as research participants, research involving deception or incomplete disclosure, international research, etc.). The application materials should include all the required elements outlined in the policy (e.g. if you wish to use education records for research purposes, you may need prior permission from the Office of the Registrar.) 
  • Consent forms are not written in language readily understood by the target population.

Tips for Ancillary Study Documents in Cayuse

  • Use MS Word versions of documents whenever possible.
  • Do not use “Track changes” when editing your Word or PDF files, even when you've been asked to make revisions.
  • With rare exceptions, the IRB cannot approve content provided via a URL or hyperlink. Submit all relevant study documents or text as static files, such as a PDF, image or MS Word document.
  • Avoid uploading documents in the Word RTF format; certain RTF characters will result in errors that you must revise prior to approval.
  • Avoid duplicating standalone and embedded documents or materials (e.g. don’t include the recruitment or consent text both in the application itself and again as an attachment, and don’t provide a standalone consent document and then also include the same consent text at the beginning of the survey instrument, etc.). Doing so mean you need to revise or correct multiple documents in the application.

The HRPP office also offers faculty and student advising. Our advising sessions are an opportunity to ask specific questions about your project, an IRB policy, and/or general questions about the IRB review process. Please be aware that advising sessions cannot be used as a pre-review of your application and documents; they are limited in scope to answering pre-submission inquiries.