Human Ethics

Volunteer Opportunity – Research Ethics Boards 

The Research Ethics Boards are accepting expressions of interest for Members with Legal Expertise.

Dalhousie University is committed to fostering a collegial culture grounded in diversity and inclusiveness. The university encourages applications from Indigenous persons, persons with a disability, racially visible persons, women, persons of a minority sexual orientation and/or gender identity, and all candidates who would contribute to the diversity of our community.

Governing ethical research conduct

Dalhousie has two research ethics boards that review all faculty and thesis research involving human participants, human biological material or human data:

    • Health Sciences Research Ethics Board
    • Social Sciences & Humanities Research Ethics Board

Faculty and students submitting their research projects for human ethics review must prepare their submissions using the appropriate forms and guidance documents.

The work of Research Ethics, as well as the work of the research ethics boards, is described in the Research Ethics Annual Report [PDF 878 kB].

Dalhousie's policy on the ethical conduct of research involving humans

This policy sets out the guiding principles that govern the ethical conduct of human research. It describes the various components of the university’s human research ethics review process, which supports the implementation of these principles. The policy's jurisdiction is also outlined, as are the requirements for institutional compliance with national standards. Read the policy on the ethical conduct of research involving humans.

All those conducting research with human participants, biological material or data must be familiar with and follow the above university policy above, as well as the Tri-Council Policy Statement (TCPS): Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. Departments where students conduct such research must ensure the appropriate ethics review and reporting activities are carried out according to this policy's requirements.

Course on research ethics

Researchers are strongly encouraged to complete the online tutorial, TCPS 2: Course on Research Ethics (CORE). CORE was designed to support the Canadian research community’s implementation of the second edition of the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2).

The Fundamentals of OCAP®

Researchers who propose to work with First Nations are strongly encouraged to complete the online training, The Fundamentals of OCAP^®. This self-guided course takes learners through seven modules that are designed to introduce the fundamental concepts of OCAP^®, information governance, and First Nations data sovereignty.